2027 IACE Conference: Faithful Leadership for Christian Education

The International Alliance for Christian Education will hold its eighth annual conference Feb. 3–5, 2027, at the Riley Conference Center on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. IACE opened registration in a dated news release on Sept. 10, 2026. The event begins with Wednesday-afternoon workshops and an evening plenary session and concludes at noon Friday. Its intended audience reaches across the Christian education landscape: leaders and faculty from Christian universities, liberal-arts colleges, Bible colleges, seminaries, urban institutions, gap-year programs and K–12 schools. The announced program brings together 10 featured scholars and practitioners to examine pressures that are shaping education while keeping the conversation anchored in Christian mission. Will Inboden is scheduled to address the future of higher education. Meghan Sullivan will discuss artificial intelligence, a subject that now affects classroom practice, research, assessment and institutional ethics. Theologian Kevin Vanhoozer will consider the reading of nature, culture and Scripture from a theological perspective. Accreditation leaders Lisa Beaty and Rob Manzer will offer insight into quality assurance, while legal scholar Greg Baylor will address issues affecting Christian higher education. Other sessions will present research on academic faithfulness and flourishing, examine church and culture, and discuss the future of Christian education across institutional sectors. The venue is the Riley Conference Center, 4701 Stanley Avenue, Fort Worth, on Southwestern Seminary’s campus. The official release lists a $490 registration fee that includes sessions and meals, with lodging arranged separately. Because rates and availability may change, prospective attendees should confirm all details through the official registration link before purchasing travel.

The conference is especially timely because Christian educators are being asked to make decisions that are simultaneously theological, academic, legal, technological and pastoral. Artificial intelligence can improve access and research while also complicating authorship, truthfulness and student formation. Accreditation can support institutional quality while requiring leaders to articulate clearly what makes Christian education distinctive. Legal developments can affect hiring, campus policy and religious mission. At the same time, every institution must answer an older and deeper question: how do teaching, scholarship and administration reflect fidelity to Christ and Scripture? IACE’s cross-sector format is designed to prevent leaders from addressing those questions in isolation. A university president may learn from a Bible-college administrator; a K–12 educator may see implications in a seminary discussion; a faculty member may understand more clearly how governance and accreditation shape the classroom. The program also includes the authors of “Leadership Essentials for Christian Ministries” — Michael J. Anthony, James Riley Estep Jr. and Kevin M. Gushiken — discussing faithful, Christ-centered leadership amid current challenges. Attendees can prepare by identifying one institutional question in each major area: mission, technology, academic quality, legal risk and spiritual formation. During the conference, they can compare policies, ask for examples and develop relationships with peers who can continue the conversation afterward. The practical value will depend on translation back home. A useful post-conference process would pair a written briefing with a leadership-team discussion and a small number of assigned next steps, such as revising an AI policy, strengthening faculty formation or clarifying how institutional outcomes express Christian commitments. For educators responsible for shaping both minds and character, the event offers a concentrated opportunity to pursue excellence without surrendering theological identity.