Dear AACE Community,
What an honor to serve as your 2026 President of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology (AACE). I am excited to step into this role and to work alongside each of you as we continue advancing our shared mission of elevating the practice of clinical endocrinology to improve global health.
I would like to extend my very sincere gratitude to our Immediate Past President, Scott D. Isaacs, MD, FACP, FACE, for his outstanding leadership. Dr. Isaacs closed out 2025 with the successful completion of our 2022–2025 Strategic Plan, guiding AACE through meaningful progress in endocrine care team leadership, patient awareness, and worldwide impact. With his guidance, 2025 marked a record year for AACE and we are deeply grateful for his vision, dedication, and lasting impact on our organization.
As we look ahead, I am pleased to kick off AACE’s 2026–2029 Strategic Plan, built on three foundational goals:
- Goal 1: Be the Professional Home for Clinical Endocrinologists & the Endocrine Care Team
- Goal 2: Define, Advocate, & Influence Quality Endocrine Care for All
- Goal 3: Engage the Global Endocrine Community to Advance Knowledge & Patient Health
These goals will guide our strategic direction over the coming years as we strengthen our field, advance quality endocrine care for all, and engage the global endocrine community to improve patient health.
As we begin this next chapter, we will focus on three key priorities to bring these goals to life:
- Deliver high-quality clinical and practice associated education that equips the entire endocrine care team with evidence-based knowledge and skills, directly applicable to their medical practice.
- Promote the value of endocrinologists and the endocrinology care team across the health care landscape.
- Build and Strengthen partnerships with societies and organizations domestically and internationally to advance collaboration and improve health globally.
With this strategic foundation in place, we have several new initiatives planned for the year ahead that will advance these priorities and support our shared mission.
I extend my sincere thanks to members who have accepted committee appointments for 2026. Your engagement and commitment to AACE will play a vital role in carrying out these priorities.
A key highlight I am especially excited about is our 35th Annual Meeting, taking place Wednesday through Friday, April 22–24, at Caesars Forum in Las Vegas, Nevada. This milestone year promises to be our most impactful yet, with more than 110 expert speakers and 80 sessions across a wide range of endocrine disease states. Whether you are a seasoned clinician or early in your career, our Annual Meeting brings together endocrinologists and the endocrine care team to learn, share, and collaborate. The networking that the Annual Meeting has promoted among attendees has historically led to exciting endeavors and plans for many advancements in endocrinology.
Our meeting theme, Viva Nutrition! Advancing Endocrine Practice from the Inside Out, will be reflected throughout the program, with sessions highlighting the latest evidence-based strategies, clinical innovations, and interdisciplinary approaches that position nutrition not only as a therapeutic tool, but as a foundation for lifelong health and the management of obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and other related conditions.
We are honored to welcome our keynote speaker, Jeffrey I. Mechanick, MD, FACP, FACN, ECNU, MACE, Past President of AACE and Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. His keynote presentation, Nutrition and Chronic Disease: A Hero’s Journey in AACE, will draw on Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey” to connect decades of research in nutrition, adiposity, and dysglycemia with the evolving role of AACE. Dr. Mechanick will also highlight how nutrition drives the pathophysiology of chronic endocrine disease and how endocrinologists can harness nutritional medicine to transform patient care. This keynote sets the tone for our forward-looking program, and I invite you to explore the full scientific program here.
As our premier event, you will gain practical strategies to implement in your practice, engage with prominent experts, including the authors of our clinical guidance documents, earn up to 47.25 CME, CE, and MOC hours, and enjoy a variety of networking opportunities. And who knows, you may even get to meet Elvis!
There is still time to submit late breaking abstracts, with a deadline of February 18, 2026. We invite you to share your work and take advantage of this opportunity to have your research reviewed by experts in the field of endocrinology. If accepted, your abstract will be published as a supplement to AACE’s landmark journal, Endocrine Practice.
I also encourage you to take advantage of our early bird pricing, available through January 30. Registration also includes exclusive post-event access to on-demand CME sessions, extending your learning beyond the conference. I look forward to celebrating our 35th Annual Meeting together in Las Vegas.
Thank you to our global AACE community for your dedication, collaboration, and continued commitment to advancing endocrine care. I look forward to sharing more updates throughout the year alongside our Chief Executive Officer, Johnnie White, as we move our strategic priorities forward.
Together, We Are AACE! And to conclude, let me quote from C.S. Lewis as we begin this new year:
There are better things ahead than any we leave behind
C.S. Lewis
Respectfully,
Dace L. Trence, MD, MACE
AACE President