We look forward to seeing you in Chicago for our 2026 joint conference with the Illinois Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ICTFL)!

Conference highlights include:

• an opening keynote address by Devin Siebold, a former Social Studies and ESL teacher with over a decade of experience in Title I schools. Now a nationally recognized speaker and comedian, his work focuses on the intersection of education and humor, offering insights into classroom challenges, teacher well-being, and student engagement. 

• many half-day or full-day workshops with regionally and nationally recognized educators. 

• more than 140 special focus sessions on:

• Equitable and inclusive practices

• Intercultural communication and competence

• Standards and proficiency-based instruction and strategies

• Curriculum, articulation, and interdisciplinary design

• Technology innovation and integration

• Assessment and feedback

• The latest research in education and language acquisition

• opportunities to learn from our national and regional World Language Teachers of the Year and from the leaders of our national world language association.

• Best-of sessions from across our 14 mid-western states.

Be sure to check out the other tabs under "conference" above for all of the up-to-date conference information!