About Conferences and Workshops

The Department of Conferences and Workshops, with Steven W. Taggart as Director, has 11 administrative employees, 9 staff, and 30 students. The department is divided into 5 administrative units (plus the Conference Center). Each college on campus is assigned to one of these units.

The mission of BYU Conferences and Workshops is to assist the university’s colleges, schools, departments, and related entities in extending their finest scholarship, teaching, and creative work to the larger church and university communities.

Our efforts are guided by:

• The teachings and principles of the restored Gospel and a commitment to the larger Church and University missions;
• A love of lifelong learning;
• A desire to highlight, complement, and share the best the University has to offer;
• A commitment to support the University’s teaching, research, and creative activities by providing excellent administrative and logistical support;
• A desire to provide high quality programs, at a fair price, and in a self-sustaining manner.

The Department of Conferences and Workshops has one of the most diverse curriculum offerings in the Division of Continuing Education - providing both noncredit and credit programs, primarily in cooperation with academic colleges and departments. Noncredit programs include conferences, workshops, symposia, short courses, seminars, association meetings, test-prep courses, and youth camps. Graduate and degree-seeking credit programs are also offered. Programs utilize both campus and off-campus facilities in extending University offerings to alumni, the campus community, other adults, and youth.

The Department of Conferences and Workshops offers several hundred programs each year. Approximately 80% of the programs continue from year-to-year, while 20% are new. Included among the new programs are professional association meetings that move to a different university each year. Conferences and Workshops sees its role as supporting the academic colleges and departments in their outreach efforts. Given that relationship, programs adjust to reflect changing priorities and shifts in vision across campus. At times this department also functions as an experimental arm of the academic colleges and departments, testing new program ideas for soundness and feasibility.

The increasing use of technology allows us to share more and more of our program content with those who cannot come to campus. For example, the Women’s Conference is now broadcast by both KBYU TV and satellite with offerings in both English and Spanish. Sessions of the Family Expo and Management Conference were video taped for later use. An increasing list of programs also post selected addresses to the World Wide Web. However, the on-campus experience provided by conferences and workshops will continue to be an important part of the BYU experience for alumni and others who are unable to be full-time students.