Featured Speakers
General Session I
General Session I: Gretchen Rubin
Gretchen Rubin is one of today’s most influential observers of happiness and human nature. She’s the author of many books, including the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers Outer Order, Inner Calm; The Four Tendencies; Better Than Before; and The Happiness Project. Her books have sold more than 3.5 million copies worldwide, in more than thirty languages. She hosts the top-ranking, award-winning podcast “Happier with Gretchen Rubin.”
General Session II
For General Session II at #txla23, come hear from two renowned authors, Angeline Boulley and Cynthia Leitich Smith, in conversation with one another. As Indigenous authors in children’s and YA literature, they have a unique perspective and we’re honored to have them share their reflections with us.
Angeline Boulley, an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, is a storyteller who writes about her Ojibwe community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She is a former Director of the Office of Indian Education at the U.S. Department of Education. Angeline lives in southwest Michigan, but her home will always be on Sugar Island. Firekeeper’s Daughter is her debut novel and was an instant #1 New York Times Bestseller. Her upcoming book is Warrior Girl Unearthed (MacMillan). https://angelineboulley.com/
Cynthia Leitich Smith is the bestselling, acclaimed author of books for all ages, including Rain Is Not My Indian Name, Indian Shoes, Jingle Dancer, and Hearts Unbroken, which won the American Indian Library Association’s Youth Literature Award; she is also the anthologist of Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids. Most recently, she was named the 2021 NSK Neustadt Laureate. Cynthia is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, and serves as the Katherine Paterson Inaugural Endowed Chair on the faculty of the MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is a citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and lives in Austin, Texas. You can visit Cynthia online at www.cynthialeitichsmith.com.
General Session II is Friday, April 21, 4:15 PM-5:30 PM
Thank you to our GS II sponsors
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General Session III
General Session III: Deborah Roberts
Deborah Roberts is the senior national affairs correspondent for 20/20, Nightline, Good Morning America, and World News Tonight with David Muir. Roberts has also served as a substitute anchor for Good Morning America, World News Weekend, and 20/20, as well as a guest co-host on The View.
In her new book, Lessons Learned and Cherished: The Teacher Who Changed My Life, Roberts has curated a collection of essays, letters, and musings from celebrity friends and colleagues that share how teachers changed them and helped them get to where they are today.
General Session III is 11 a.m. Saturday, April 22.