The North Carolina City and County Management Association Winter Seminar focuses on topics of interest to city and county managers and administrators.

The NCCCMA Winter seminar is January 28–30, 2026 at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem. 

NCCCMA Winter Seminar Agenda 2026

Tuesday Opportunity for first-time managers, managers who are new to NC or those aspiring to become managers: Essentials for Local Government Managers Workshop (separate registration required)

Wednesday Pre-seminar: NCCCMA Tobacco Road Classic Basketball Tournament and a Self-Guided Public Arts Tour

Opening General Session: Leading Through the Whistle: Mental Resilience for Those Who Serve Others, Keynote speaker Doug Middleton

CONCURRENT SESSIONS: 

Wednesday:  NCCCMA Tobacco Road Classic Basketball Tournament; Self-Guided Public Arts Tour; Orientation for New Managers and Association Members; Smart Growth, Smarter Government: Aligning Structure with Community Needs; ChatGPT Comes to City Hall: What Every NC Manager Should Know About Generative AI; Critical Conversatons: Keeping Communicites Informed During Disasters 

Thursday:  Taking Back the Narrative: Rebuilding Trust Through Storytelling; Water and Wastewater Regionalism; It’s Not You, It’s...Well, Maybe It Is You; How to Make Local Government Cool; Michael & Scottie: Building a Championship Team Through Strong Manager/Assistant Partnerships; Shared Vision Takes Flight: The Partnerships Behind the City of Hickory Aviation Museum; Finding the Money: Funding Approaches for Municipal Infrastructure

MPA Student Thursday Sessions:  Speed Networking for MPA Students & Emerging Local Government Managers; You’ve Got the Job…Now What? How to Thrive in Your First Local Government Role and Beyond

Friday Professional Development Workshop:  Leading Through Incivility: What Local Government Managers Can Do (separate registration required)

Friday Mobile Tour:  Winston-Salem Innovations Quarter and The Grounds (Wake Forest Stadium District Redevelopment Project) 

Guidebook App:  The agenda will be available on the NCCCMA Winter Seminar Guidebook app. To download the app, go to the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store on your device, search for “Guidebook” and download. Once the app is downloaded, search for “2026 NCCCMA Winter Seminar.” Alternatively, click this link and scan the QR Code.

The app contains the full schedule, speaker information, vendor information, parking map, Benton Convention Center map, Marriott Hotel map, downtown map, and a restaurant map!