Welcome CTE Leaders!
June 8-10, 2026
Younes Conference Center South, 416 W Talmadge Rd, Kearney, NE 68845
The NCE Conference is a professional development learning opportunity featuring national and state CTE leaders. The conference’s focus will be on addressing current and ongoing themes related to CTE instruction. The NCE Conference is sponsored by the Nebraska Department of Education, Nebraska Career Education, and in cooperation with the Association for Career and Technical Education of Nebraska.
Accommodations: A block of rooms have been reserved with a special conference rate. Please make reservations as soon as possible to secure the group rate. Use the code: Career Education Conference 2026.
Hotel Name: Comfort Inn
Street Address: 118 3rd Ave, Kearney, NE 68847
Phone: (308) 251-2722
Special Rate: $139.95
Hotel Name: Fairfield Inn
Street Address: 510 W Talmadge Rd, Kearney, NE 68845
Phone: (308) 236-4200
Special Rate: $144.95
Hotel Name: LaQuinta Inn & Suites
Street Address: 108 3rd Ave, Kearney, NE 68845
Phone: (308) 237-4400
Special Rate: $139.95
*You must call the hotel directly to book and receive the conference room rate. The hotels cannot be responsible for reservations made through any third party. Please note, that the website IS via a 3rd party. Rates quoted herein are per room, per night, and do not include applicable taxes.
Keynote Speakers
Dr. Alyson Freeman
Alyson Freeman leads the sustainability and ESG innovation efforts for Dell Technologies, driving the creation of environmentally responsible products and business strategies with a focus on AI and data center energy use.
She has 20 years’ experience in engineering and management roles at NASA, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Samsung, Intel, and Dell Technologies. Her Ph.D. is in materials engineering with a focus on semiconductors. She holds multiple patents in the field of AI and energy management.
Freeman is also global lead for the Women in Action employee resource group at Dell Technologies, a co-founder and former chair of Women in Technology at Samsung Austin Semiconductor, a board member of the National Girls Collaborative Project, a board member of Westwood STEM Academy, and co-founded a global Coding for Kids program at Dell Technologies. She is the recipient of the Texas Stand Up for STEM Mentoring Award, featured in STEM Crew Magazine for her engineering career, and named a Changemaker in Sustainability and ESG by Austin Woman Magazine.
Dr. Tim Elmore
Tim is Founder of Growing Leaders, an Atlanta‐based non‐profit organization created to develop emerging leaders. His work grew out of 20 years of serving alongside Dr. John C. Maxwell. Elmore has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, USA Today, Psychology Today, and been featured on CNN’s Headline News, Fox Business, Newsmax TV and Fox & Friends to talk about leading multiple generations in the marketplace. He has written 40 books, including Habitudes: Images That Form Leadership Habits and Attitudes, and Eight Paradoxes of Great Leadership. His latest book, The Future Begins with Z: Nine Strategies to Lead Generation Z As They Disrupt the Workplace, releases fall of 2025. You can find his work at: TimElmore.com.