A look back at the speakers and educational programs at ALA's 2026 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago.

American Library Association (ALA) President Sam Helmick called the final Council meeting of ALA’s 2026 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago to order at approximately 9:05 a.m. on June 29. The ...

Eboni Henry (left), media specialist at D.C. Public Schools, and Ed Garcia, director of Cranston (R.I.) Public Library, speak at “Leading ALA into the Next 150 Years,” a June 28 panel at ALA’s 2026 ...

American Library Association (ALA) President-Elect Maria McCauley called the second Council meeting of ALA’s 2026 Annual Conference and Exhibition to order at 9:08 a.m. on June 28 at the McCormick ...

Who says teens are disaffected? At “Career Quest: Engaging Teens with their Future Careers,” presenters Anna Kopinska and Kristin Linscott discussed how their library has helped young people get ...

Min Jin Lee appeared as a Featured Speaker at the American Library Association’s 2026 Annual Conference and Exhibition on June 27. Photo: EPNAC Min Jin Lee, author of the National Book Award finalist ...

From left: Julianne Novetsky-Welsh, outreach coordinator at Warren (Mich.) Public Library; Kristina Shiroma, assistant professor in the School of Information Studies at Louisiana State University in ...

Former First Lady Jill Biden during the American Library Association President’s Program at the 2026 ALA Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 28. Photo: EPNAC When former First Lady Jill Biden ...

This milestone is about more than looking back; it is about the momentum we carry into the next era. When we talk about shaping what’s next, we are acknowledging that the radical act of keeping ...

Author Lois Lowry appeared as a Featured Speaker at the 2026 American Library Association Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 27. Photo: EPNAC Lois Lowry wants you to know that she’s “still ...

Rachel Maddow was the Opening General Session speaker at the American Library Association’s 2026 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 26. Photo: EPNAC ...