Apra-IL is looking for speakers to present at our 2025 Fall Symposium, which will take place on Friday, September 12, 2025 at DePaul University Conference Center in Downtown Chicago.

Have you had a cool presentation idea that you've been wanting to share? Have you been wanting to hone your public speaking skills, but have never presented at a conference before? This is a great opportunity to share your knowledge with a supportive local prospecting community! Read on for details on how to apply:

2025 Call for Proposals Details:

• The deadline to submit a proposal for the 2025 Fall Symposium will be Friday, July 11th. 

• 2025 Symposium presentation slots will be 45 minutes long, which includes time for audience questions. Speakers should prepare enough material to fill their full presentation slot.

• Co-presenters for your presentation are welcome. If you plan on co-presenting, please include the names, email addresses, and organizations of all other individuals who will be part of your presentation. Collaborations between individuals from different institutions are especially encouraged!

• Apra-IL will fully comp all event registration fees for Symposium presenters.

• Speaker proposals are welcome on the full range of topics related to prospect development. Some topics to consider:
• Prospect Research Tools 
• Researchers and Major Gift Officers
• Data Management, Metrics, and Analytics
• Campaigns
• Data Science and AI
• Data Visualization and Reporting
• Small Shop Tools and Management
• Prospect Research Consulting
• Career Development
• Team Management
• Cross-team Collaborations
• Illinois-specific research trends and/or tools

If you would like to submit a proposal, please fill out and submit the application below. If you have any questions on the submission process, please feel free to contact us here. We will be in touch if we have any questions about your submission!