SXSW EDU 2026: Community proposal voting guide + TTRPG highlights
SXSW EDU 2026 uses community voting (along with advisory board and staff review) to help gauge interest in proposals and determine what programming makes it to the stage! Help pick content for the yearly educational showcase, and check out some awesome proposal from folks in the TTRPG space (including one involving TTRPGkids).
*As a note, Steph from TTRPGkids is part of the SXSW EDU 2026 advisory board! As part of this role, they are an advocate for community participation in the conference along with reviewing proposal submissions.
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What is SXSW EDU?
SXSW EDU is an educational conference that proceeds (and is now somewhat overlapping with) the famous film, media, and music festival that is held yearly in Austin, Texas.
Educators and educational-focused professionals from around the world come to speak at the conference and share thier strategies, advice, and experience with other educators who can take this information back to their schools and school districts.
In addition, educators and librarians in many states are required to complete Continuing Education Credits to stay certified, and this conference is a mecha for folks to earn these credits while also being able to connect with others.
How does voting work?
Proposals for the conference are chosen based on community voting (30%), SXSW EDU staff evaluation (30%), and advisory board review (40%).
Community voting is open to the general public (not just folks who attend the conference) to help understand what the world at large is interested in seeing.
To vote, you’ll need to:
- Visit the SXSW EDU Panel Picker page
- Login or create an account
- Click the heart on the proposals you want to vote for
I recommend looking for keywords of topics that you are interested to help filter through the proposals, and I’ve also created a list below of a few to check out if you’re interested in TTRPGs!
TTRPG-related proposals to check out
First, please explore the full SXSW EDU proposal list to see the variety of content being submitted. The intention for this list below is to highlight proposals from folks in the TTRPG community who want to present so you can see what they’re working on and, if you like the proposal, can help raise awareness about it for the event.
If you’d like to vote for any of the proposals, the instructions here should walk you through.
The links in the descriptions will take you right to the proposal page where you can find more details and vote.
- Educational Tabletop Gaming Meet Up Series*
- Making a Tabletop RPG for YOUR Particular Classroom
- Online Spaces as Real Life Social Learning for Young Adults
- The Kids Table Live-play: SEL, D&D, and Kids!
- Let It Go, Elsa & Say Goodbye to Teacher Centric Classrooms
- Level Up! Role-Playing Games for Well-Being in the Classroom
*This proposal is by Chris Hopper (TTRPG Accessibility Consultant) and Steph Campbell (TTRPGkids)!
Thank you for checking out the event and the proposals above, and I’m looking forward to seeing folks at SXSW EDU 2026!
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