Raleigh, N.C., Welcomes the 2022 LEAD® Conference!
August 1-5, 2022
Raleigh Convention Center
Let us be among the first to welcome you to Raleigh! We look forward to hosting the Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Conference. Below you'll find links for some of the best things to do while you're in town, dining and more!
Get conference information here.
Raleigh Marriott City Center
500 Fayetteville St.
Raleigh, N.C.
Area: Downtown Raleigh
The Kennedy Center’s 2022 LEAD® Conference is offering specially priced room blocks at the Raleigh Marriott City Center. Sessions will take place at the Raleigh Convention Center, which is located directly across the street from the conference hotel.
The City of Raleigh is very much on board with the Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability (LEAD®) Conference, the 20th edition of which comes to the Raleigh Convention Center, Aug. 1-5. So it’s fitting that while the conference is going on, one of the event’s...
Accessibility has always been embedded in the DNA for the National Women’s Theatre Festival in Raleigh, N.C., and it's a priority that comes from the top. Not only does executive director Johannah Maynard Edwards have a son with autism, she herself has an autoimmune...
The Raleigh Convention Center will take on a leading role when The Kennedy Center’s Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Conference (LEAD®) comes to town Aug. 1-5, serving as headquarters and primary venue throughout the event. That is entirely appropriate because...
Visual Art Exchange (VAE) has been a key part of Raleigh’s arts infrastructure since it came into being way back in 1980. All the same, VAE also occupies a unique and somewhat non-mainstream niche—one that has evolved and become more nuanced in recent years while moving...
Downtown Raleigh has changed immeasurably over the past four decades, with expansion pushing seemingly everything up and out as growth remakes the city. And yet there has been at least one constant through all of it. Since 1986, Artspace has anchored the southern end of...
The 20th annual Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Conference (LEAD®) is coming to Raleigh for the first time, happening Aug. 1-5 in downtown Raleigh. Run under the auspices of The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., it’s the leading event in the field of arts...
If you’re planning something, whether it’s putting on an arts event or constructing a space where one might happen, you’ll want to consider issues of accessibility through the lens of inclusive design. And Sina Bahram is here to tell you that, chances are, you’re not...
Sports & Recreation
There's no shortage of ways to find peaceful escapes in order to explore the outdoors in the City of Oaks. Use any of the Raleigh area’s 200+ miles of greenways—many of them connecting to attractions and letting you travel all over the...
Beer
Passionate local chefs, brewers and creative types have teamed up to guide the Raleigh area through a foodie resurgence in recent years, bringing you delicious, unique and approachable culinary...
Things to Do
There's no shortage of ways to spend a couple of days exploring the museums, restaurants and parks in the Raleigh area on your own. And while chowing down at a favorite local restaurants is a...
Things to Do
The days are longer, the weather is warmer and the flowers are blooming—sure signs of spring in the Raleigh area! The perfect season to explore parks and gardens budding with colorful flowers,...
Live Music
Note: Authored by David Menconi, this piece has been produced in partnership with Raleigh Arts . Menconi's latest book, "Oh, Didn't They Ramble: Rounder Records and the Transformation...
Dining & Drinks
Legendary barbecue spots, old-school soda shops, a hot dog joint that's more than 100 years old and more! The Raleigh, N.C., area is rooted in history (founded on Dec. 31, 1792, the City of Oaks is more than 230 years strong), and a host of the area's most celebrated restaurants—ranging from 40