2026 Conference

Living Well, Leading Forward

Saturday, March 28, 2026

Grace E. Simons Lodge at 1025 Elysian Park Drive, Los Angeles  

9:30-4:30

11.5 miles South of the Hollywood Burbank Airport

Note: Board of Directors Meeting will be held Friday afternoon
Professional Development Units for attendees have been requested from AAFCS

• AAFCS Members: $150
• Non-AAFCS Members: $175
• Students: $20

• Continental breakfast
• Lunch with vegetarian options
• Free parking

Registration
Complete and submit registration form to attend the conference 2026 conference registration form

Conference Keynote speaker: Jana Din

Jana Din, a retired family and consumer science teacher, also a Teacher of the Year in Sacramento and a nationwide and international presenter, will provide an inspiring keynote at the 2026 CA-AFCS conference. She will bring the theme “Living Well, Leading Forward” to life through practical, research-informed wellness strategies that educators and students can immediately use.

Participants will experience aspects of emotional and physical wellness through an engaging introduction to Tapping (Emotional Freedom Technique) as described by Kaiser Permanente as a simple, accessible stress-reduction tool. They will practice easy to apply self- acupressure techniques to restore energy and alleviate headaches and nausea. They will also listen to soft, rhythmic drumming—a straightforward mindfulness approach shown to help alleviate anxiety, stress, tension, and depression while fostering relaxation and inner peace.

Family and Consumer Sciences educators and students will walk away from this presentation empowered with practical, whole-person strategies to model wellness, build resilience, and teach lifelong skills that help those they encounter truly live well — and lead forward.

Submit Proposals

We encourage professionals and students, both undergrad and graduate students to submit abstracts to participate in the conference. Please use the format outlined on the Call for Proposals, links below.

Call for Proposals Professionals 2026 Deadline January 9, 2026
Call Proposals Students 2026 Deadline January 30, 2026

Conference Tri-Chairs
Diane Lewis-Goldstein (diane.lewis.goldstein@csun.edu)
Doris Barela-Fossen (dbfossen@aol.com)
Dolores Robles (Dolores.Robles@csulb.edu)

Things to do in LA

Viator Tours (https://www.viator.com/Los-Angeles/d645-ttd) offers reasonable Hollywood and Los Angeles tours. Most of the tours can be booked days in advance, depending on availability the day of the tour. Many pick up and meet in Hollywood. Hollywood is approximately a 30-minute drive. Examples of tours: Hollywood, Beverly Hills & Celebrity Homes Tour starting at $25.00 for 2 hours; Hollywood, Beverly Hills & Celebrity Homes Tour by Open Air Bus starting at $99.00 for 7-hour tour.

El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historic Park (https://www.olvera-street.com) is the first settling of the Spanish and Mexican eras. The Avila Adobe is the oldest house in Los Angeles dating back to 1818. Furnishings of the time period are displayed. Within this historic park is Olvera Street, a California Historical Landmark and part of the National Parks Registry. Considered the birthplace of Los Angeles, it is located at 125 Paseo de la Plaza, the heart and soul of the City of Angels. The plaza dates back to the 1820’s and the Conquest of California.

Hollywood Pantages Theater, a step back into the elegance of old Hollywood will be showing “Monty Python Spamalot.” Tickets range in price with plays on Sunday at 1:00pm and 6:30pm as well as plays on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. A 30-minute drive.  https://www.broadwayinhollywood.com/venues/detail/pantagestheatre

Universal Studios Hollywood/Burbank is located at 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City. General admission starts at $109. Hours are 10 am–7pm, a 20-minute drive.  https://www.universalstudioshollywood.com/web/en/us

Warner Brothers studio tour offers small group tours priced at $76.00. Tour hours are from 8:30am–3:30pm. Located at 3400 Warner Blvd. Burbank, a 10-minute drive. https://www.wbstudiotour.com/

Los Angels Dodgers at Dodger Stadium Thursday, March 26 @ 5:30 pm. Home Opener vs. Arizona. 1000 Vin Scully Ave. LA. Approximately a 30-minute drive. Tickets at https://www.mlb.com/dodgers/tickets/single-game-tickets or gotickets.com

Disneyland Resort is celebrating its 70th Birthday. California residents can enjoy the park at lower rates until May 21. A 3-day Park Hopper pass is $83.00 per day for a total of $249.00. The pass allows one to go to both Disneyland and California Adventure and may be used on non-consecutive days. Disneyland now requires reservations on their website https://disneyland.disney.go.com/ From Burbank to Anaheim is 36 miles and approximately 45 minutes to an hour from the hotel.

The Getty Museum is a well-renowned art museum located in Los Angeles. Located at 1200 Getty Center Drive, admission is free, and parking is $25.00. Sunday hours are 10am-6:30pm. Reservations  required https://www.getty.edu/. Drive time is 25 minutes, 18.3 miles.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art is located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles in the Miracle Mile vicinity. Sunday hours are 10am-7pm, adult tickets are $30 for residents outside LA County. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (outdoor area is free, museum is $18, open 9:30am-5pm) and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (LACMA West, 6067 Wilshire Blvd), which is the largest museum devoted to the arts, sciences, and artists of moviemaking. Sunday hours are 10am-6pm, adult tickets $25. Drive time is 25 minutes, 10 miles. See https://www.lacma.org/  and/or https://tarpits.org/ and/or https://www.academymuseum.org/en