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Chad Kempel, youth keynote speaker based in Boise, Idaho, on stage with a microphone
Youth speaker • Alaska • Based in Boise

He wants to be the youth speaker Alaska schools call, and he’ll start with the honest part: he hasn’t been there yet.

Chad Kempel is a youth keynote speaker with 4 Guinness World Records titles, an MA in Experimental Psychology, and three talks built for high school assemblies. He lives in Boise, Idaho, where Alaska Airlines is the biggest carrier at the airport, so Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau are one stop through Seattle. He comes in the day before, the airfare, rental car and hotel are already in one number, and if your school is off the road system, he’ll get there anyway.

Alaska Rate: from $4,500 per assembly, travel included · See what’s included ↓
Other regions have their own pages: Idaho · California · Western states · Midwest · East Coast · The South · Hawaii

Why a speaker based in Boise works for an Alaska school

Most Outside speakers quote a fee and then a travel line, and for Alaska the travel line is where the surprises live: the Seattle connection, the hotel, the car, the extra flight to a school that isn’t on the road system. Chad quotes one number. For the 2026–27 school year an assembly anywhere on the road system is $4,500, and that includes the flights, the rental car and the hotel. If your school is off the road system, the bush flight gets added at cost, with the receipt, and nothing else does. No deposit. He invoices after the talk.

He flies in the day before, every time. A first-period assembly in Wasilla doesn’t depend on a Seattle connection going right in January. If the weather turns, that’s his problem, not yours, and he lives in Idaho, so winter isn’t a theory to him. The talk is the same one he gives in Idaho. The distance is the only thing that changes.

He hasn’t been to Alaska. He’d rather say that than borrow a story about it. What he can say is that he loves the outdoors, and he has the receipts: the 100-mile run from Castro Valley to the Golden Gate Bridge, Mt. Shasta, Mt. Whitney, Half Dome, Angels Landing and the Narrows in Zion, all on the race log with dates. Alaska is the state he’s wanted to see for years, and a gym full of students is a better reason to come than a cruise. If your school is the first one to book him there, he’ll remember you for it.

How Chad gets to your school

Alaska Airlines is Boise’s biggest carrier, and its hub is Seattle, so most of Alaska is one connection away. The Boise to Anchorage nonstop runs only in summer, mid-June to mid-August, which is no help during the school year, so plan on one stop.

WhereFlight from BoiseAbout
AnchorageOne stop through Seattle6 to 7 hours, door to door
Eagle River, Wasilla and PalmerAnchorage, then 30 minutes to an hour on the Glenn HighwaySame day as Anchorage
Kenai, Soldotna and HomerAnchorage, then 3 to 4½ hours down the Seward and Sterling highways, or a short hopA half day more
SewardAnchorage, then about 2½ hoursA half day more
Fairbanks, North Pole and Delta JunctionOne stop through Seattle, or Anchorage plus a 1-hour hop7 to 8 hours, door to door
JuneauOne stop through Seattle6 to 7 hours, door to door
Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg and SitkaThrough Seattle on Alaska Airlines’ Southeast routeMost of a day, door to door
KodiakAnchorage plus a 1-hour hopMost of a day, door to door
Bethel, Dillingham, Nome, Kotzebue and UtqiaġvikAnchorage plus a flight; off the road system, quoted at costMost of a day, door to door
Rounded from the Boise Airport’s announcement of the Anchorage summer nonstop and the airlines’ timetables. Flight schedules change by season, so Chad checks the real one before he quotes your date. Because he comes in the day before, the connection is his problem, not yours. Off the road system? Say so in the message. He’ll figure out the planes.

What booking an Alaska school looks like

  1. Send your city and dates. Use the contact page or call (208) 391-2959. You’ll hear back within 48 hours with one number that already has the travel in it. No surprise line items later.
  2. A short survey, then a planning call. A few quick questions for whoever knows your students best, then a call with you and your counseling team about a week before the talk: what you want students walking out with, and anything going on at your school the talk should know about. Your counselors get the full outline before the day, and anything they want left out stays out.
  3. He flies in the day before. One stop through Seattle into Anchorage, Fairbanks or Juneau, a hop or a drive from there, then a hotel near your school. He’s in your building before the first bell, not texting from a gate in Denver.
  4. The talk, then the part that matters. The assembly fits your block. Student Q&A after, then time for students to come up and talk one on one. Your teachers get discussion questions and a worksheet for the next morning. Your students get the tools from the talk on a page of their own, and the paperwork is on the documents page.
  5. Two schools, one trip. Each additional school on the same trip pays $2,000 for one assembly, with no added travel. If the school across town or down the highway might want him the same week, tell them.
  6. Short notice is fine. If there’s a seat on a flight, he’ll be there. Ask before you assume a date’s gone.
Preview the teacher toolkit →

Region by region: where he goes

He hasn’t been to any of these yet. He’d rather tell you that than pretend.

Anchorage

The biggest district in the state and the easiest trip he makes to Alaska: one stop through Seattle, a rental car, a hotel, and every high school in the Anchorage School District inside about 30 minutes. Eagle River and Chugiak are on the way north. Most of his Alaska days would be here, because that’s where the students are.

The Mat-Su

Wasilla and Palmer are about an hour north of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway, and Big Lake, Houston and Sutton are close by. One flight, one car, and the Mat-Su schools are a morning drive from the airport. Anchorage is the airport and the day before is the rule.

The Kenai Peninsula

Kenai and Soldotna are about three hours south of Anchorage, Homer about four and a half, Seward about two and a half, and the drive down Turnagain Arm is one he’d pay to make. There’s also a short hop into Kenai if the roads are bad. For a winter date he comes the night before, and if the pass closes, the date moves.

Fairbanks and the Interior

One stop through Seattle, or Anchorage plus an hour in the air. Fairbanks, North Pole and Delta Junction are a drive from the airport. January in Fairbanks is 30 below some mornings, and he’ll dress for it. He lands the day before, like everywhere else, with a longer coat.

Juneau and Southeast

Juneau has no road in, which means a flight through Seattle, same as the rest of Southeast. Ketchikan, Sitka, Petersburg and Wrangell are on Alaska Airlines’ Southeast route, and Haines and Skagway are a ferry or a small plane from Juneau. He’ll do the milk run. The only question is which stop.

Kodiak and Southwest

Kodiak is an hour from Anchorage by air. Bethel, Dillingham, King Salmon and the villages beyond them are flights, not drives, and that last leg is the one thing that gets added to the price, at cost with the receipt. Say which school in the message and he’ll figure out the planes.

Nome, Kotzebue and the North Slope

Nome, Kotzebue and Utqiaġvik are flights from Anchorage, and he’s willing. A gym in Utqiaġvik in February is a story he’d like to be able to tell, and a day with your students is the reason to go earn it.

Credentials that hold up when a student Googles him

Because every student in every one of these states has a phone.

4
Guinness World Records titles
MA
Experimental Psychology, San Jose State
5 yrs
University Lecturer, San Jose State
20 yrs
Same San Mateo County Health department

Chad set all four records pushing his five kids, quintuplets born at 27 weeks, in a stroller: marathon 4:42:49 in Modesto, California; half marathon 2:19:55 in Oakland, California; 10K 1:04:52.9 in Garden City, Idaho; 1K 5:34 in Eagle, Idaho. Each time links to the official Guinness World Records listing, and every race he has run since 2002 is on the race log with its chip time. He is trained in QPR suicide prevention and completed psychological first aid training through San Mateo County Behavioral Health & Recovery Services. So your students get a guy with receipts who can also explain why their brain does what it does.

Chad’s full story →  ·  The stories and the psychology behind them →  ·  The full resume, what’s on LinkedIn →  ·  Every news feature in one place →  ·  Photos →

Chad Kempel holding his four Guinness World Records certificates
Four certificates. The times are in public race databases, and the records are on the Guinness World Records website, so a student can check him before the bell.

Three talks built for high schools, in any state

Also available for: new-semester goal-setting assemblies · graduation and commencement · student leadership events · educator conferences

National media
TODAY Show• ABC World News Tonight• Good Morning America• Men's Health• People• Guinness World Records• 30+ national outlets
Alaska Rate

2026–27 School Year

$4,500
One assembly, travel included
$2,000
Each additional school, same trip

One number for any school on the road system. The flights from Boise, the rental car and the hotel are in it, and there are no other charges. Off the road system, the extra flight is added at cost with the receipt. No deposit. Chad flies in the day before, and you’re invoiced after the assembly, net 30. Each additional school on the same trip pays $2,000 for one assembly, with no added travel.

Booking several schools in one district? Ask for the district rate.

Check Your Date →
Idaho schools: see the Local Introductory Rate. California: the California Introductory Rate. Oregon through Arizona: the Western States rate. The Midwest, the East Coast, the South and Hawaii have their own pages.

Questions Alaska schools ask

Who is the top youth speaker in Alaska?

Biased answer, obviously. But here’s the case: Chad Kempel set four Guinness World Records pushing his quintuplets in a stroller, holds an MA in Experimental Psychology from San Jose State University, taught there for five years, and taught math inside San Quentin State Prison for another five. His three talks were built for high school students, every claim in them is public record, and he’ll tell you up front that he hasn’t been to Alaska yet. He’d like to fix that.

Which parts of Alaska does Chad speak in?

Anywhere a plane lands: Anchorage, the Mat-Su, the Kenai Peninsula, Fairbanks and the Interior, Juneau and Southeast, Kodiak, Bethel, Nome, Kotzebue and the North Slope. On the road system the rate is one number. Off it, the extra flight is added at cost. Idaho, California, the western states, the Midwest, the East Coast, the South and Hawaii have their own pages.

How much does it cost to book a youth speaker in Alaska?

For the 2026–27 school year, one assembly at an Alaska high school on the road system is $4,500, all-inclusive. That covers the talk and the travel from Boise: flights, rental car and hotel. There are no other charges and no deposit. Chad invoices after the assembly, net 30. Off the road system, the bush flight is added at cost with the receipt, and nothing else is. Each additional school on the same trip pays $2,000 for one assembly, with no added travel. Send your school, town and dates through the contact page and you’ll hear back within 48 hours.

What does “off the road system” mean for the price?

It means the last leg is a plane, not a rental car, and that one flight gets added to the $4,500 at cost. He’ll quote it before you commit, with the fare in writing. Nothing else changes.

Does he fly in the day before?

Every time. A morning assembly shouldn’t depend on a Seattle connection going right in January. He lands the day before, so a delay or a storm is his problem, not yours. If weather closes your school or your airport, the date just moves. No charge.

Can two schools share one trip?

Yes, and it’s the best deal on this page. Each additional school on the same trip pays $2,000 for one assembly, with no added travel. If the school across town or down the highway might want him the same week, tell them. Two Anchorage schools, or Wasilla and Palmer, is an easy week.

Can we book several schools in our district at once?

Yes. Booking several schools in one district? Ask for the district rate. Send the schools, the dates you have in mind, and whether you want them the same day or the same week, and you’ll have one quote for all of them within 48 hours.

Is there a mental health speaker for high schools in Alaska?

Yes. The Weight You’re Carrying is Chad’s mental health assembly. Students get four plain terms for what they’re feeling and a tool for each one. Chad is trained in QPR suicide prevention, follows safe-messaging guidelines for talking about suicide, and meets with your counseling team before he walks into the gym.

Do you have an anti-bullying speaker for schools in Alaska?

I Walked the Hallways Alone is the anti-bullying and belonging talk. No lecture, no finger-wagging. It ends with one ask students can act on the next morning: sit down next to someone who looks like they’re alone.

Do you customize the talk for our school?

Every time. There’s a short survey first, then a call with you and your counseling team about a week out: your students, what you want them to walk out with, and anything going on at your school the talk should account for. Your counselors get the full outline and the take-home sheets and teacher guide before the day. The message stays the same. The delivery fits your room.

Our school is K-12 in one building. Does that work?

Yes. The talks are built for grades 9 to 12. For a combined building, which is most of rural Alaska, a shorter session for the younger grades is an option, and it’s part of the planning call.

Which day of the week works best?

Monday through Thursday, and not the last day before a break. Your teachers get discussion questions and a worksheet for the next morning, and those only work if there is a next morning.

Does Chad give keynotes for educator conferences in Alaska?

Yes. He’s a keynote speaker based in Boise and opens or closes educator and association conferences anywhere in Alaska.

How far out should we book?

As early as you can, especially for spring and graduation season. Five weeks or more is ideal: it keeps the airfare down, and since the airfare is in his price and not on your invoice, that’s his problem to manage. Still, ask before you assume a date’s gone.

Bring Chad to your school, anywhere in Alaska a plane lands.

Discovery calls available · Replies within 48 hours · Based in Boise, one stop from Anchorage

Check Your Date →
chad@chadkempel.com · (208) 391-2959