Fair-Day Schedule for Students
- Mall Entry
- When you arrive at 8:00 AM, only one Mall entrance will be open: on the north side, behind Cheddar’s and next to the former Sears store. See Lindale Mall Info for details and maps.
- Set-Up Time
- Check-in and set-up will start at 8:00 AM. All exhibits must be set up in the exhibit area by 8:55 AM. If you will need to arrive late, or need more time to set up your exhibit, you should contact the Fair Director or Safety & Standards (see the Contact Us page) before the Fair to make special arrangements.
- Exhibit Checking
- After you set up your exhibit, you should stay near it until the Student Meeting. Checkers will visit every exhibit, making sure it complies with EISEF’s rules. When the Checker visits your exhibit, you want to be there to answer any questions.
- Student Meeting
- A 15-minute meeting for students will be held at 9:00 AM to go over orientation and rules reminders. All students must attend. We will announce the meeting’s location on Fair day.
- Judging Interviews
- By 9:30 AM you should be at your exhibit for judging interviews. Judges for EISEF Awards will start coming to evaluate your exhibit at 9:30 AM and will continue until about 1:00 PM. You should plan to stay at your exhibit continuously between 9:30 AM and 1:00 PM. Judging for Sponsored Awards also starts at 9:30 AM and may continue until 2:00 PM.
- Afternoon Viewing
- After lunch you should be at your exhibit at least half of the time between 1:00 PM and 5:00 PM, for Sponsored Awards judging and viewing by the public.
- Finalist Interviews
- At about 1:00 PM we will post the Class I Finalists in the Senior Divisions, along with their interview times. If you are one of these students, congratulations! Now our Finalist Judges will interview you, to see whether you will represent EISEF at the International Fair in Los Angeles, California. You need to be at your exhibit about 15 minutes before your interview; a Fair official will come escort you to the interview. The interviews will start at about 2:30 PM and run until almost 5:00 PM.
- Early Departure
- You must not dismantle your exhibit before 5:00 PM without special permission. You must dismantle it between between then and 6:30 PM. If you can’t remove the pieces of your exhibit from the mall until after the awards ceremony, we will provide a place where you can store them. The awards ceremony should end by about 8:30 PM. After that, you will need to remove your exhibit from the mall before the mall closes at 9:00 PM.
- Awards Ceremony
- The awards ceremony will begin at about 7:00 PM and should end by 8:30 PM. The location will be posted on Fair Day. Decisions of the judges shall be final.
We also have a complete schedule for the day.
Schedule for Fair Day
Eastern Iowa Science & Engineering Fair
Saturday, March 16, 2024
Lindale Mall, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
All times are subject to change, even during the Fair.
| Students: | |
| 8:00 AM–8:55 AM | Student Arrival and Setup: Students set up their exhibits in Lindale Mall. Our Safety & Standards Committee will check your exhibit for safety. |
| 9:00 AM–9:30 AM | Student Briefing: Additional rules and orientation at the mall’s center court. All students must attend. |
| Judges: | |
| 8:00 AM–9:00 AM | Judges Check-in, outside Fair Headquarters. |
| 8:00 AM–9:30 AM | Check-in for Sponsored Awards Judges, inside Fair Headquarters. |
| 9:00 AM–9:30 AM | Judges’ Meeting: Conducted by the Judging Committee, in or near Fair Headquarters. |
| 9:30 AM–1:00 PM | Exhibit Judging: EISEF Judging and student interviews. |
| 9:30 AM–2:00 PM | Judging for Sponsored Awards. |
| All: | |
| 1:00 PM | Senior Finalists Notified. All Senior students, be at your exhibit until we’ve posted the finalists. |
| 1:00 PM | Lunch: Enjoy Lindale Mall’s various restaurants and delis. |
| 1:00 PM–5:00 PM | Public Viewing: Students to be at their exhibits at least half the time. Don’t be away from your exhibit more than 20 minutes at a time. |
| 1:15–2:15 PM | Finalist Preliminary Interviews: Senior Division finalists interviewed at your exhibit. Senior Finalists, stay at your exhibit until the finalist judges have interviewed you. |
| 2:30 PM–5:00 PM | Finalist Interviews: Senior Division finalists interviewed to select the Senior Champions. Senior Finalists should be at their exhibits 15 minutes before their interview; a Fair official will escort you to your interview. |
| 2:00 PM | Sponsored Awards Judging results due. |
| 3:00–4:00 PM | Teachers/Adult Sponsors Meeting: We will post the location outside Fair Headquarters. |
| 5:00 PM–6:30 PM | Exhibit Teardown: Students must pack their exhibits and remove them. If you can’t remove your exhibit until after the Awards Ceremony, we may provide a place for you to store it. |
| 7:00 PM–8:30 PM | Awards Presentation Ceremony: We will announce the location on Fair Day. |
| After Awards Ceremony | Final Exhibit Removal: You must leave the mall and take your exhibit and belongings with you. We will give all unidentified valuables to mall Security. |
Lindale Mall’s web site
Map & directions to Lindale
Here’s a map of the highways and streets around Lindale:
Arriving at Lindale and EISEF
- When you arrive at 8:00 AM only the public entrance near EISEF HQ will be open. Park in the lot near there (NE corner of the Mall) and use that entrance.
- That part of the parking lot is hardly used — you can park in a close spot and leave your vehicle there all day.
- Visual aids:
Where to go inside Lindale
- Here are the key EISEF locations at Lindale:
- EISEF Headquarters: Main level near the former Sears.
- Student check-in: Main level, near HQ, in front of the former Sears.
- Judges’ check-in: Outside EISEF HQ.
- Sponsored Awards check-in: Inside EISEF HQ.
- Teachers’ meeting: Inside EISEF HQ, 3:00–4:00 PM.
Lindale emergency contact
Is there an emergency number we can call on Fair Day to contact someone at the Mall about EISEF?
- Lindale Mall security: (319) 431–4755