August 5-7, 2026•Washington, D.C.

Built for financial advisors serving families with college-bound children.

Featuring Ric Edelman, Jamie Hopkins, Ross Riskin, Tricia Scarlata, Kalman Chany, and more.

HELP FAMILIES PLAN FOR COLLEGE AND BUILD A MORE DIFFERENTIATED ADVISORY PRACTICE.

Join financial advisors, education funding experts, and industry leaders in Washington, D.C. for practical strategies, peer connection, and real-world ideas you can bring back to your practice.

Why Attend?

Who Should Attend

Success Summit is for financial advisors who:

Serve families with college-bound children or grandchildren
Want a stronger framework for college funding conversations
Are looking for a more differentiated planning niche
Want practical ideas for client and prospect conversations
Are current or prospective CFC advisors who want to connect with the broader community

What You'll Bring Back To Your Practice

You will leave with:

A clearer way to talk with families about college funding, retirement, and cash flow
Practical education funding strategies you can use in planning conversations
Real examples from advisors and experts
Ideas for using college funding as a practice differentiator
New peer connections with advisors focused on similar client needs

What You'll Experience

Every session is designed to be practical, relevant, and worth the time away from your practice.

Expert-led sessions on college funding, financial planning, and advisor growth
Real advisor examples and case studies
Peer conversations with advisors at different stages of the CFC journey
Networking with sponsors, speakers, and industry partners
A focused advisor community built around helping families solve college funding challenges

SAVE YOUR SEAT FOR SUCCESS SUMMIT

Get access to expert sessions, advisor networking, sponsor conversations, and the full 2026 Success Summit experience.

Confirmed 2026 Speakers

Learn from leaders across college funding, financial planning, advisor growth, tax strategy, admissions, and practice development.

featured speakers

Ric Edelman

Jamie Hopkins

Ross Riskin

Tricia Scarlata

Kalman Chany

Brieanna Carlson

Harlan Accola

Mando Sallavanti

Brian Gallary

Tom Henske

Brandon Peters

Bradford Pineault

Additional speakers will be announced soon.

Day

Hour

Minute

Second

Agenda

August 5, 2026
6:00 pm	Welcome Reception at The Henri - Bradford Pineault, Fidelity 1301 Pennsylvania Ave. NW Washington DC 20004 Entrance Located on 13th Street
August 6, 2026
8:00 am	Breakfast and Registration at The National Press Club 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor Washington, DC 20045
9:00 am	Kickoff - CFC Team
9:15 am	Speaker Spotlight & Introduction - Blake McWhirter, Vice President, Structured Investments and Target Outcomes ETFs, First Trust
9:30 am	Speaker: The Exact Steps to Accelerate Growth - Brian Gallary, Senior Vice President, Head of Strategy and Consulting, First Trust
10:15 am	Break
10:30 am	Educational Consultant and Counselor Panel: Victoria Tillson Evans, Ph.D., Founder and President of Distinctive College Consulting Damian Garcia, Co-Director of College Counseling, Glenelg Country School Erin O’Leary, Assistant Director of College Counseling, Gonzaga College High School
11:15 am	Speaker: Tricia Scarlata, Executive Director, Head of Education Savings for J.P. Morgan Asset Management
12:00 pm	Lunch
12:45 pm	Speaker Spotlight & Introduction - Brenden Gebben, Chief Executive Officer, Absolute Capital Management
1:00 pm	Speaker: Ric Edelman, Founder, Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals. Founder, The Truth About Your Future
2:15 pm	Speaker: Harlan Accola, National Reverse Mortgage Director, Movement Mortgage
2:45 pm	Break
3:00 pm	Introduction - Jason Shrock, RICP^®, Regional Sales Vice President and Founder, Hope and Harmony, BrightHouse
3:10 pm	Speaker: Attention is The Ultimate Currency - Mando Sallavanti, Founder, Freedom Path Wealth
3:55 pm	Behind the Admissions and Financial Aid Curtain. Greg Roberts, Associate Vice Provost of Enrollment and Admission at the University of Virginia Helen Faith, Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment and Student Financial Services at the University of Virginia
4:40 pm	Speaker: Dr. Ross Riskin, Founder and Chief Creative Officer, visiWealth and VP, Riskin & Riskin, PC
7:00 pm	Success Social: Community, Conversation & Celebration The Vue @ Hotel Washington VUE @ Rooftop DC at Hotel Washington 515 15th St NW Washington, D.C. 20004
August 7, 2026
8:00 am	Breakfast and Registration at The National Press Club
9:00 am	Welcome Back - CFC Team
9:15 am	Speaker Spotlight & Introduction - Joe Price-Gault, Head of Student Refinancing, Juno
9:30 am	Speaker: Dr. Jamie P. Hopkins, Chief Executive Officer, Bryn Mawr Trust
10:15 am	Break
10:30 am	The New Playing Field Tom Henske CFP^®, ChFC^®, CLU^®, CTS, CFS^®, CLTC, CES, SE-AWMA^®, Founder, Total Cents and Total Cents University Brandon Peters, CFP^®, Private Wealth Advisor, IronBridge Wealth Counsel
11:15 am	Speaker: Brieanna Carlson, CEO and Co-Founder, Advisor Elevated
12:00 pm	Lunch
12:45 pm	Speaker Spotlight & Introduction - Diane Boyle, SVP, Government Relations, NAIFA
1:00 pm	Speaker: Kalman Chany, Founder and President, Campus Consultants
1:45 pm	Break
2:00 pm	Advisor Panel: Shane Minks Hugo Carvajal Stacy Segel, CCFC Mark DeBord, CFP^®, ChFC Theresa White, CCFC^®, ELA^®
2:45 pm	Wrap Up: The College Funding Coach^® Team

Past Speakers

Michael Kitces

Duncan MacPherson

Ben Newman

Lynn O’Shaughnessy

Dave Resseguie

Caleb Guilliams

Joe Jordan

Mark Kantrowitz

Austin Hatch

Wayne Weber

Tom Wall

Walter Bond

Vince D’Addona

Brad Barnett

Tommy Schaff

Mary Morris

Gene Hammett

Victoria Tillson Evans

View More Past Speakers

Transform Your Advisory Practice

If you’re ready to elevate your expertise, expand your impact, and connect with the premier education funding advisor network—this is your invitation.

Built for advisors who want practical growth, not another generic conference.

"If you’re serious about growing your practice, this is the event. No fluff. Just real advisors sharing what actually works."

- Mark DeBord, CFP^®, ChFC

Transform Your Advisory Practice

Success Summit is built for advisors who want to make college funding a stronger part of their planning conversations and a more differentiated part of their practice. You will learn from leading experts, connect with advisors already focused on this niche, and leave with practical ideas you can use with families, clients, and prospects.

Serve families with more confidence around college funding

Differentiate your practice in a crowded advisor market

Learn from real advisors, experts, and industry leaders