6th National RTAP Conference in Austin, TX

Sunday - Pre-Conference AM

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: PRETX1A: State Oversight 101
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: PRETX3A: Rural and Tribal Transit Service Design: Microtransit or Fixed Route?
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: PREHCA: Cost Allocation Calculator
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: PRETX5A: Elearning: ELDT for Rural and Tribal Programs
• Workshops - Texas 7: PRETX7A: The Energy Bus: 10 Rules for the Ride of Your Life
• Specialty Meetings - Ladybird: PRELBA: Facility Construction Overview

Sunday - Pre-Conference PM

• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: PREHCP: Ready, Set, Go: Making the Most of Your FTA Tribal Transit Program (TTP) Technical Assistance Assessments
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: PRETX5P: Intercity Bus Workshop
• Hands on Training - Texas 2: PRETX2P: GTFS/WebBuilder/ProPro

Monday - Breakout 1 - 10:45 AM - 12:15 PM CST

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: AC1: Program Guidelines and State Oversight - Intercity Bus is a little different
• Intercity Bus Regulatory Environment-- An Overview of ICB Applicable Federal Transit Regulations - Rich Garrity - RLS
• State Oversight of the Intercity Bus Program - Christy Evers (MoDOT)
• Regulatory compliance from an Intercity Bus Provider Perspective - Tricia Martinez (Isaacs & Associates)
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: CP1: Social Media and Stakeholder Communications
• Insights into Rural Social Media Engagement - Stephanie Lewis
• Social Media and Connecting with the Public from the DOT perpsective - Robbi Smith (TxDOT)
• Public and Stakeholder Communications: To Create More Support for Rural and Tribal Transit Systems - Bennett Powell
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: OT1: Enhancing Mobility Management in Rural Areas
• Innovating Mobility Management: A Custom-Built Platform for Enhanced Service Delivery - Sarah Hidalgo Cook and Jagat Shah
• Practical Insight from Rural Coastal Bend Texas - Pamela Hernandez
• Training/Guidance - Hill Country A/B: TG1: Rural Transit: Navigating its Challenges and Building on Successes
• Rural Transit Challenges and Successes in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands - Alfreda Camacho Maratita
• Practical Quality-of-Life Assessment Tools for Rural Transit Programs: A Case Study from Great Barrington, MA - Tate Coleman
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: IR1: Estimating Transit Demand for Regional, Fixed Route and On-Demand Services. Demystifying Emerging Industry Tools…without using AI - Robert Mchaney
• Hands on Training - Texas 2: TX2WK1: RideSheet 1: Introduction to RideSheet
• Workshops - Texas 7: TX7WK1: Grant Writing Using AI
• Specialty Meetings - Ladybird: LB1: Rural Transportation Advocacy 101 Curriculum

Monday - Breakout 2 - 2:15 PM - 3:45 PM CST

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: AC2: Drug and Alcohol Workshop - Sean Oswald
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: CP2: Deep in the Heart of Multi-Modal Texas Planning
• Texas State Multimodal Transit Plan - Theo Kosub
• Coordination Guidebook - Kari Banta
• TxDOT Transit Assistance for Rural and Small Urban Transit Distracts - Todd Hansen
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: OT2: Tools of the Trade - the Systems behind the Intercity Bus Industry
• Working with Intercity Bus Services: Where We Are, How to Find Us, and Where We Can Go Together - NBTA - Brenda Cheney and Nicolas Christ
• TDS - maps, schedules, and how things play together - Terry Cordell
• Interline and the systems behind the service - Florian Sitrin
• Training/Guidance - Hill Country A/B: TG2: Be All You Can Be: Train-the-Trainer Presentation Ideas for Public Transit Pros - Kristen Joyner
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: IR2: The Quality of Life Impact of Intercity, Rural, and Tribal Transit
• Supporting Quality of Life for Tribal Nations and Rural Communities: Coordinating Intercity, Rural, and Tribal Transit - Deborah Bach and Meredith Greene
• Beyond Ridership: Incorporating Quality-of-Life Assessments into the Rural Transit Planning & Evaluation Process - Tate Coleman
• Hands on Training - Texas 2: TX2WK2: RideSheet 2: RideSheet Hands-on Demonstration
• Workshops - Texas 7: TX7WK2: Mobility Management - Collaboration for Change: Building Cross-Sector Partnerships in Mobility
• Specialty Meetings - Ladybird: LB2: AASHTO Meeting

Monday - Breakout 3 - 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM CST

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: AC3: Today’s Hot Topics: ADA - Jess Segobia, Dawn Sweet (TFC), and Ron Brooks
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: CP3: Coordinated Approaches to Rural and Tribal Communities
• Washington State Public Transportation division Tribal Liason Program and the Work of Consultation - Deborah Bach and Marianna Hanefield
• Innovative strategies to building capacity for New Mexico tribal transportation - Meredith Greene
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: OT3: The Challenges of Same-Day Service in Rural Transit
• How we have provided Same-Day Service in Rural South Dakota - Ron Baumgart and Carol Zachary
• The Same-Day Service: Challenges and Opportunties in Central Texas - Dana Platt
• Training/Guidance - Hill Country A/B: TG3: Practical uses of AI in Transportation 
• How AI Agents are Enhancing Accessibility, Efficiency and Engagement - Musa Ghani
• AI and Public Transit: Real-World Uses and Lessons Learned - Elliot McFadden
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: IR3: The States Role in Intercity Bus: Expert Perspectives and Case Studies
• Case Study: Combining Transit and Intercity Bus and Rail Network for improved customer convenience and carrier profitability and success - John Baranowski
• TCRP Project B-52: Intercity Bus-- the State Role Update-- Progress Report - Frederick Fravel
• Pennsylvania's Intercity Bus Program: A unique approach to managing the 5311(f) subsidy program - Bryon Noon
• Workshops - Texas 7: TX7WK3: Coordinating FTA Funding: 5311, 5310, 5339 Grants and your Medicaid Friends
• Specialty Meetings - Ladybird: LB3: Rural Mobility Hub Design Guide - Interactive Session

Tuesday - Breakout 4 - 9:15 AM - 10:45 AM CST

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: AC4: FTA Tribal Transit Oversight and New Guidance - Dana Lucas (DMP Group)
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: CP4: ICB Program Insights - Operations and Facilities
• How Facility access impacts network connectivity - Nina Stocker
• Addressing Issues with the "Reasonable Access" Law - Greg Cohen
• The States Role in providing facilities access: the NCDOT Experience - Hart Evans (NCDOT)
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: OT4: The Golden Age of Rural and Tribal Transit Service Design: An Overview
• An Introduction to Rural and Tribal Transit Service Design for the 2020s: The Art and Science - Ken Hosen
• Microtransit in Rural Communities - Sandy Brennan
• Overview of the N-CATT Microtransit Estimation Tool - Roger Teal
• Training/Guidance - Hill Country A/B: TG4: Establishing and Expanding Volunteer Driver Programs Workshop - Meredith Greene, Paula Clark, and Jill Skinner (Drive a Senior)
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: IR4: The Fleet of Microtransit Systems
• Rural Transit Fleet Mix and Vehicle Size Decision Tools - Jeremy Mattson
• Commingling Paratransit and Other Trips in On-Demand Microtransit - Todd Hansen
• Hands on Training - Texas 2: TX2WK4: Technology Roundtable - The Road to Interoperability: Supporting Rural and Tribal Data and Technology Needs
• Workshops - Texas 7: TX7WK4: The Art of Mobility Management: Designing Programs for the Future

Tuesday - Breakout 5 - 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM CST

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: AC5: Compliance Reviews: What to Expect and How to Prepare - Rich Garrity (RLS), Kaitlyn McClanahan (Tennessee DOT), Jami Trybom (Illinois DOT), and Brandi Miller (Wyoming DOT)
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: CP5: TXDOT Service Expansion and Lessons Learned
• Texas Rural 'Area Service Expansion Program - Eric Gleason
• TxDOT Service Expansion Program (SEP): Consultant Perspective - Jill Hough
• REAL SEP - Maricela Perez
• Brazos Transit District: Service Expansion Project - Wendy Weedon
• East Texas Council of Governments: Service Expansion Project - Katey Pilgrim
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: OT5: Opportunities for Rural Mobility as a Service
• Focus: State DOT Perspective - rural Michigan - Janet Geissler
• Greater Minnesota MAAS Initiative - Elliott McFadden
• Focus: Technology/Private sector perspective - San Joaquin COG - Todd Voirol
• Training/Guidance - Hill Country A/B: TG5: Intercity Bus In-Kind Match should not be a mystery…
• Making In-Kind Match Work for Your Intercity Bus Program - Nina Stocker
• Documentation and Guidance - Stephanie Gonterman
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: IR5: Your Employees Matter… and How to Keep Them
• CapMetro's Vets Recruitment Strategy - Shayna Gleason
• The Next Chapter of a Life in Service -- Connecting Military Veterans with Transit Careers - Adam Rosenfield
• DeNay Rhock
• Mental Health & Employee Retention - Sandy Brennan
• Workshops - Texas 7: TX7WK5: Connecting Communities: Uber and Local Partners Solving the Rural First-/Last-Mile Challenge
• Specialty Meetings - Ladybird: LB5: Tribal Transit Panel

Tuesday - Breakout 6 - 2:45 PM - 4:15 PM CST

• Admin/Compliance - Texas 1: AC6: Employee Labor Law, Civil Rights and the New Administration: Navigating the Bumpy Road of Uncertainty - Robbie Sarles, Ann Rajewski (CATA), Kaitlyn McClanahan (Tennessee DOT), and Mary Habig (North Central Area Transit)
• Coordination/Planning - Texas 3: CP6: Partnering for Access: Food, Mobility & Smarter Funding Paths 
• Mobility Management and Food Acess - Todd O'Neal and Linda Brinlee
• Working Together, Funding Smarter: Mobility Managment Through 5310 & 5311 Partnerships - Jeremy Bell and Enjoli Dixon
• Operations/Technology - Hill Country C/D: OT6: Connecting Community Transportation: Technology Support for Mobility Management
• An Introduction to the Transactional Data Specification for Demand-Responsive Transportation - Jana Lynott
• The Facilitator's Perspective: Managing Expectations and Competing Priorities - Erica Hamilton
• The Tech Perspective: How Data Standards and Interoperability helped advance Mobility Management - Kevin Chambers
• Mobility Management: A Roadmap for Implementation - Al Benedict
• Training/Guidance - Hill Country A/B: TG6: Training 101: The Basics of Providing De-escalation Training for Smaller Systems - Curtis Sims, Jr. and Carol Wright
• Innovation/Research - Texas 5/6: IR6: Building Your Technology Universe: Understanding the Value of GTFS and Building a Technology Culture
• GTFS innovations: Practical Iimplications for States, Operations and Customers - Marcy Jaffe
• Next Step: Demand Response visualization - Joseph Gallagher
• From the Ground Up: Leveraging Technology for Smarter Transit Operations - Stephanie Bushong
• Hands on Training - Texas 2: TX2WK6: NTD Tips and tricks: Compliance in the New Year
• Workshops - Texas 7: TX7WK6: CCAM TAC Presentation
• Specialty Meetings - Ladybird: LB6: ICB Meeting