2026 Annual Convention
St. Louis, MO | September 2–4 (Pre-Con: Aug. 31–Sept. 1)
Join us for our 2026 Annual Convention, taking place September 2–4 in St. Louis, Missouri!
ABOUT THE EVENT
Community Action Agencies (CAAs) and other human services providers are trusted, and they have both the expertise and dedication it takes to serve families and communities best. Agencies in attendance at NCAP’s Annual Convention will have the opportunity to learn from their peers’ innovative efforts and receive updates on the latest federal standards.
What’s more, the Annual Convention will provide CAAs and other human services providers with timely information, training, and resources to increase their efficiency and impact. The Convention acts as a learning hub to share approaches and access proven strategies to move families and communities forward – with topics ranging from education to job training that assists the whole family to advance together.
Everyone should be able to take care of their families and have an opportunity at success. NCAP’s Annual Convention supports CAAs and other human service providers as they work to ignite economic growth and ensure hard working families can move into the middle class.
AGENDA
Click here to view the preliminary agenda.
LOCATION
Hyatt Regency St. Louis at the Arch
RATES
Hotel Information
NCAP’s 2026 Annual Convention will take place at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis at The Arch, overlooking the iconic Gateway Arch right in the heart of downtown St. Louis.
Leading with Excellence: Activating Leadership for Impact
Tuesday, September 1 | 9:00 am – 3:30 pm
Strong Community Action Agencies are shaped by how leadership functions across the organization. Leadership is not limited to a single role; it operates as a system that connects board governance, executive direction, staff experience, and organizational performance. When that system is aligned and intentional, agencies are better positioned to achieve results and serve as effective leaders in their communities.
This preconference session focuses on how to strengthen leadership as a system in practice. Grounded in the Community Action Standards of Excellence, participants will examine how board leadership, staff engagement, customer voice, and data-informed decision-making work together to drive performance and guide action. The session centers on the real work of leadership: setting direction, making decisions, and adjusting course to improve results and respond to changing conditions.
Key learning includes:
- Align leadership to drive performance: Examine how board, executive, and management leadership work together to set direction, maintain accountability, and support organizational results.
- Use customer voice, data, and continuous improvement to guide decisions: Explore how input from people with low incomes, staff perspectives, and performance data come together to shape priorities, assess progress, and improve outcomes over time.
- Make strategic decisions in real conditions: Strengthen how leaders balance mission, resources, and reality, using financial and operational insight to make tradeoffs and sustain impact.
- Lead through change to advance community impact: Build approaches for navigating uncertainty, driving innovation, and positioning the agency to respond to emerging needs and influence community outcomes.
- Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of how leadership across the organization drives performance and impact, along with practical ways to strengthen alignment, decision-making, and results.
Price: $599 non-member | $449 member
Weatherization Summit: Mission Driven, Business Led: Leadership Excellence in Action
Tuesday, September 1 | 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
As Weatherization programs continue to operate in increasingly complex and high-demand environments, leadership must evolve beyond traditional program management into fully integrated, data-driven and business-informed. This summit challenges Executive Directors, Finance Leaders, and WAP Program Managers to rethink how mission and business operate together, as aligned drivers of program excellence.
Building on foundational Weatherization principles and concepts, this summit moves the conversation forward from strengthening delivery to leading high-performing Weatherization Programs. Participants will explore how mission-driven work is strengthened by disciplined business practices, including financial clarity, operational accountability, and structured decision-making.
The summit will demonstrate the value proposition for moving beyond reactive to proactive management and how intentional leadership can align strategy, operations, and outcomes to drive program excellence. Attend this full day session to explore how mission alignment, fiscal stewardship, workforce strategy, and operational systems can generate a shared organizational mindset for delivering consistent, measurable Weatherization performance outcomes and community impacts.
Price: $250
In-Depth Training on Uniform Guidance Regulations
August 31 – September 1 | 8:30 am – 5:00 pm
Having strong internal controls and understanding the rules governing how you can and cannot spend federal dollars are keys to fiscal management and overall compliance in your organization. And the regulations have changed! Review the regulations you need to know to stay in compliance through examples, stories and best practices facilitated from trainers with years of auditing and consulting experience. You won’t just explore the regulations but, more importantly, you’ll take home tips on how to implement them in your organization immediately. Professionals new to the organization, as well as professionals who have been there for decades, will benefit from this two-to-four-day review of the administrative and cost principles/allocation sections of the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB’s) 2 CFR Part 200 – Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (also known as the “Uniform Guidance”).
And if you administer a Head Start/Early Head Start program, you’ll want to stay for days three and four to discuss the latest impacts of the Head Start Act and the Head Start Program Performance Standards. Wipfli has facilitated training to over 20,000 grant-funded leaders since 2020 with evaluation scores of “very good” and “excellent” across the board.
Price: Early Bird $875 | Regular $925
Sponsorship, Exhibit and Advertising Opportunities
Extend your brand identity and marketing capabilities with a strong and visible presence at the National Community Action Partnership’s events. Take advantage of the opportunity to tie your brand identity not only to NCAP, but also to the culture of innovation and excellence that is cultivated at our events. NCAP can also customize a unique multievent sponsorship package just for your organization!
NCAP’s events are capacity-building opportunities unmatched anywhere else. Presented by and for professionals who truly understand the potential of Community Action and the challenges they face, these events provide relevant and unmatched information, training, and technical assistance
Thank You, Sponsors!
Event Code of Conduct
NCAP event participants are expected to foster an environment where all are welcomed, open dialogue is encouraged, and all perspectives are appreciated.
Every event participant is expected to act in a professional, responsible, and respectful manner while engaged in NCAP events and activities. Unprofessional behavior, including disparaging comments and unwelcome conduct will not be tolerated.
If any event participant engages in unprofessional behavior, NCAP leadership may take any action it deems appropriate, ranging from a simple warning to the offender to expulsion from current and future activities. NCAP’s intent is to foster the respectful behavior embodied in the Code of Conduct.
NCAP staff will be happy to help event participants with Code of Conduct concerns. You may reach out to NCAP staff at registration@communityactionpartnership.com.