Special Award Organization Judging Information

Overview of Judging Schedule

TUESDAY, May 14, 2013

Registration, Welcome and Pre-judging

Special Awards Judges may register in the morning. Judges will receive a name badge that will have a red ribbon to designate a Special Award judge. Additionally, judges will receive a schedule, a Finalist Directory listing the finalists and project titles and other pertinent information. The name badge serves as official identification and is necessary for access to the judging areas. Immediately following registration, each judge should proceed to the SAO Judges Discussion Area to locate any fellow judges at the designated table for his/her organization.

Special Awards judges utilize the Tuesday period to caucus, preview the fair, and determine selection of projects to be included in their reviews, and/or make final assignments of projects to their judges.

Survey of Finalists' Projects (No Finalists present)

Judges may preview the finalists' projects beginning at 12:00 p.m. on Tuesday to determine the overall quality in all categories, not just their assigned categories. Because of the limited time period, judges should allot time for each category.

Special Awards judges should use this time to select those finalists' projects eligible for their organizations' awards. If possible, Special Awards judges should check ALL finalists' projects because a category does not always clearly indicate whether a project would meet the organization’s criteria.

There is scheduled an Excellence in Science and Technology Panel for Intel ISEF registrants on Tuesday afternoon. Judges are welcome to attend. Topics of this discussion will cover a wide range of subjects including the award recipients themselves, their scientific/engineering achievements and any other subject of interest that may be posed. It is hoped that this discussion will serve as a catalyst for the discussions the judges will have on Wednesday with the finalists.
A Judges' welcome and orientation will take place on Tuesday evening. This session includes a thorough look at the judging process with an emphasis on the Grand Award judging process followed by a question and answer period. In addition it provides an opportunity for:

• a welcome to judges,
• a final review of the judging process and necessary details,
• the circulation of any necessary announcements and information, and
• finally, answering any other questions before the judging process is initiated.

WEDNESDAY, May 15, 2013

Wednesday begins at 7:00 a.m. with a continental breakfast for all judges.

Judging Assignments

The sponsoring organization, through its designated judging leader, is responsible for establishing final assignments of their judges. The Intel ISEF Finalists' Directory serves as the initial source of topics, titles, and location of projects. To help Special Awards judges efficiently schedule their interview sessions, Society for Science & the Public will print a Finalists' schedule grid which will show the open periods when the finalists do not have a Grand Awards judging interview. Copies of these grids will be posted in the Exhibit halls and in the Judge's Discussion Area.

Judging Record Folder

On Tuesday afternoon, a Judging Record Folder will be placed in the working areas of each Special Awards judging group. This book will contain a reporting sheet to provide final certification of judging results for all awards. The Special Awards Leader of each judging group is responsible for the folder. Final Certification of results is not official until the Leader has:

• Returned the Judging Record Folder and its certification sheet to the Society for Science & the Public Judging Control Center;
• Reviewed computer generated documents to confirm proper inclusion of each award winner; and
• Signed and returned the printed documentation provided under item (2) with any previously distributed statistical data to the Judging Control Center. For Special Awards groups, the final awards certification sheet is also used to identify the person who will attend the actual awards session on behalf of the sponsor.

ALL RECORD FOLDERS, WITH FINAL AWARDS DOCUMENTATION AND ANY Society for Science & the Public PRODUCED STATISTICAL INFORMATION ON PROJECTS, MUST BE RECEIVED AT THE CONTROL CENTER BEFORE THE SPECIAL AWARDS LEADER LEAVES THE JUDGING AREA.

This includes all final awards documentation; any Society for Science & the Public produced statistical information, and all other judges' materials.

Schedule for Special Awards Judges, Intel ISEF 2013 – Phoenix, AZ