Tour information coming

TAIRS appreciates the generous support and partnership of the following 2011 TAIRS Conference sponsors.

**** EVENTS ****

Lone Star River Boat Event- October 5th 6:30-9:00pm

All aboard the Lone Star Riverboat for a private tour of Lady Bird Lake. Experience the exhilaration of the outdoors, the abundant waterfowl, the city skyline and witness the spectacular emergence of the world famous Mexican free tail bats on this sunset/bat watching cruise! The cruise departs just behind the conference hotel and includes the two hour narrated tour, drinks and light Hors d'œuvres

Riverboat Rides

City of Austin 3-1-1 – 10/4 – 2:00-3:30

Description of the Tour: We will tour the 80 specialist call center that provide information to callers regarding all City departments and accept requests for service for a growing list of departments including: Parks & Recreation, Watershed Protection & Development, Solid Waste Services, Health & Human Services, Public Works, AE Utility Call Center After Hours, and APD Non-Emergency. The tour includes a visit of the facilities as well.

Front Steps – 10/4 – 10:30-12:00

Description of the Tour: In the tour where will visit the facilities of Front Steps that provides day resources to over 800 homeless men and women daily in the downtown area, and provides emergency overnight shelter to 215 men each night. With support from the City of Austin, Front Steps has transformed the ARCH from a day drop-in center with limited services into a 24/7 social service center providing shelter, showers, basic needs, comprehensive case management / support services, and permanent supportive housing programs. Eight other homeless service providers are co-located at the ARCH, making many of the area’s homeless resources available under one roof. We will end the tour by break up into separate groups for a question and answer session.

Caritas of Austin – 10/4 – 10:30-12:00

Description of the Tour: Visit the facility and learn about the services provided. Visit the case management center where our goal at Caritas is to help Travis County individuals and families facing homelessness or a housing crisis to access housing or attain housing stability. Caritas has a range of services to offer, from emergency rent/utilities assistance to long term housing provision. We will also tour the community kitchen where Caritas of Austin provides free lunches—no questions asked—to over 350 individuals and families every Monday through Saturday. Finally we will tour the food pantry where Caritas of Austin provides take-home groceries to our clients in crisis.

Educational Intensives: $40 per person

General I&RABCs of I&R presented by Janna Shoe and Toni Gutierrez—10/4—2-5

In this interactive workshop, participants will learn the basics of I&R including the assessment, referral and follow-up process. Participants will also learn about several of the best practices associated with the I&R field and increase their knowledge about the professional standards and where to locate other resources to further their advancement in the field of I&R. Workshop members will have the opportunity to be involved in small group work to ‘solve’ various I&R scenarios

-Taxonomy

DataPalooza! Presented by Cathleen Kelly – 10/4—2-5

The Intensive is intended for advanced resource specialists who want to work with their peers to explore the higher levels of CRS excellence. Everyone attending should already have a firm understanding of resource database issues. This session will be into a series of ‘hot topics’ covering all of the key challenges of the position with an emphasis on drawing on the collective experience and problem-solving skills of your peer professionals. Registrants will be contacted before the session for “challenges and examples”. Note that this is an open and participatory session, rather than “here are the solutions”.

AIRS Certification Exams At TAIRS

AIRS Certification is a professional credentialing program for individuals working within the I&R sector of human services.

Certification is a measurement of documented ability in the field of I&R reflecting specific competencies and related performance criteria, which describe the knowledge, skills, attitudes and work-related behaviors needed by I&R practitioners to successfully execute their duties. The AIRS Certification Program is operated in alignment with the standards provided by the National Organization for Competency Assurance

The following Certification exams will be offered at the TAIRS:

Certified Information & Referral Specialist (CIRS),
Certified Resource Specialist (CRS)

Testing Dates

CIRS and CRS

October 4, 2011
2:00PM - 4:00PM

October 6, 2011
10:00AM - 12:00PM

To be eligible for testing, one must submit completed application and appropriate fees to AIRS 30 days prior to the exam date. Applications, eligibility requirements and instructions for applying are available at www.airs.org/certification or by calling 703-218-AIRS, ext.201.
There are no additional testing fees for paid conference attendees. An additional $20 fee will be
assessed for those not attending the conference.