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About 2022 SNAAZ
Industry Conference

Join us on April 11th and 12th in the beautiful Tucson, Arizona for our School Nutrition Industry Conference.  

After two long years, we are thrilled to be back in-person with our conference theme of “Better Together: Leading the Way for School Nutrition.” Whether you are an industry member, director, or supervisor, you will walk away from this event feeling refueled to lead your teams into the next school year.

 

Our keynote speaker, Candy Whirley, will give a captivating presentation on the “4 C’s of Leadership” and an additional breakout session on Emotional Intelligence. In addition, SNAAZ’s Executive Director, Craig Weidel, is providing an incredible session on “Persuasion Power 2.0”. School Districts will the opportunity to meet individually with manufacturers at the vendor show, to make upcoming menu plans and share ideas with school nutrition professionals.

Conference
Agenda

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2023

RENAISSANCE DOWNTOWN PHOENIX HOTEL

9:45 – 11:45 AM

(Kathy Glindmeier & Debbie McCarron)

Kathy Glindmeier & Debbie McCarron           Meeting Level (up escalator from Hotel Lobby)

A comprehensive look at managing a CN program including menu design, financial management, NSLP/CACFP compliance, staffing, and professional growth. This interactive workshop will include resources and best practice examples for child nutrition supervisors and food service directors.

01:00 – 05:00 PM

(Institute of Child Nutrition Facilitator)

Erica Glaze, ICN Facilitator                                Meeting Level (up escalator from Hotel Lobby)       Managing Personalities and Conflict is designed to help participants identify the many factors that may influence how people react and respond to conflict. Self-reflection is a critical component of this training that aims to help identify characteristics of their own personalities and attitudes, in addition to any existing biases and stereotypes. Finally, participants will engage in identifying non-productive behaviors and in building skills that will help promote successful conflict resolution.

03:00 – 06:00 PM

(SNAAZ)

Registration for Friday will be held in the Meeting Level, just off the first floor and up the escalator to follow the signs to registration at the Renaissance Hotel Downtown.

03:30 – 05:00 PM

(FLA Committee)

This special class will be for our 2023-24 Future Leaders Academy students and is only open to them.  This class will take place on the Meeting Level floor of the Renaissance Hotel Downtown Phoenix.

06:00 – 10:30 PM

(SNAAZ)

Join us for a fun-filled night of casual conversation and heavy appetizers. This year we will have a DJ along with caricaturists and a fun new and exciting photo booth experience. And you will also want to check out the great SNAAZ fundraising activity with lots and lots of great baskets.  Be sure to wear your favorite Mardi Gras mask and costume as you chat and mingle with your favorite colleagues and industry friends.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

PHOENIX CONVENTION CENTER SOUTH BUILDING

06:30 – 07:15 AM

(Wendy Sahr)

Meet in the Renaissance Hotel Lobby and join Wendy for an invigorating walk in beautiful downtown Phoenix.

07:00 – 10:30 AM

(SNAAZ)

If you didn’t get a chance to register on Friday, no worries our SNAAZ Conference Registration booth will be located in the Lobby of the Phoenix Convention Center South – Hall G.

07:30 – 8:15 AM

Be sure to join us for a scrumptious sit down breakfast so you can fuel your body for a full day of fun and learning.

8:15 – 09:45 AM

(Rooms 150-159)

Pledge of Allegiance 

Opening Remarks       Patti Bilbrey, SNAAZ President

“Grit-Grind-Gratitude – The Essentials of Greatness”   Vanessa Hayes

Join Vanessa in this wonderful keynote address as she shares a framework for a step by step self-inventory account of what is working and what is not in your life. Plus, you will leave with a magnified view of what life has to offer when operating at your highest capacity.

09:45 – 09:55 PM

09:55 – 10:50 AM

(Rooms 150-159)

“CN Leadership Skills and Employee Retention”          Tyler Ross             Rooms 150-159     

What are the most important leadership skills for child nutrition?  No matter if you are a  new or seasoned child nutrition leader this presentation will delve into some great insights and concepts for successful leadership as it applies to the profession of child nutrition.  Tyler will also share some great ideas to keep employees happy, busy, and willing to stay with you.       

09:55 – 10:50 AM

  1. “How Do You Bring Value To The Workplace”       Lori Adkins          Rooms 160-161
    Establishing who someone is and the value they bring to an organization are key components of communication in the workplace.  In this breakout, participants will explore frameworks and tools they can employ to be more effective at communicating who they are and the value they bring to their organization.  Join Lori as she takes a deep dive into the skills you will need to understand your audience, and how to develop an effective introduction for a specific audience.
  2. “Mindful VS Mindless Eating”                                    Erika Vega       Rooms    162-163
    Mindless eating, who me?  Why do we eat what we eat?  Do you think packaging, colors, smells, shapes, labels, or advertising affects what we eat?  Most of us are totally unaware of what really influences how much we eat on a daily basis and more importantly why we eat what we eat.  This fascinating presentation will uncover some of the secrets behind the effects of the above factors to help you be more conscious and mindful about what and why eating habits are so important to our health and well-being.
  3. “Amazing Ideas For Your CN Program From An Amazing Arizona District”                                                                                                                       Gilbert USD Team      Rooms 164-165
    Join Gilbert Team as they show you some creative ways to get your food service program noticed and appreciated.  Practical and fun suggestions including pictures and videos will be discussed with you, our amazing CN professionals from all over the state of Arizona.
  4. “Slips, Falls, Cuts, And Burns Oh My!”                      David Frandsen        Rooms 166-167
    Come excited and prepared to learn how to help keep your staff safe in the kitchen.  Join Dave as he discusses best practices for general kitchen safety, as well as the importance of training and educating staff on how to safely perform their job 100% of the time.

11:00 – 01:05 PM

(Hall G)

This session is only open to Directors/Supervisors/Buyers of school districts.

11:00 – 11:55 AM

  1. “How Do You Bring Value To The Workplace”            Lori Adkins     Rooms 160-161
    See education session one for the description above.
  2. “Mindful VS Mindless Eating”                                        Erika Vega     Rooms 162-163
    See education session one for the description above.
  3. “Pillars, Rhythms, And Margins”                                Vanessa Hayes     Rooms 164-165
    In order to bring order to your life you must make room to live!  Most of us spend time working, saving, and hoping for a different life than the one we have … if we implement then identify these core spaces, we will have the life that we long for.  Sometimes it’s right in front of you!  We have to decide to love us as much as we love everyone else and begin to identify the things that satisfy our gaps or deficits.
  4. “Trabajo En Equipo Y Servicio Al Cliente Para La Nutricion Infantil”                                                                                                                                       Laura Gasca          Rooms 166-167     
    Unete a Laura para aprender algunas nuevas ideas para mejorar su trabajo en equipo y habilidades de servicio al cliente.

12:05 – 01:00 PM

  1. “Slips, Falls, Cuts, And Burns Oh My!”                          David Frandsen        Rooms 160-161
    See education session one for the class description above.
  2. “Amazing Ideas For Your CN Program From An Amazing Arizona District”                                                                                                                            Top AZ School District Team    Rooms 162-163
    See education session one for the class description above.
  3. “Pillars, Rhythms, And Margins”                                    Vanessa Hayes     Rooms 164-165
    See education session two for the class description above.
  4. “Trabajo En Equipo Y Servicio Al Cliente Para La Nutricion Infantil”                                                                                                                                       Laura Gasca              Rooms 166-167
    Vea la segunda session educativa para ver la descripcion de la clase anterior.

01:05 – 02:45 PM

(Hall G)

The Exhibit Hall is NOW OPEN for all attendees.  Don’t forget as you visit exhibit booths to be sure to thank our industry friends for being there and sharing all there information with you.

Educational Sessions

We’ve got great educational content on critical school nutrition topics this year
pre-recorded educational sessions-01
Education Session One – “The Power Of Persuasion 2.0” – Craig Weidel, SNS, MNLP., MHT.

Have you ever just met someone for the first time and within minutes feel as if you have been friends for a lifetime? Why is this and how does persuasion play into it? One of the reasons is because persuasion is all around you both consciously and subconsciously. This engaging and interesting program is geared toward giving you a better understanding of just how you can become a better connector, communicator, and persuader for both your personal and professional life. You will learn some quick and easy ways to guide and influence others from the fascinating field of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming).

pre-recorded educational sessions-01
Education Session Two – “Emotional Intelligence – Get Off The Roller Coaster” – Candy Whirley, MS, CSP.

Have you ever had someone know just what buttons to push! We all have … that’s why Candy loves to teach folks how to get their emotions under control. In this education session you will laugh and learn about your emotions and how to CALM DOWN without someone saying, “CALM DOWN!” We will analyze your emotions by exploring what aggravates you by knowing exactly what tics you off! Then we will discuss how to manage the obstacles so you can choose your emotions by being proactive NOT reactive. By the end of this session, you will be able to recognize the emotions in people who are not like you! Simple … right? Take Aways: • Know your emotions so you can be PROACTIVE not reactive • Manage your emotions with Candy’s 3-step process that you can use the second you leave the conference in any situation • Learn to Choose your emotions in unpredictable situations • Recognize the personality differences and the emotional characteristics so you can effectively work with people who are NOT like you

2022 SNIC Corporate Partners

JTM Food Group

Keynote Address Sponsor
Learn more

MCI Los Cabos

Monday Lunch Sponsor
Learn more

Shamrock Foods

Monday Dinner Sponsors
Learn more

Integrated Foodservice

Monday Dinner Sponsors
Learn more

Buena Vista Foods

Monday Break Sponsor
Learn more

McCain Foods

Tuesday Breakfast Sponsors
Learn more

LINQ/Titan

Tuesday Breakfast Sponsors
Learn more

Darlington Farms

Tuesday Energy Break
Learn more

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The summer heat has been blazing, but at SNAAZ we’re ON FIRE with conference planning. Yes, we certainly sizzle, but we also have the “coolest” members around. To celebrate you, the conference committee has been planning to let the good times roll at our 67th Annual State Conference. The committee has some awesome plans up their sleeves for rolling out a parade of great education breakouts.

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