KATE's Fall Annual Conference

Disclaimer:

We are exploring hybrid/online options. We do not have any registration for them at this time, nor can we guarantee that we will officially have hybrid/online options.
Due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, we will be following recommended CDC and KDHE mitigation guidelines -- as well as protocols mandated by the Drury Plaza Hotel -- for the prevention of the spread of the virus. These guidelines are subject to change as we draw closer to the days of the event.

Meet our First Keynote Speaker: Samira Ahmed

Samira Ahmed is the New York Times bestselling author of the unforgettable young adult novels, Love, Hate & Other Filters, Internment and Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know.

Born in Bombay India and raised outside of Chicago, Illinois, Samira spent countless hours at the library in her small hometown nestled in an oversized armchair next to an old Victorian fireplace with her nose in an Agatha Christie novel or re-reading Little Women, hoping that Jo would somehow end up with Laurie this time. Samira always loved to write—especially poetry-but never actually dreamed of becoming a writer until she was an adult and an idea for a story captured her imagination and wouldn’t let go.

She received her BA and MAT from the University of Chicago and went on to teach high school English in both the suburbs of Chicago and the New York City Public Schools. After she left the classroom, she worked in education non-profits, helping to create more than seventy small high schools in New York City and fought to secure billions of dollars in public school funding throughout New York State.

Love, Hate, & Other Filters, Samira’s searing debut novel, marks the first time a Muslim author’s work of realistic fiction has ever appeared on the New York Times Bestseller list. Internment received six starred reviews; Entertainment Weekly called it a “terrifying, thrilling, and urgent” read. Samira’s work is often informed by her own encounters with racism, the alarming rise in hate crimes throughout the United States, and her steadfast belief in the power of hope and human connection.

These days, Samira lives in Chicago, Illinois. When she’s not writing or reading, she can be found on her lifelong quest for the perfect pastry.

Learn more about her and her works at her official website!