I am excited for TAA’s upcoming 29th Annual Conference in June! In just a few short months I will join fellow textbook and academic authors at the Hotel Contessa in San Antonio for two full days of connecting, collaborating and being inspired by fellow TAA members. This will be my fourth conference since joining TAA in 2012.

Last year at the conference I shared with some colleagues what TAA means to me, and how being a part of TAA has advanced my writing career and helped me to become more successful. I compared my experience, prior to joining TAA, as being born with three eyes. While having three eyes could be a positive attribute, I felt isolated, misunderstood, underrepresented. Different. As a textbook and academic author in a community college in Alabama, I had no method of connecting with other authors.

But when I walked into my first TAA conference I discovered that it was like being in a room full of people with three eyes. How refreshing it was to be with people who spoke my language and understood my concerns and issues! Indeed, I had found a community of kindred spirits!

While there are a number of conferences available for those in my field of study, TAA’s has become my top priority conference. TAA’s conference delivers quality content, relevant workshops, and tremendous opportunities for networking.

As this year’s conference committee chairman, I am excited about the quality and quantity of sessions we will be offering this year. I predict that this year’s conference will be the best ever!

I am registered and counting the days until June 23, when the evening networking reception will kick off the conference. Are you registered? If not, there is no better time than now. I shall look forward to seeing you there!

All the best…

Mike Kennamer
TAA Vice President/President Elect