AASPA's 88
ANNUAL CONFERENCE
OCTOBER 12-15, 2026 AUSTIN, TX
th
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Check Out the 2026
Keynote Speakers !
Henna Pryor
Tuesday, October 13 / 8AM
Sponsored by
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Henna Pryor, CSP is a dynamic Workplace Performance Expert who speaks and writes about performance mindset, interpersonal dynamics, high- impact communication and embracing bumps in a world that keeps optimizing for smoothness.
She is a regular Expert Columnist for Inc. Magazine, 18x award-winning author of Good Awkward and an in-demand global keynote speaker. Her playful personality and insightful talks blend 2 decades of working with corporate leaders and teams with a fresh, science-based approach to taking more strategic risks and boosting social and mental fitness for success at work. Her clients call her their “secret weapon for impossible change,” an honor she wears proudly.
In addition to speaking for TEDx, SXSW, and being frequently tapped by media outlets like Business.com, FastCompany, INSIDER, HuffPost, NBC, FOX and more, she’s a SUCCESS Magazine Woman of Influence, LinkedIn Learning Instructor and Glassdoor WorkLife Pro. Her book was also named a Kirkus Reviews’ Best Book of the Year.
Jay Kiew
Wednesday, October 14 / 8AM
Sponsored by
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Jay Kiew is the leading expert on Change Fluency™. As a change navigation strategist and keynote speaker with over 15 years of innovation experience, he has created more than $2B of impact for 400+ executives by designing, developing, and delivering organizational transformation, but his story extends far beyond the professional arena.
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Kiew is a half-blind cancer survivor, whose life is a testament to resilience in the face of adversity. His remarkable blend of professional expertise and personal resilience equips leaders to navigate uncertainty with confidence and connection.
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At the age of 19, Jay became the world’s youngest Distinguished Toastmaster. He has since been featured in Forbes, USA Today, the Financial Times, Globe and Mail, Financial Post, Digital Journal, Ivey Business Journal, Change Leadership and more. In 2024, the Project Management Institute inducted Jay as a Future50 honoree for his work on enabling organizations with AI Adoption.
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Jay holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School and lives in Vancouver with his wife, two daughters and a stubborn Shiba Inu named Brooklyn.
Rachel Druckenmiller
Thursday, October 15 / 11AM
For nearly 20 years, Rachel Druckenmiller has helped leaders and their teams navigate disruption and self-doubt by doing the inside work first: building the self-trust, clarity and courage to stop holding back and start stepping up and saying yes.
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A TEDx speaker and Forbes Next1000 honoree recognized by Smart Meetings and Workforce Magazine, she spent the first 13 years of her career as the Director of Wellbeing and Employee Engagement at one of the nation's largest employee benefits consulting firms. She knows what it looks like when capable people go quiet, check out, or run on empty, because she lived it herself. From performing for stuffed animals as a child to stadiums as an adult, a blindside moment catalyzed bringing a 30-year dream to life. Rachel doesn't just speak about being bold and unmuted, she lives it.
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Education has always been close to her heart. Both of her parents started their careers as teachers, her husband is a physical education teacher and coach and she has spoken for SHRM chapters, the National Education Association, school districts and universities across the country. Today she helps HR leaders move from self-doubt to self-trust, from hesitation to contribution and from going through the motions to showing up fully. Get ready to live life UNMUTED.
UNMUTED: Unleash Clarity, Confidence & Contribution to Amplify Your Impact
You've built a career being the person others count on: the one who brings clarity when things are messy, steadiness when things are hard and solutions when everyone else is stuck. You are good at what you do. And yet, if you're honest, there are ideas you haven't shared, strengths you don't fully see in yourself and contributions you've quietly talked yourself out of.
That's not a skills problem. That's a self-trust problem and it's more common than anyone talks about.
The gap between being capable and believing you're capable is exactly where bold, strategic leadership gets lost. In a profession already navigating teacher shortages, budget pressures and a constantly shifting landscape, fear, self-doubt and perfectionism aren't just personal frustrations; they cost your district in culture, innovation and growth.
In this closing keynote experience, Rachel Druckenmiller will guide you through a powerful process of moving from fear and doubt to confidence and courage, from hesitation to action and from quiet capability to undeniable presence. Using her signature VOICE Method, you'll leave with a personal framework to turn self-doubt into self-trust and stagnation into meaningful contribution. You already have what it takes. It's time to get UNMUTED.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this session, attendees will be able to:
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Identify the specific fear, self-doubt, or pattern of perfectionism that's been holding them back and get honest about what it's costing them, their team and their district's ability to lead boldly.
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Understand why imposter syndrome runs especially deep in school HR and learn what it takes to shift that narrative in themselves and the people they lead.
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Apply two underrated but powerful tools — borrowed belief and accepting the invitation — to build lasting confidence, agency and greater impact.
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Use Rachel's signature VOICE Method to move from self-doubt to self-trust and hesitation to action