2026 Leadership Summit
The Leadership Summit is the Association of California School Administrators' flagship learning event — an annual gathering that brings together educational leaders from across the state to exchange ideas, sharpen strategies, and build the relationships that sustain a difficult profession.
The Summit's promise is simple — devote 2.5 days to your craft, and return to your school or district with sharper tools and a wider bench of colleagues you can call.
A celebration of school leadership, and the people who do the work.
Inspiring Keynotes
The voices on the main stage are chosen with one audience in mind — school administrators. These are speakers who understand what it means to lead a school or district, who've either done the work themselves or spent careers studying the people who do. Expect keynotes that energize you, push your thinking, and speak to the heart of why you got into this profession. The stories told from this stage tend to stay with leaders well past the conference itself.
Awards Gala
Friday night is when the Summit pauses to celebrate the people behind the work. We gather for a formal dinner honoring the year's statewide award honorees — administrators whose leadership has left a real mark on their schools and communities, and standout students whose stories speak to everything California education can be.
Networking with Peers
Member lounges, regional meetups, charter and council gatherings, and structured networking time are woven through the schedule on purpose, giving you real space to find the colleagues who get it. The peers you meet here become the people you call months later when you're working through a hard problem and need someone who's been there.
Engaging Sessions
Practitioner-led workshops on AI, curriculum, wellness, equity, staffing, community engagement, school safety, and more — built to be interactive, not lecture-style. Sessions are designed to spark honest conversation between leaders, swap real strategies that worked (and didn't), and leave room for the questions you can't ask anywhere else.
Keynotes Speakers
Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin
Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin is a powerhouse in education—a transformational leader, author, artist and international keynote speaker with over three decades of impact in some of the most underserved communities.
Dr. Sanderlin has built more than 350 partnerships across the country, been featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and helped inspire NBC’s School Pride. She has graced main stages such as Madison Square Gardens, The Forum, Amazon, Microsoft, CABE, CASC, MTSS and more. Get ready to be energized!
Please Welcome Dr. J!
Jose Antonio Vargas
Jose Antonio Vargas is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Emmy-nominated filmmaker, and Tony-nominated theatrical producer.
A leading voice for the human rights of immigrants, he founded the non-profit immigrant storytelling organization Define American, twice named one of the World's Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company, and explored all facets of immigration as host of its YouTube show and podcast Define American with Jose Antonio Vargas. He is also a co-founder of 1587 Sneakers, the world's first Asian American sneaker brand.
Please Welcome Jose Antonio Vargas!
Luis Cruz
Luis F. Cruz, PhD is a sought-after consultant, coach, author, and keynote speaker with over 35 years as a teacher and administrator across all school levels.
Raised as an English Learner in a low-income Los Angeles community by immigrant parents, he advocates for redesigning public schools to ensure high levels of learning for all students. He's a best-selling author—including Time for Change (with Dr. Anthony Muhammad)—and a trusted voice on PLC and RTI at Work, transformational leadership, and school culture.
Please Welcome Dr. Luis F. Cruz!
Get a glimpse of the ideas, connections and experiences coming to Chula Vista this November. Then make plans to join us!
We'll See You in Chula Vista!
We're excited to host the 2026 Conference Leadership Summit at the Gaylord Pacific Resort & Convention Center, Southern California's newest landmark destination. Set along the Chula Vista Bayfront just seven miles from downtown San Diego, this brand-new 1,600-room resort — the largest hotel in California — offers world-class meeting space, nine distinct restaurants, a full-service spa, and a stunning 4.25-acre waterscape with sweeping Pacific views. It's the perfect setting for an inspiring few days of leadership, learning, and connection.
You Belong in Leadership | Pre-Conference
Cultivating California’s Future School Leaders
You are already making an impact. Now discover where leadership can take you next. You Belong in Leadership was created for educators considering the next step into school administration and looking for an honest, supportive introduction to educational leadership.
