Contact: Sammy McDavid
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Reservations still are being accepted for the 2009 American Institute of Floral Designers/Southern Conference meeting March 6-8 at Mississippi State.
The university again is host for the educational event expected to draw professional and amateur participants from 10 states. MSU last welcomed the event a decade ago and continues to be the only Southeast institution of higher learning to have done so.
"The Art and Science of Floral Design" is this year's theme. For registration details, visit http://theuniversityflorist.com/aifd/.
Established in 1965, AIFD has more than 1,300 members worldwide and remains the floral industry leader for presenting educational and design programs. Its Southern Conference is one of six chapters in the non-profit organization.
"This year, participants will gain further depth and knowledge into allied arts- and science-based information that AIFD members use regularly, but may often not recognize," said conference coordinator Lynette McDougald, a former Mississippi floral designer of the year.
McDougald, florist shop manager and a floral design instructor in the plant and soil sciences department, said this year's program will provide a different path for sharing design theory and practice.
"The traditional model has involved presentations with pre-made arrangements and stage demonstrations," she said. "Breaking from tradition, we will offer insights in history, literature, information technology, event design, and, ultimately, the philosophy of floral design."
In addition to Mississippi, participants will be coming from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. AIFD national president Walter Fedyshyn of Chicago also will attend, McDougald said.
NEWS EDITORS/DIRECTORS: For more conference information, contact McDougald at 662-325-1963 or lmcdougald@pss.msstate.edu.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.