Information for Families

We would like to formally announce that JALT2017 is a family friendly space. All attendees are welcome to bring their children to this event.
One guardian can accompany you without charge if you would like to have a guardian available during the conference. For insurance purposes we need to register all participants so we will need the name of each child and guardian. If you are registering online please send an email to Junko Shirakawa at jco@jalt.org and if you are registering onsite, please provide this information at the registration help desk. 
We attempted to arrange onsite care but were unsuccessful in this pursuit. We understand that some parents may not have a guardian that can travel with them so we would like to provide contact details of a place that offers flexible childcare services. We have been able to locate some child care agencies in the local area for those who need them. Unfortunately, information is only available in Japanese but we hope it proves useful. See the attached file (below) for details. We hope that providing such information will help some families but please understand that we will not directly organize childcare and all arrangements should be made directly between families and childcare agencies. However, if you are considering hiring a paid carer during the conference, please send a message to JALT’s Director of Program, Louise Ohashi, at program@jalt.org as this will help us to assess demand for this for each day of the conference.
We would also like to announce that we will have a small room available for families. Room 305 will be available during the following times:
17 November: 1pm-8:45pm
18 and 19 November: 9am-8:45pm
20 November: 9am-4:15pm 
Families are welcome throughout the venue, but if you would like a more private space to eat, drink or relax, please drop by. This room has traditional “tatami” flooring so children will have space to play. JALT’s Director of Program will bring a small supply of her daughter’s toys for your children to play with. Please feel free to use them and bring some that your children like.
We hope that you and your family enjoy JALT2017!