Event Management School
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Home > Education > Event Management School

Event Management School

January 11-16, 2026

Oglebay Resort & Conference Center
Wheeling, West Virginia

465 Lodge Drive | Wheeling, WV 26003
P: 304-243-4126 | F: 304-243-4106 | E: ntc@oglebay-resort.com

Quality festivals and events are among the most successful tools available to communities, states, regions, and even countries to increase tourism, create powerful and memorable branding and imaging opportunities, bond people together, encourage positive media coverage, enhance economic impact, and add to the quality of lives for those who live there. On the other hand, a poorly planned, managed and executed event can have a reciprocally opposite effect.
Over time, events themselves have changed; from often informal affairs to spectacular productions, requiring new sets of skills, experience, creativity, financing, planning and leadership. As a result, event management has evolved into a business and an industry, with new demands, challenges and expectations every day; from attendees / participants; sponsors; host communities and a plethora of other partners that the success of any event depends on.

Presented by two of the most respected professional associations in our industry – the International Festivals & Events Association (IFEA) and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) – the Event Management School at Oglebay National Training Center in West Virginia was designed around the concept of bringing new and mid-career industry professionals together with some of the most highly respected and experienced professionals in the field, for a comprehensive educational and networking opportunity that will cover the critical basics of successful event management and then put students in an applied-knowledge project environment to test and further what they have learned.

Event Management School Brochure

Adobe PDF
2025 IFEA / NRPA Event Management School Brochure - PDF

Year One Session Topics

  • Strong Foundations: Understanding Event Management and the Imprrtance of Doing What We Do
  • Step One: Business Plans
  • Arriving at the Bottom-Line: Event Budgeting and Budget Management
  • Putting the "Community" in "Community Events": Building a Successful Volunteer Program
  • Event Administration and Legal Considerations
  • Operations: From Vision to Reality
  • Introduction to Sponsorship & Experiential Marketing
  • Marketing & Mediums: Traditional, Social and Creative
  • Non-Sponsorship Revenues Programs: Food & Beverage, Merchandise;, Ticketing & Financial Transactions
  • Introduction to Event Risk Management
  • Social Media Marketing: Understanding the Landscape, Benefits and Challenges
  • The Common World of Events and Cities: Building Community through Proactive Events Management
  • Is Everyone Invited? Including Those with Disabilities
  • How'd You Do? Surveys, Evaluations and Economic Impact Studies
  • Year-Two Team City Event Presentations

Year Two Session Topics

  • The Application of Project Management to Events
  • Customer-Focused Events – Planning to Meet the Needs of Your Stakeholders
  • Applied Risk Management
  • Inside Perspective: What Cities Want from Events and the New Age of Partnership in Municipal Event Management
  • The Evolution of AI and Its Impact on Events
  • Is Everyone Invited? Designing an Access Program to Include Those with Disabilities
  • Advanced Sponsorship
  • Applied Budget Development
  • City Event Concept Project and Presentations

Schedule at a Glance

Both Year One and Year Two follow the same schedule.

Sunday, January 11, 2026

Arrivals during day.
3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Registration
5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. - Orientation
6:00 p.m. - Welcome Reception & Dinner

Monday, January 12, 2026

7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. - Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - Educational Sessions
11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. - Lunch
1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Educational Sessions
6:00 p.m. - Free Evening: Oglebay Shops, Zoo and Festival of Lights Tour Open

Tuesday, January 13, 2026

7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. - Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - Educational Sessions
11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. - Lunch
1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Educational Sessions
6:00 p.m. - Dinner and Evening Roundtable Sessions

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. - Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - Educational Sessions
11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. - Lunch
1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Educational Sessions
6:00 p.m. - Free Evening and / or Group Planning Sessions

Thursday, January 15, 2026

7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. - Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - Educational Sessions
11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. - Lunch
1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Educational Sessions
6:00 p.m. - Graduation Reception and Banquet

Friday, January 16, 2026

Departures

Registration Links

Registration and Schedule information will be available shortly.
Interested in attending EMS in 2026? Add your name to the interest list to be contacted when registration opens!
ADD NAME HERE

Registration Package Includes

  • School Tuition for all days
  • 5 nights lodging (Price Varies per Room Selection)
  • 4 buffet breakfasts
  • 4 buffet lunches
  • Continuous coffee / beverage breaks
  • 5 beverage tickets
  • Sunday and Tuesday Buffet Dinners
  • Thursday Graduation Banquet with plated dinner
  • All taxes and applicable fees.

Contact Information

  • For registration confirmation and other details, contact Oglebay Resort and Conference Center at ntc@oglebay-resort.com

Future School Dates:

January 10-15, 2027

Oglebay National Training Center (In the Summer)
Oglebay National Training Center (In January when the Event Management School takes place.)
IFEA President & CEO, Steve Schmader, CFEE - Welcoming Students
Classes at the Event Management School
Classes at the Event Management School
Event Management!!!
Year 2 Event Management School Presentations
Year 2 Event Management School Presentations
Year 2 Event Management School Presentations
Year 2 Event Management School Presentations
2025 IFEA Event Management School Year 2 Graduates
Instructors at the IFEA Event Management School

Participant Insight

"This was the best School I have ever attended! This was my second at School at Olgebay but I am a learner, so this one was more for me. The presenters were OUTSTANDING! The wealth information that was shared and their willingness to share it with us, was such a blessing. I love the atmosphere of the Schools at Oglebay, where everyone is so fun to be around in the midst of this crazy world and times we are living in. Thank you so much for all you do and did, to make this AN EXPERIENCE I will always remember."
Event Management School Attendee

Industry Insight

“The Event Management School at Oglebay has created a vital tool in developing festival and event industry professionals. As any event producer can attest, training new staff often amounts to a “sink or swim” option. To have a venue where personnel can learn, interact and network with industry leaders, instructors, and peers from other events and markets increases professionalism and output multiple-fold.”
Ted Baroody, President
Norfolk Festevents

Industry Insight

“No other investment is more important for the board of a festival or special event than to assure that their staff is growing in their professional development. The Event Management School at Oglebay provides our industry with one place for new and mid-management level professionals to receive intensive, comprehensive training in the core competencies of event management, conducted by many top professionals in the field. It is the equivalent of a full-brain download for those who want to have a well-rounded, working understanding of our profession.”
Bruce L. Erley, CFEE, APR, President & CEO
Creative Strategies Group

Participant Insight

"As a Year 1 student, I was not sure what to expect but I felt compelled to share that the program absolutely exceeded my expectation. The caliber of the presenters was top-notch and the program topics offered direct application to my daily responsibilities as an event organizer. Thanks for developing this school. It has been the most intense event-specific training I have ever attended. I’m sincerely looking forward to Year 2."
Rachael Goodwin
Town of Leesburg, VA
Event Management School Graduate

Participant Insight

“It was informative, engaging and motivating. Every day provided an incredible opportunity to learn from the speakers and other students. I am most appreciative to have been able to meet so many leaders in the event management field and I am inspired by their enthusiasm, commitment and dedication to the profession. Oglebay was a great host site. Everyone there worked very hard to make sure we were all well taken care of and enjoying our stay. So glad that I was able to attend and I am looking forward to returning as a Year 2 student!"
Debe Shafer, Texas A&M University
Event Management School Graduate

Industry Insight

“If you were applying to my organization for a job - and I knew that you had completed the IFEA / NRPA Event Management School program – your resume would rise to the top of the pile.”

Curt Mosel, CFEE
Chief Operating Officer
ArtsQuest

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