2026 AFS Annual Meeting: Reminder on Schedule Footprint

As we work to complete the preliminary schedule for the 2026 Annual Meeting and find ourselves in the middle of summer, we want to remind you that this year’s Annual Meeting has a different footprint from most recent years’ configurations. Please keep this in mind as you are making your plans to attend.

This year’s meeting begins on Oct. 27—a Tuesday rather than a Wednesday—with some workshop and pre-conference events and the Opening Ceremony on Tuesday evening. An excursion is being built around the Wednesday evening Ballad Swap hosted by Nest of Singing Birds—whose performance you might have been lucky enough to catch at the meeting in Atlanta—at the Old Marshall Jail. Prior to the Ballad Swap, folks will have some time to check out the town of Marshall itself.

On Wednesday and Thursday, our colleagues at the Center for Craft will be hosting several special craft-centered sessions (panels, talks, and activities) that will run concurrently with more general AFS sessions in the conference center at the Renaissance Asheville Downtown Hotel. The Center for Craft is only a few minutes’ walk from the Renaissance, so attendees will be able to enjoy and access sessions at both locations those days. Meeting presentations and events, including the Presidential Invited Plenary and Closing Reception will be held on Friday.

Whatever locations you visit during the meeting, Wednesday through Friday will be filled with concurrent sessions, workshops and events. On Saturday, there will be a daytime excursion to experience Farm Days at Warren Wilson College, and some of you may choose to stay on in Asheville to experience Halloween festivities that evening.

All this is to say, you will want to consider how the Tuesday–Friday conference footprint and what is available in and around Asheville may affect your travel plans. If you have time and opportunity to stay in the Asheville area and enjoy its cultural and natural offerings, your presence could contribute to its rebuilding economy.

Please note that the final schedule is subject to change.