Get Started
Message from your Instructor
This message confirms that you have signed up for
Wow, What a Great Event!, a Fundamentals course that I will be teaching entirely online. I have prepared this document to help make your online educational experience as positive and enjoyable as possible. It contains contact information, a description of our course delivery system, course mechanics, and a course schedule.
How to get Started:
This course is conducted through an online classroom. You will need to go to this classroom to obtain your lessons, work through tutorials, take quizzes, complete assignments, participate in discussions with your fellow students, and ask questions of your instructor. As soon as the registration office verifies receipt of your payment, you will be able to participate. Here's how it works:
- Wait until after 12:00 a.m. (Pacific Time) on the start date for this course.
- After the course begins, go to
https://www.ed2go.com/vegaspbs/. The Online Classroom is open 24 hours a day and seven days a week, so please feel free to log in to your classroom at any time of day that is convenient for you.
- Once on the website, click the Login link at the top right of the page.
- Finally, log in with the username and password you provided us at the beginning of this orientation procedure. You should then be able to enter the online classroom and begin your studies.
Course Description
Are you planning a special event and could use some helpful advice? Considering event planning as a future career? Curious about what other event planners are doing? Need new ideas and resources? This event planning course has all that and more!
Discover how all the pieces in the event planning process fit together to make any size or type of event successful, whether it's for your family or friends, your employer, or your favorite charity. You'll learn about themes, venues, menus, entertainment, décor, and much, much more. You will develop skills, find resources, and gain confidence to plan any event. You'll gain access to event industry information compiled by and for event industry professionals. You'll be so excited with your newly gained confidence and expertise that you'll want to start planning your next event even before this course is over!
Course Requirements
Requirements:
Hardware Requirements:
- This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.
Software Requirements:
- PC: Windows 8 or later.
- Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
- Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader.
- Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
Other:
- Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.
Instructional Material Requirements:
The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.
Course Mechanics
I will make two lessons available to you every week for six weeks. You do not have to be present when a lesson is released, but you'll need to complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.
Once all 12 lessons have been released, I will give you a two-week grace period to complete your studies and take the final exam. This means that you have a total of eight weeks to complete this course. If you're thinking of taking another course after this one, you can avoid overlap by starting that course exactly two months after this one begins.
Lessons are released by 12:00am (Pacific Time) on Wednesdays and Fridays. To access your lessons, simply visit the online classroom (as described in the "Getting Started" section), and then click the lesson title you wish to visit.
Once the class access ends, I won't be able to send you the lessons. If you would like to keep the lessons for future reference, I suggest using the print lesson feature in the classroom.
Each time you complete a lesson, you will also be asked to complete a brief multiple-choice quiz. I expect you to complete each quiz within two weeks from the date that the corresponding lesson was made available. I realize that you are busy, and don't want you to worry if you can't complete a few of the quizzes on time due to illness, vacation, or other commitments. Once I release a lesson and quiz, I will make sure it is available to you as long as the classroom is open.
The interactive multiple-choice quizzes are designed to test your comprehension of the course material. When you complete a quiz, you will receive an instant analysis of your work.
This analysis will include a brief explanation of any errors you may have made. If you are not satisfied with your performance, you are welcome to re-take the quiz until you feel that you have mastered the quiz objectives.
Note: If you ever want to see a progress report showing your performance on the quizzes over time, simply return to
https://www.ed2go.com/vegaspbs/
and click Login or Account at the top right of the page. Once logged in, click the Report tab under the course title.
Some of your lessons will also be accompanied by an assignment. The assignments are designed to help you expand your understanding of the material taught in this course. Assignments are typically more detailed and may take a bit more time to work through than quizzes.
I expect you to complete each assignment within two weeks from the date that the corresponding lesson was made available. Unlike the quizzes, your assignments will not be evaluated. Assignments are designed primarily for your enrichment. You have the sole responsibility for evaluating your performance on each assignment. If you have questions about an assignment, please feel free to use the Discussion Areas to discuss your assignments with your fellow students and me.
When you work through an assignment, you will be gaining practical first-hand experience with the new skills taught in this course. Your performance on the final exam will depend in no small part on your mastery of the assignments.
The course will conclude with a final exam, which will test your comprehension of the material covered in this class. You must complete the final exam within two weeks from your receipt of lesson 12. Please review your selections before submitting. You may only submit your final exam answers once. Your performance on the final exam is the only factor we will consider when determining your eligibility for a certificate of completion. Although your quiz and assignments will not count toward your eligibility for a certificate, I do recommend that you try to complete each quiz and assignment to the best of your abilities. Doing so will leave you better prepared to pass the final exam.
When you finish your studies, please note that our classroom log-out process is fully automated. We will log you out of the classroom automatically whenever you close your browser or shut down your computer.
Questions
This course can be highly interactive, but the level of that interactivity is controlled by you. Since I can't see that puzzled look on your face, it's going to be up to you to ask questions when you get stuck.
I expect to get many interesting questions from you and your fellow students. I want to make sure that you and your classmates benefit from these often illuminating queries.
Therefore, I would like to request that you avoid e-mailing your questions to me. Instead, I have created 12 Discussion Areas in the online classroom (one Discussion Area for each lesson). To reach these Discussion Areas, all you will need to do is wait for the course to begin, go to the online classroom, select the lesson you're working on, and click the Discussion Area tile.
Your Discussion Area questions will serve as a challenge for your fellow students. Someone is bound to have an answer for you. Likewise, you should be able to find questions in the Discussion Area that you can answer. The Discussion Area will be open to you and your classmates 24 hours a day and seven days a week. Please try to visit the Discussion Area at least every other day while the course is in session, and don't be afraid to participate!
I firmly believe that the best way to learn a new skill is to teach it to others. We will all benefit by helping one another understand this complex material.
Because I don't want to see any unanswered questions, I (or one of my very capable teaching assistants) will be monitoring the Discussion Area at least every other day (excluding weekends and holidays). If you ask a relevant question, but fail to get a correct answer (or any answer whatsoever) from your classmates, then we will try our hardest to answer the question for you.
Please understand that the Discussion Area is reserved for conversations about the material in your lessons. While it is perfectly acceptable for you to employ a bit of friendly banter as you converse with your fellow students and instructors, I must ask you to always remember to stay on topic.
It is not appropriate to use the Discussion Area to sell goods or services, complain about something, or talk about subjects that are not specific to the lesson at hand, for example. Such off-topic conversations waste people's time and detract from the learning experience for all involved. I reserve the right to immediately delete any message without comment if I feel that it does not pertain directly to the material I am trying to teach.
I will also delete any messages containing language that I feel is derogatory, controversial, insulting, or otherwise inappropriate for my classroom.
Reminder
A legitimate organization would never send you an unsolicited e-mail that contains an attachment or asks for personal information. If you ever receive an unsolicited e-mail that contains an attachment or asks for personal information, delete the e-mail immediately.
When to Write my Course Administrator
As I mentioned earlier, the course Discussion Area is reserved solely for discussion of the material in your lessons.
Please do not use the course Discussion Areas for compliments, complaints, technical support, or other personal matters. Instead, please send such messages directly to my course administrator.
To contact the course administrator, scroll to the very bottom of any page within the classroom and look for the Support link.
Please understand that it may take my course administrator two or sometimes three business days to respond to e-mail, so provide plenty of time for a response.
If you need an extension, forgot your password, want a progress report, want to register for another course, or need help when you're not in my classroom, you can contact Student Support using the Help link under Resources in the footer of any page at
https://www.ed2go.com/vegaspbs/.
Syllabus
Note: This course will run for six weeks. Two lessons will be released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when each lesson is released. Instead, you can take up to two weeks to complete each lesson after it is released.
Important: In order to keep this material as up-to-date and informative as possible, I reserve the right to make changes to the course content, description, and syllabus at any time and without warning.
A new session of each course we offer starts on the second or third Wednesday of every month. You may enroll in more than one course at a time. If you are enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.
Week 1
Creating an Event Plan
Wednesday
No matter what you need or hope to accomplish, you'll inevitably need to plan it first. How many times can you recall being in a quandary and needing some direction? You'll get that direction after you read this first lesson! This lesson will lay out a step-by-step approach for event planning that's simple, straightforward, and works every time.
Creating a Theme
Friday
You're surrounded by themes in your daily life. If you're a fashionista who follows all the latest fashion trends, there's likely a theme to your seasonal wardrobe. When you watch the home improvement shows on cable television, you learn how to create a theme that dominates your home decor. If you garden, you know that the selection and arrangement of your flowers, shrubs, statuary, and outdoor furniture will result in a theme. In this lesson, you'll learn when to use and when to avoid a theme at your events. Then, the lesson will discuss how to bring your theme to life using all of your senses. You'll conclude the lesson by looking at two theme examples to help spark your own creativity.
Week 2
Selecting a Site
Wednesday
In this lesson, you'll find out why there's a lot more to selecting a site than booking your neighborhood hotel or banquet hall. Location, location, and location are the three key words everyone uses when talking about any kind of real estate. An event site is a unique type of real estate and an important part of your event's success. In this lesson, you'll categorize various types of event sites and look at some criteria that will ultimately help you make your site selection.
Planning the Site
Friday
Now that you know which site you'll use for your event, it's time to get out your pencil and paper and start planning how you'll use the space. In this lesson, you'll learn which site diagrams you'll need, how to develop a room layout, and which sketches you'll want to request or create yourself. The lesson will teach you how to walk through your site and make observations, noting everything that will be a potential help or hindrance to you, your guests, and your event.
Week 3
Choosing a Menu
Wednesday
Have a snack and a beverage at your side while you read this lesson, because this extensive discussion about the selection and serving of food and beverages will likely spur your appetite! It may also help you recall memorable meals that you've enjoyed in the past, or help you conjure up ideas about fancy foods that you'll want to feature at your next party. You'll refer to this lesson long after you've finished the course!
Entertaining the Guests
Friday
Entertainment is a key component of most any event. There are many potential resources to go to for entertainment, but you have to know where to look. This lesson is chock-full of valuable entertainment source information for novice event planners and experienced professionals alike.
Week 4
Making Decorating Decisions
Wednesday
Developing a decorating theme for your event can help you free your inhibitions and let your creative juices flow. If anything provides a limitation, it's usually the budget. But even then, you can beg, borrow, or buy at a discount to make your big ideas come to life! This lesson will show you how to do that. You'll also pay special attention to color and special lighting that will make your events eye-popping. This lesson may end up being your favorite one because of how fun it is to decorate a space for a party or event!
Raising Money
Friday
In this lesson, you'll examine corporate sponsorships, which are proliferating and are an important means of covering the major costs of many events, maybe even some of yours. If you're not a fundraising professional, don't think that this lesson isn't for you. While the lesson will discuss donations and grants, it also talks about a lot more.
Week 5
Promoting the Event
Wednesday
Ever worry that you'll go through all the trouble of throwing a grand event but no one attends? If you follow the advice you'll read in this lesson, you can almost ensure that you'll avoid that problem. In this lesson, you'll look at all the different modes of promoting your event, including word-of-mouth, print, electronic media, and media relations.
Staffing for Success
Friday
Few hosts can handle all the little details of their events completely alone. You'll almost always need some help—sometimes quite a lot of help. But, as you'll discover in this lesson, you can hire anything from a small team to a large committee to help you with your own event. After the lesson talks about who these people are and how they can assist you, you'll gain some insight into how to get the most out of their help and learn how to avoid the worst problems in personnel matters.
Week 6
Evaluating the Event
Wednesday
Evaluating your events soon after they're completed is a great way to learn from your mistakes. How better to visualize the best way to proceed with your future events? In this lesson, you'll learn what to look at and who to consult as you do your own examination and evaluation. The lesson will also discuss surveys and focus groups.
Lifelong Learning
Friday
If you truly enjoy creating special events, you'll want to continue your education—formally or informally—and widen your circle of professional colleagues once you complete this course. In this lesson, you'll learn many ways that you can do both!
Instructor
Cynthia Grzelak
Cynthia Grzelak is an independent public relations and marketing consultant who works with corporations, small businesses, nonprofit organizations, and industry associations. She has created and coordinated hundreds of events, ranging from small meetings to large and highly public corporate and charity galas. She created "Wow, What a Great Event!" to make the professional event planning training and resources available to others who share her passion for events.