SXSW EDU® Reveals the First Round of Featured Sessions for the 2023 Conference & Festival

Roster of speakers includes U.S. Olympic Champion Kristi Yamaguchi, U.S. Department of Education's Roberto J. Rodríguez, and Drag Queen Story Hour's Beatrice Thomas as Black Benatar

AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Gearing up for 2023, today SXSW EDU® announced three of the Featured Sessions selected for the upcoming conference and festival to be held March 6-9, 2023 in Austin, Texas. As just some of the many to come, these sessions serve as examples of the breadth of content submitted to PanelPicker® this year. With topics ranging from education equity to research and development and representation in storytelling, the leaders at the helm of these conversations come from a variety of backgrounds including sports, policy, entertainment, and social activism.

"It's always exciting when we get to start announcing the results of the PanelPicker process because it reveals the voices and subjects that will guide our exploration for that year's conference and festival," said Greg Rosenbaum, Senior Director of SXSW EDU. "The sessions that have already been selected prove that 2023 is going to be a powerful year filled with impressive and wide-ranging ideas on how diverse fields and innovations can intersect to shape education going forward."

This year, SXSW EDU received more than 1,200 session proposals across 11 specifically designed tracks. The following three sessions stood out among those reviewed through the PanelPicker process. Not only do they offer innovative conversations within some of the event's overarching themes such as Equity & Justice, Policy & Civic Engagement, and Community Initiatives, but they also offer the opportunity to engage with thought leaders and change-makers at the forefront of their respective industries. The sessions feature new guests to the SXSW EDU experience as well as returning favorites. They include:

• Athletes Advancing Education - U.S. Olympic Champion in Figure Skating (1992) and founder of Always Dream, Kristi Yamaguchi will join the National Football League's (NFL) defensive end for the San Francisco 49ers and founder of the Armstead Academic Project Arik Armstead, along with the founder of Venture Leadership Consulting Aila Malik, for a compelling discussion on how they use their platforms to advance education equity.
• Drag Queen Story Hour: Fight for Queer Herstories - The Drag Queen Story Hour performance and crowd favorite from 2022 will return to SXSW EDU, but this time on the Featured stage to dive into drag as an art form for exploring identity and demonstrate the importance of acceptance and inclusion. Hear from Drag Queen Story Hour's executive board director Jonathan Hamilt as Ona Louise, board president Beatrice Thomas as Black Benatar, and board treasurer Lil Miss Hot Mess.
• How New Attention to R&D Will Transform Learning - Roberto J. Rodríguez, assistant secretary for the office of planning, evaluation and policy development at the U.S. Department of Education, is joined by vice president of partnerships at Schmidt Futures, Kumar Garg; founder and senior science advisor at Turnaround for Children, Pamela Cantor; and senior program director at the Walton Family Foundation, Joanna Cannon; to discuss the importance of expanding education research and development through federal programs.

For more information on our speaker lineup, please visit sxswedu.com/speakers-sessions.

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About SXSW EDU
The SXSW EDU® Conference & Festival is a reflection of the world's most critical social issues as seen through the lens of education. This year's event will bring together the learner, the practitioner, the entrepreneur, and the visionary to share their groundbreaking stories, tackle complex issues, and build reimagined paths forward. As a community of diverse people who are united around a like-minded vision for the future, SXSW EDU serves as a place for attendees to renew their purpose in practice from both a personal and professional perspective. SXSW EDU is a component of the South by Southwest® family of conferences and festivals that has grown from 800 to over 8,000 registrants in the last decade. Join the passionate and innovative community at SXSW EDU, March 6-9, 2023.

For more information, please visit sxswedu.com.

Contact
Liz Stein
SXSW EDU Press & Publicity
[email protected]
240-461-3053

SOURCE South by Southwest