Press release
Board moves the Annual Leadership Summit to December
Starting in 2027, NANA's Summit shifts from June to early December; the 2026 Summit stays in June, leaving an 18-month gap.
WASHINGTON — NANA's board voted 9–1 on Wednesday to move the Annual Leadership Summit to early December starting in 2027. The June 2026 Summit in Washington will be the last held in spring.
Why the board made the change
Director of Meetings and Events Rosalind Kettering, who has run every Summit since 2014, said December dates cut the median Washington hotel room rate by $61 a night and place the Summit two weeks before the CAE winter testing window.
"We were fighting spring conference season for hotel blocks and paying a premium for it every year," Kettering said. "December gives us better rates and puts the Summit right where members are already thinking about their CAE prep for the winter window."
The new date also positions the Summit just after the Fall Policy Forum each year, letting members combine advocacy and leadership programming into a single fall-to-winter trip to Washington rather than two separate visits months apart. Kettering said the meetings and events team had raised the idea informally for several years before bringing a formal proposal to the board this fall, after two consecutive years of rising spring hotel rates in Washington.
The gap between Summits
Because the 2026 Summit stays on its scheduled June dates, the move creates an 18-month gap between the June 2026 Summit and the first December Summit in 2027 — longer than the roughly 12 months between any two Summits in NANA's recent history.
The 18-month gap is the longest stretch between Summits in the event's history, and Kettering said the meetings and events team is watching for any effect on registration momentum going into 2027.
What members should expect
Chapter chairs and staff who send delegations to the Summit each year should build the longer interval into their 2027 travel budgets now rather than waiting for the early-bird window. Members planning around the Summit calendar should:
Note that the 2026 Summit in June is the last spring edition — plan travel and budget accordingly
Expect the first December Summit in 2027, roughly a year and a half after the 2026 event
Watch for early-bird registration windows to open on the new calendar, typically 60 days before each Summit's start date
Kettering said her team chose December specifically because it falls after the Fall Policy Forum and ahead of the CAE winter testing window, rather than picking a date for hotel savings alone.
Filling the gap
Kettering's team has no plans to schedule a replacement gathering during the 18-month stretch between Summits. Chapter-level programming, including each chapter's regular roundtables and briefings, continues on its normal cadence and is not affected by the Summit's move. Members whose budgets assume an annual Summit should plan for the longer interval before the next one.
About NANA
The National Association of National Associations is the professional society for association executives, boards, and staff, representing more than 750 member organizations and the two million professionals who work for them. NANA provides research, peer community, and advocacy for the people who run the organizations that hold civic life together.