National Institute 2026: Full Schedule

7:00pm EDT

Thursday October 1, 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm EDT

Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-G

Angie Thomas is the author of the award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling Nic Blake and the Remarkables series, The Hate U Give, On the Come Up, and Concrete Rose as well as Find Your Voice: A Guided Journal for Writing Your Truth. She is also a coauthor of the bestselling collaborative novels Blackout, Whiteout, and Breakout. A former teen rapper who holds a BFA in creative writing, Angie divides her time between her native Mississippi, and Atlanta. You can find her online at angiethomas.com.

Speakers

Angie Thomas

Author

Sponsors

HarperCollins Publishers

Thursday October 1, 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm EDT
Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-G 2 Fountain Plaza, Buffalo, NY 14202, USA

General Session

8:00pm EDT

Book Signing: Angie Thomas

Thursday October 1, 2026 8:00pm - 9:00pm EDT

Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Regency Ballroom

Angie's books will be available for purchase onsite at the National Institute bookstore, including Nic Blake series, The Hate U Give, and 2026's Breakout (co-authored with Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Ashley Woodfolk and Nicola Yoon).

Speakers

Angie Thomas

Author

Sponsors

HarperCollins Publishers

Thursday October 1, 2026 8:00pm - 9:00pm EDT
Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Regency Ballroom 2 Fountain Plaza, Buffalo, NY, USA

General Session

8:30am EDT

Friday Big Ideas: Creating Reading Rainbow

Friday October 2, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am EDT

Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-D

Join Barbara Irwin, PhD, Tony Buttino Sr, and Pam Johnson, PhD, as they discuss their book, Creating Reading Rainbow: The Untold Story of a Beloved Children’s Series. The story of Reading Rainbow is very much a story of humble beginnings and perseverance. This General Session will focus on this beloved children’s series, including answer the question: “how did a public television station in Buffalo spearhead a movement in education and spark passion for reading in millions of children?”

A book signing with the authors of Creating Reading Rainbow will immediately follow.

Speakers

Barbara Irwin

Professor Emerita, Department of Communication, Canisius University

Barbara Irwin, Ph.D., is Professor Emerita of Communication at Canisius University in Buffalo, New York. Specializing in media studies, she taught courses in media and children, public broadcasting, and media literacy, among many others. Irwin worked as a Reading Rainbow Project Assistant... Read More →

Tony Buttino

Tony Buttino Sr. is best known for his leadership in the creation of the Emmy award-winning Public TV series Reading Rainbow. Most of his forty years of working at WNEDTV (now Buffalo Toronto Public Media) were spent utilizing and marketing instructional television (ITV) as a teaching... Read More →

Pamela Johnson

Pam Johnson, Ph.D., is the former Executive Director of Ready To Learn at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a school readiness initiative developed in partnership with PBS KIDS, leading children’s content producers, researchers, and America’s public media stations with... Read More →

Sponsors

West Herr Auto Group

Friday October 2, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am EDT
Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-D 2 Fountain Plaza, Buffalo, NY 14202, USA

General Session

9:30am EDT

Book Signing: Creating Reading Rainbow

Friday October 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:15am EDT

Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Regency Ballroom

Creating Reading Rainbow will be available for purchase onsite at the National Institute bookstore. Have your copy signed and chat with the creators!

Speakers

8:30am EDT

Big Ideas: TBA!

Saturday October 3, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am EDT

Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-D

Saturday October 3, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am EDT
Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-D 2 Fountain Plaza, Buffalo, NY 14202, USA

General Session

3:30pm EDT

Saturday Closing Session

Saturday October 3, 2026 3:30pm - 4:30pm EDT

Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-D

Saturday October 3, 2026 3:30pm - 4:30pm EDT
Hyatt Regency Buffalo | Grand Ballroom A-D 2 Fountain Plaza, Buffalo, NY 14202, USA

General Session

7:00pm EDT

8:00pm EDT

8:30am EDT

9:30am EDT

8:30am EDT

3:30pm EDT

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