Upcoming Events
SEAT Higher Ed Briefing & Urgent Action | Sat, May 11 @ 8pm CT | Virtual
The Texas Senate is hearing public testimony, so we're calling students and supporters to action.
Texas Senate Subcommittee Hearing on Higher Ed | Tue, May 14 @ 9am | Texas Capitol (Austin)
Join SEAT and others in rallying and testifying on critical issues set by the Texas Senate: monitoring the SB 17 ban on DEI, combating antisemitism, and campus free speech.
Recurring Events
SEAT Research Collective | Next Meeting: Sun, Apr. 14 @ 6-7pm CT | Virtual
During monthly meetings, high school and college students engage with research and public policy advocacy. Please reach out to [email protected] for more information.
Save The Books Social | Next Meeting: Mon, Apr. 29 @ 6-7:30pm CT | Virtual
Save the Books Socials are monthly meetups facilitated by the Austin Public Library with the support of the Library Foundation, Children's Defense Fund, BookPeople, SEAT, and other organizations who care about keeping books un-banned.
Previous events
BIPOC Book Fest | Sat, May 4 | Asia Society of Texas (Houston)
#SEAT24 Statewide Student Summit | Sat, Apr. 20 - Sun, Apr. 21 | (Austin)
Join us for a weekend of conquering Texas-sized policy issues at a statewide convening primarily for high school and undergraduate students.
Poster Presentation @ TLA 2024 | Apr. 17-19 | Gonzalez Convention Center (San Antonio)
UT Educational Policy Symposium | Tue, Apr. 16 | Virtual
Ethnic Studies @ State Board of Education Meeting | Fri, Apr. 12 | (Austin)
Send an email to SBOE urging them to proceed with adopting the American Indian / Native Studies curriculum in K-12 schools. If you can join us in testimony, let's be loud!
Houston ISD Board Meeting | Thu, Apr. 11 | (Houston)
Impact and Legacy Fund Children’s Book Changemakers | Thu, Apr. 11 | Virtual
Tune into SEAT organizer Da'Taeveyon's keynote address alongside authors Lois Lowry, Hope Anita Smith, Barbara & Lily Kingsolver, and actor Goldie Hawn with SCBWI and NCAC.
HRC Houston Dinner | Sat, Apr. 6 | Marriott Marquis (Houston)
Banned: Protecting the Freedom to Learn | Wed, Apr. 3 | Brandeis University (Boston)
Rally for Books @ Fort Worth ISD Board Meeting | Tue, Mar. 26 | (Fort Worth)
Teen Book Con | Sat, Mar. 23 | Alief Taylor High School (Houston)
Speak Out Against Budget Cuts @ Houston ISD Board Meeting | Thu, Mar. 21 | (Houston)
Rally for Books @ Dallas ISD Board Meeting | Thu, Mar. 21 | (Dallas)
Dallas ISD Students Against Book Bans Rally | Sat, Mar. 9 | (Dallas)
Unified Jam "Restoring Democracy in the Lone Star State" | Fri, Mar. 8 | (Austin)
Katy Library Teen Program | Thu, Mar. 7 @ 4:30pm CT | HCPL Katy Branch Library (Katy)
Georgetown Law Conference Panel | Thu, Mar. 7
SXSW EDU "How to be a Freedom Fighter" | Tue, Mar. 5 @ 11:30am | (Austin)
Rally at Fort Worth ISD Board Meeting | Tue, Feb. 27 @ 5pm | 7060 Camp Bowie Blvd (Fort Worth)
Student Emma Barberena is organizing students to rally in support comprehensive sex education curriculum as the district considers revisions.
Katy ISD Board Meeting | Mon, Feb. 26 @ 5pm | 6301 S Stadium Ln (Katy)
School districts are voting on whether to allow employing uncertified chaplains to perform the duties of school counselors, pertaining to Senate Bill 763.
Galveston ISD Board Meeting | Wed, Feb. 21 @ 6pm | 3904 Ave. T (Galveston)
School districts are voting on whether to allow employing uncertified chaplains to perform the duties of school counselors, pertaining to Senate Bill 763.
Eleanor Roosevelt Awards for Bravery in Literature | Sat, Feb. 17 | Bard College (NY)
SEAT organizer Cameron reads passages from Gender Queer and Flamer during an inaugural program by the Eleanor Roosevelt Center to honor banned authors.
NCAC Kids' Right to Read Network | Thu, Feb. 15 @ 11am CT | Virtual
SEAT will present on how to engage students in defending intellectual freedom.
North East ISD, Cy-Fair ISD, and Spring Branch ISD Board Meetings | Mon, Feb. 12
School districts are voting on whether to allow employing uncertified chaplains to perform the duties of school counselors, pertaining to Senate Bill 763.
CVPE Read-in at Houston ISD Board Meeting | Thu, Feb. 8 @ 4:30pm | (Houston)
SEAT Urgent Action Meeting on School Chaplains | Wed, Feb. 7 @ 7pm CT | Virtual
SB 763 requires Texas school districts to vote by Mar. 1 whether to allow uncertified religious chaplains to replace school counselors. Join SEAT for a briefing and learn how you can take action in your school district.
Barracoon with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi | Sat, Feb. 3 @ 1pm | HPL Central Library (Houston)
Webinar with American Association of School Libraries | Thu, Feb. 1 @ 6pm CT | Virtual
Learn about advocacy for library access and advice for librarians and students to advocate for libraries from SEAT organizer Cameron Samuels.
SEAT Research Collective Launch | Sat, Jan. 27 @ 7pm CT | Virtual
Join SEAT organizer Grace Ding to launch our Research Collective, a collaborative initiative for teens to conduct research into school district policymaking, assess policy impacts, and publish conclusions for informing our community organizing.
Censorship Panel with American Bar Association | Tue, Jan. 23 @ 2pm CT | Virtual
Join SEAT organizer Cameron Samuels and SEAT partners at PEN America and the U.S. Department of Education for a panel on "Exposing the Impact of Curriculum and Book Bans: Education for the Public and Not the Few."
Spring Branch ISD Board Meeting | Mon, Jan. 22 | (Houston)
School board members introduced a book ban proposal at the December meeting, and we must fight back if this policy returns to the agenda this month.
OCA Sparks of Change Summit | Sat, Dec. 16 | (Houston)
Participate in the summit co-organized by SEAT program director Angel Huang!
HISD Board Meeting | Thu, Dec. 14 | (Houston)
SBOE Special Meeting on HB 900 Standards | Wed, Dec. 13 | (Austin)
Plano ISD Board Meeting on Book Policy | Tue, Dec. 12 | (DFW)
Young Invincibles Power Hour | Sat, Dec. 9 | Texas Capitol (Austin)
Stand With Texas Comedy Show | Mon, Dec. 4 | Heights Theater (Houston)
Performer, actress, compelling storyteller Sandra Bernhard is taking a stand with Texas and bringing her Sandyland Presents: “Stand With Texas” community gathering shows to Houston this December, benefitting SEAT with a focus on K-12 education and book bans. Join SEAT organizer Hayden Cohen for a spectacular night of comedy!
Chamber of Progress Digital Censorship Panel | Thu, Nov. 30 | Virtual
Listen to SEAT organizer Cameron deliver a student perspective on digital censorship alongside panelists with the National Coalition Against Censorship and partners.
BookPeople v. Wong Oral Arguments in Court | Wed, Nov. 28 | Livestream
Tune into the court arguments for our partners' lawsuit against HB 900. This case could set new precedents for the freedom of read, and we're standing up.
Submit Comments to TSLAC on the HB 900 Library Standards | Deadline Nov. 26
Spring Branch ISD Meeting amid Proposed Anti-Trans Policy | Mon, Nov. 27
Conroe ISD Meeting on Book Policy | Tue, Nov. 14
State Board of Education Hearing on Textbooks | Tue, Nov. 14 | William B. Travis (Austin)
Testify alongside our partners at Texas Freedom Network for accurate teaching of climate change and biological evolution in science textbooks.
Sherman ISD Meeting on Trans Kids in Theatre | Mon, Nov. 13
Black Brown Dialogues - Storytelling Panels | Sun, Nov. 12 | Texas Capitol (Austin)
Join SEAT organizer Angel Huang with UT professor Dr. Angela Valenzuela.
An Advocacy Training for Young Activists | Nov. 11 @ 2-4 PM| Harvard University (Boston)
Join SEAT organizers Iris Cheng and Cameron Samuels for an interactive training for high school and college students.
Texas House Committee Hearing on Vouchers | Thu-Fri, Nov. 9-10 | Texas Capitol (Austin)
Testify to the House Committee on Educational Opportunity and Enrichment on the importance of funding public schools and rejecting vouchers.
TXLege Briefing & Urgent Action Meeting | Wednesday, Nov. 8 @ 7 PM (CT) | Virtual
Join SEAT for a briefing on recent developments in the Texas Legislature – we won in the 3rd session, but a new 4th session is already underway. Stay tuned for RSVP info.
Banned Bookmobile in Texas | Oct. 25-28 | Dallas, Austin, Houston
Join The New Republic's tour across the nation at Texas tour stops to receive copies of banned books and learn about the freedom to read.
AASL National Conference at Tampa | Friday, Oct. 20 | Tampa
Heather Harding, Ed.D., COSF Executive Director, and COSF Student Task Force member Cameron Samuels will discuss the impact of censorship in today’s K-12 education environment during a keynote general session at ALA's school libraries conference.
GLAAD Spirit Day | Thursday, Oct. 19 | Nationwide
Defend Public Schools | Wednesday, Oct. 18 @ 9 AM | Texas Capitol (Austin)
With the #TeachTheTruth coalition, SEAT organizer Soha Jashwant will speak to the press and deliver nearly 3,000 petitions urging state legislators to say no to voucher schemes.
Banned Beliefs Panel | Wednesday, Oct. 18 @ 10 AM (ET) | Washington, D.C. + Virtual
SEAT's Executive Director Cameron Samuels will join Interfaith Alliance, Rep. Jamie Raskin, and community leaders for a panel conversation on how people of diverse faiths are fighting to protect our public schools and libraries.
Katy Pride | Saturday, Oct. 14 @ 11 AM - 4 PM | First Christian Church (Katy)
Say hello to SEAT organizer Hayden Cohen at the inaugural Pride festival in Katy!
Banned Camp Virtual Student Networking | Monday, Oct. 9 @ 6 PM (CT) | Virtual
Boot Vouchers Rally | Saturday, Oct. 7 @ 12-2pm | Texas Capitol (Austin)
Banned Camp: The Magic Power of Reading | Saturday, Oct. 7 | BookPeople (Austin)
Youth Advocates on Fighting Book Bans | Thursday, Oct. 5 @ 7 PM (CT) | Virtual
Moderated by SEAT's Da'Taeveyon Daniels, join us for a keynote Banned Books Week panel with students defending the freedom to read in our schools.
Let's Talk Banned Books! | Thursday, Oct. 5 @ 10 AM| Central Library (Houston)
Join SEAT State Policy Director Hayden Cohen at the Houston Public Library as they moderate a conversation with co-author of Jason Reynolds' All American Boys, Brendan Kiely.
LeVar Burton LIVE with Da’Taeveyon Daniels | Wednesday, Oct. 4 @ 7 PM (CT) | Virtual
As co-chairs of Banned Books Week, SEAT Partnerships Director Da'Taeveyon Daniels will join Reading Rainbow's and Star Trek's LeVar Burton for a conversation on book banning during Banned Books Week.
Authors & Advocates on Fighting Book Bans | Wednesday, Oct. 4 @ 12 PM (CT) | Virtual
Authors John Green, Mike Curato, and librarian Becky Calzada will join SEAT's Da'Taeveyon Daniels for a keynote Banned Books Week conversation.
Intellectual Freedom Teen Panel | Tuesday, Oct. 3 @ 5pm (CT) | Virtual
Join SEAT's Da'Taeveyon Daniels for a Brooklyn Public Library panel conversation with our friends at EmpowerED and other teens defending banned books.
TFN Public Education Action Series | Thursday, Sept. 28 @ 6 PM (CT) | Virtual
Learn about the landscape of our public education system and new policies taking effect, hear from parents and student advocates on their successes and challenges, and get equipped to take action at the local level in the coming months.
SEAT Fall Semester Kickoff | Monday, Sept. 18 @ 7 PM (CT) | Virtual
Join SEAT to kickoff our action and advocacy this semester. We'll be sharing some back-to-school resources, sharing opportunities to further engage this year, and hearing what you are most interested in seeing from Texas policymaking.
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee | Tuesday, Sept. 12 @ 9 AM (CT) | Washington, D.C.
SEAT organizer Cameron Samuels will be testifying at a Congressional hearing on book banning, bringing the Texas youth experience to the table. Tune into the livestream!
State Board of Education Meeting | Tuesday, August 29 @ 9:00 AM | William B. Travis (Austin)
With the passage of HB 1605 during the legislative session, schools can adopt "open educational resources" like PragerU for their curriculum. We must confront politicization of education and weaponization of fear and false truths.
KatyISD School Board Meeting | Monday, August 28 @ 5:00 PM | Merrell Center (Katy)
Let's demonstrate the true representation of our community and elevate the student narrative in educational policymaking. We must confront recent book bans and the new policy proposal on "Parental Authority & Gender Fluidity."
SEAT at HATCH Youth | Sunday, August 27 @ 6:30 PM | the Montrose Center (Houston)
If you are a participant of HATCH Youth, join us for a presentation on advocacy and action!
CDF ChildWatch 2023 | Wednesday, August 23 @ 2:00 PM | Virtual (Los Angeles)
SEAT organizer Da'Taeveyon will be a panelist for "Organizing, Fighting Back, and Book Banning" at this annual conference by Children's Defense Fund.
KatyISD School Board Meeting | Monday, August 21 @ 5:00 PM | Merrell Center (Katy)
Let's demonstrate the true representation of our community and elevate the student narrative in educational policymaking. We must confront recent book bans and the new policy proposal on "Parental Authority & Gender Fluidity."
SEAT Back-to-School Workshops | August 8-12 | Various Locations
Confronting Book Bans, Building a Movement, and GLAAD Media Engagement.