Houston Text Fest: Full Schedule

Celebrating Storytelling In All Forms.

10:30am CDT

Dr. Nolan Cabrera Presents: Banned: The Fight for Mexican American Studies in the Streets and in the Courts

LIMITED

Saturday October 17, 2026 10:30am - 12:00pm CDT

201

Limited Capacity seats available

Speakers

Tony Diaz

Founder and Director, Nuestra Palabra: Latinos Having Their Say

Writer and activist Tony Diaz, El Librotraficante, is a Cultural Accelerator. He was the first Chicano to earn a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Houston Creative Writing Program. In 1998, he founded Nuestra Palabra: Latino Writers Having Their Say (NP), Houston’s... Read More →

Nolan Cabrera

Liana Lopez

Bryan Parras

Filmmaker, Another Gulf Is Possible

Bryan “Lucas” Parras is a Houston-born environmental justice advocate, storyteller, and cultural organizer whose work sits at the intersection of community health, equity, and narrative power. Raised in Houston’s East End and shaped by early involvement in Nuestra Palabra where... Read More →

Lupe Mendez

Saturday October 17, 2026 10:30am - 12:00pm CDT
201

12:00pm CDT

Building the Arts Ecosystem That Shapes the Future of Our Region

LIMITED

Saturday October 17, 2026 12:00pm - 1:30pm CDT

201

Limited Capacity seats available

Nory Angel leads a powerful analysis of the future of Art in Houston.Panel Leader: Nory Angel

Speakers

Nory Angel

President

Nory Angel comes to the American Leadership Forum from TEACH, an education-based, nonprofit organization co-founded by Susan Sarofim that serves Houston’s public schools where she served as Executive Director. Prior to her work at TEACH, she served as the Executive Director and... Read More →

Saturday October 17, 2026 12:00pm - 1:30pm CDT
201

1:30pm CDT

Houston Latinx Writers Assemble: With Dr. Jose Aranda, Rice University.

LIMITED

Saturday October 17, 2026 1:30pm - 3:00pm CDT

201

Limited Capacity seats available

Speakers

Roberto Tejada

Professor, University of Houston

Roberto Tejada is the author of the poetry collections Carbonate of Copper (Fordham, 2025), longlisted for the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award (2026), Why the Assembly Disbanded (Fordham, 2022), and Exposition Park (Wesleyan, 2010), among others. He writes art and media histories that... Read More →

Dr. Jose Aranda, Jr.

Professor, Rice University

José Aranda holds a dual appointment in the Department of English and Creative Writing and the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures. He is the founding director of Rice’s Program in Latin American Studies and also serves as the coordinator for... Read More →

Jasminne Mendez

Author

Jasminne Mendez is Pura Belpré Honor Award recepient and a Dominican-American poet, playwright and author of several books for children and adults. She is also a poet, playwright, translator, and professional audiobook narrator. Her most recent publication Aniana del Mar Jumps In... Read More →

Saturday October 17, 2026 1:30pm - 3:00pm CDT
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