Annual Conference
Join us for the 62nd Annual Conference
International Council for Arts Deans
Resilience by Design
Detroit, Michigan | October 6th - 8th, 2026 | with optional programs – October 5th and 9th
This year’s conference theme Resilience by Design reflects Detroit’s hard-earned ability not just to recover, but to reinvent with intention. Globally recognized by UNESCO as a City of Design, Detroit is the only U.S. city to hold that designation. Design is not an afterthought; it is a strategy. From neighborhood-scale planning to creative entrepreneurship, from adaptive reuse to equitable development, design has shaped Detroit’s economic revitalization and strengthened its social fabric. This theme recognizes that resilience is not accidental—it is built through thoughtful systems, inclusive processes, and the power of design to solve complex challenges, fuel innovation, and create a more sustainable and connected future.
Resilience by Design includes meaning for each of us and our colleagues, too. In other words: during these rapidly changing and often stressful times in arts in higher education, ICfAD’s 62nd Annual Conference will provide a platform for discussion of challenges and opportunities. Sustaining engagement with trusted colleagues and sharing best practices will allow us to adjust leadership strategies collaboratively and embrace new knowledge and innovative solutions.
“The birthplace of Motown and the Model T car, this industrious Michigan city has gone from boom to bust and back. Today, it’s carving a niche for inclusive music and art.” - National Geographic Magazine
"Detroit, a metropolis of more than 6 million inhabitants, is considered a hub for industrial design and the beating heart of creative industries in the state of Michigan (United States of America). In the light of its industrial past, Detroit has built itself as a cradle of American modernist design and as a global center for prolific designers, including Eames, Knoll, Saarinen and Yamasaki." - UNESCO
Monday, October 5, 2026
Fellows Program
The Fellows Program is a professional development program to promote a healthy and continuous pipeline of talented arts administrators who are prepared to move into leadership positions in our institutions. Designed for directors, department chairs and assistant or associate deans, this full-day workshop will center on fiscal stewardship, personal management, and leadership effectiveness.
 A Pre-Conference Workshop for New Deans
This full-day workshop is designed to support newly appointed permanent, interim and acting deans in their first two years in the role. The workshop is intended to quickly orient participants to the responsibilities integral to this key leadership position, and offers opportunity to learn best practices and network with colleagues.
A Deeper Dive into Detroit (offered Monday and Friday afternoons)
Thoughtful and engaging experiences that will demonstrate why Detroit was named the #1 Emerging Start Up Ecosystem in the world, the only U.S. city to be designated a UNESCO City of Design and one of Time Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places. We will just be scratching the surface but join us as we visit:
Tuesday, October 6, 2026
A Panel Presentation at Wayne State University’s College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts
A panel presentation of foundation representatives focused on arts funding at Wayne State University’s College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts, hosted by Interim Dean Kelly Young. Representatives from the Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation, Knight Foundation and Kresge Foundation will discuss the nature of their foundation’s work. Recognizing that often arts deans do not directly interact with foundations – our colleagues do – what should arts deans understand about the supporting relationship we do play?
As Michigan's only public urban research university, Wayne State University has been dedicated to changing the world from the heart of Detroit for over 150 years. With 13 schools and colleges, it is a powerhouse of academic excellence and a thriving institution that advances knowledge across various disciplines, serving nearly 24,000 students and boasting nearly 285,000 alumni who embody the Warrior spirit. The university is home to the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts, which offers 17 undergraduate programs, 10 graduate programs, and three graduate certificates, and has notable alumni who are award-winning artists, performers, and communication professionals, including a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and winners of prestigious awards such as the Grammy, Emmy, and Tony.
A Visit to the College for Creative Studies
The Power of Partnership Bridging Education and Industry: Experiential Learning for Career Success in Art and Design. Learn about the College for Creative Studies' success with industry partnerships, presented by Assistant Vice President of Partnerships, Shannon McPartlon, and hosted by Dean of Undergraduate Studies Amy Ruopp.
The College for Creative Studies (CCS) is a nonprofit, private college accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and authorized by the Michigan Department of Education to grant Bachelor's and Master's degrees. CCS, located in midtown Detroit, strives to provide students with the tools needed for successful careers in the dynamic and growing creative industries. CCS, named an Opportunity College by the Carnegie Classifications, fosters students' resolve to pursue excellence, act ethically, engage their responsibilities as citizens and learn throughout their lives. With world-class faculty and unsurpassed facilities, students learn to be visual communicators who actively use art and design toward the betterment of society. The College is a major supplier of talent to numerous industries, including transportation, film and animation, advertising and communications, consumer electronics, athletic apparel, and many more. Its graduates are exhibiting artists and teachers, design problem solvers and innovators, as well as creative leaders in business.
Welcome Reception
This event will take place at the conference hotel, the Westin Book Cadillac.
Wednesday, October 7, 2026
Breakfast and Optional Mini Presentations Over Breakfast
Welcoming Remarks
 Presentation of the Award for Arts Achievement & Excellence
Opening Keynote Presentation
Our opening keynote presentation will feature John Hoke III, an architect and designer, who is Chairman of the Board at MillerKnoll, and previously served as chief innovation officer of Nike, Inc. where he led the company’s design team including more than 1,000 product and industrial designers, graphic designers, fashion designers, as well as architects, and interface and digital content designers.
Reflection Break
After the Reflection Break, the day will include dean-focused, colleague-led programs and discussions including:
Facilitated Discussions
Jer Nelsen, Associate Dean, South Carolina School of the Arts at Anderson University
Jen Benoit-Bryan, Executive Director, SMU DataArts, Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University
Samuel S. Holland, Algur H. Meadows Dean, Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University
Maryrose Flanigan, Executive Director, the Alliance for the Arts in Research Universities (a2ru)
Annual Meeting for the International Council for Arts Deans
Lunch
Roundtable Discussions
Roundtable Discussions serve as a forum to explore special topics, timely issues, and fresh ideas of interest to ICfAD's diverse and growing membership.
Celebrate the Arts Reception
This reception will take place in the beautiful Rivera Room of the Detroit Institute of Arts.
Thursday, October 8, 2026
Breakfast and Networking
Visit the Cranbrook Academy of Art
Cranbrook Academy of Art is a top-ranked school devoted exclusively to graduate education in art, architecture, craft and design.
Our time on campus will include a panel presentation, Integrating Historic Campus Properties into Arts Curriculum, with panelists:
Greg Wittkopp, Director, Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research
Lilian Crum, Interim Dean, College of Architecture and Design at Lawrence Technological University
Elisabeth Honn Hoegberg, Director, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, and Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences, Oakland University
 As part of the conference registration process, visitors will select their choice of campus tours.
- Cranbrook House: Booth Family English Arts and Crafts-style house designed by Albert Kahn, built between 1907-1908 in the Elizabethan style and filled with handmade decorative arts from the best makers of the time. Tour will include two levels of the home and the grand library, along with 1918 and 1919 additions.
- Japanese Garden and Surrounding Grounds: Newly restored and master plan designed by Sadafumi Uchiyama includes elements originally sourced and created by the Booths in 1915, making it one of the oldest Japanese-style gardens in North America. The New Entrance Garden was completed in the fall of 2025 with an Azumaya pavilion. The garden sits at the eastern edge of Kingswood Lake. This tour will also include a walk through the formal Sunken Garden at Cranbrook House and will be completely outside.
- Saarinen House: Saarinen Family home, designed by Eliel Saarinen as a “total work of art” in the Art Deco style and completed in 1930. Eliel and Loja Saarinen lived here until his death in 1950. The home was fully restored in 1994 and features handwoven textiles, handcrafted furniture, and custom fixtures all designed by the Saarinens and many made at Cranbrook.
- Frank Lloyd Wright designed Smith House: Detroit public schoolteachers Melvyn and Sara Smith built this unique family home, an example of Wright’s vision for American living, which he called Usonia, in 1950. The Smiths dedicated themselves to filling their home with works of art, much of it from Cranbrook student and alumni studios.
- Academy Way & MFA Studios: Walk through the terraced Triton Pool Court with a series of 1920s sculptures by Carl Miles to arrive at the south side of Academy Way. Designed as a place where teachers and students can work and live together, Cranbrook Academy of Art is a group of utilitarian brick buildings with studios and living quarters. The first academy students arrived in 1930 and studied under architects and artists including Loja Saarinen, Carl Milles, William Comstock, Marshall M. Fredericks, Maija Grotell and others. In this tour, you will have the opportunity to walk through current MFA student studios and meet some of the current artists-in-residence.
- Cranbrook Art Museum & Collections Wing: After an addition and renovation in 2011, the Art Museum now houses an 8,000+ collection that can be viewed in the collections wing, including a Ceramics vault and Plaza vaults with works from many notable artists and designers of the mid-century and beyond. This tour will have time to spend in the art museum’s current exhibition.
Lunch at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation
Attendees will enjoy discussion with colleagues and self-guided exploration of the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, where the stories of America’s greatest minds come to life. Sit where Rosa Parks made history, discover the drive behind American automotive innovations and make yourself at home inside Buckminster Fuller’s circular Dymaxion House. Be inspired by the past — and imagine your own place in the future.
Time at the Ford Rogue Factory
The Ford Rouge Factory Tour has been called a model of 21st century sustainable design. The recommendation for its inclusion in our conference agenda came from colleagues who oversee industrial design programs on their campuses. Here we will learn the story behind how the automobile as we know it came of age and how Ford’s pioneering industrial design complex has become an international showcase for modern manufacturing and advanced, sustainable environmental design.
Closing Reception
Friday, October 9, 2026
Detroit Music Immersion (offered Friday morning)
Throughout its history, Detroit's legacy has been rooted in its long-storied music scene. Known as the birthplace of Motown, the city is full of musically-focused points of interest. An expert tour guide will take attendees through a few uniquely compelling stops including:
A Deeper Dive into Detroit (offered Monday and Friday afternoons)
Thoughtful and engaging experiences that will demonstrate why Detroit was named the #1 Emerging Start Up Ecosystem in the world, the only U.S. city to be designated a UNESCO City of Design and one of Time Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places. We will just be scratching the surface but join us as we visit:
Overnight accommodations are booked separately. To take advantage of our Group Rate at the conference hotel, please book your stay using this link. This Group Rate is valid on overnight stays between Monday, October 5, 2026 and Sunday, October 11, 2026.
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