Speaker Information Needed

4 conference panelistsWe are so excited that you will be sharing your expertise and perspectives for Missouri State University's Public Affairs Conference!  This picture is from one of our virtual panels.  

You are in great company as our virtual panelists include professionals from across the country and the globe from acclaimed documentary filmmakers to data analyists!  Below are some of the 2024 conference's keynote and plenary speakers that were in-person on the Missouri State University Springfield, MO campus.

  • Brooke Shields, opening Keynote speaker
  • Ray Suarez, Renowened broadcaster and author
  • Scott Tong, Journalist, author, NPR co-host of Here & Now
  • Tucker Bryant, entrepreneur, innovation strategist, poet
  • Dr. Wesley J. Watkins, IV,  Founder, The Jazz & Democracy Project

Items needed from speakers by May 19 or as soon as available

  1. Please complete this Contact Form  (https://forms.office.com/r/xZqPbzAF7F) so that the conference coordinator has your proper and preferred contact information and/or accomodations needed. Information is kept confidential.
  2. A brief biographical sketch.
  3. A digital photo for the conference materials and website.  A cell phone picture or JPEG at least 500x500 works just fine.  Send what you have and we will make it work!

Please email your bio and picture to lead coordinator, Stacey Trewatha-Bach at staceytrewatha@missouristate.edu.

Panel Assignments & Communications

So you've agreed to be a panel speaker, yet you do not know what panel topics you are addressing, correct?  No worries!  You will be contacted mid May with your exact schedule: days, times and descriptions of your panel sessions.  

Hundreds of speakers have been in your exact shoes and have come away loving the conference, their panel sessions, contacts made and even hope to return for another year. Viewing some of our speaker testimonials will certainly help calm the nerves!

Below is an approx. timeline of communications for the 2025 conference: 

  • Week of May 5 – receive your specific schedule of topic(s), date(s) and time(s)
  • Week of August 4 – personal contact by phone
  • Week of August 18 – email with conference details and invite to our optional drop-in speaker meetings offered via Zoom.  
  • Week of September 1 – email sent that will contain your personal Zoom URL(s) to enter each of your panel(s) with speaker permissions.
Public Affairs Conference website

The web page www.publicaffairs.missouristate.edu/conference will be fully updated with the conference information by June 6, 2025.