YouthCON is designed for Middle School and High School students (6-12th graders for the 2025-2026 school year and students who graduated high school in Spring of 2025).

Check-in begins on Thursday, July 17th at 4:00 pm. Even though the first session of the conference doesn’t start until 7:00 pm, we start check-in early to accommodate those traveling from out of town and those interested in avoiding lines. The conference concludes on Friday, July 18th by 10pm.

YouthCON takes place at our Southlake Campus at 700 Blessed Way, Southlake, Texas 76092.

Besides the name change of the event from Gateway Student Conference to YouthCON, not much has changed! This is still the same event at the same place with the same vision to see students have a real encounter with Jesus. The only change we have made to the actual event is that we have shortened the conference by one day. In previous years we have kicked off the event Wednesday evening, this year we will begin on Thursday evening and close on Friday evening. You can reference the schedule tab on the website to see more information!

Transportation is available to local Gateway Youth with the campus they registered with. We will have buses at each campus driving students to and from the Southlake Campus each day of the event. More details will be communicated from your campus regarding bus schedule and sign-ups as we get closer to the event.

Registration covers conference admission and transportation from your students’ campus to the event and back each day.

No. Meals are not included in registration this year. You can purchase an add-on meal wristband while completing your students registration if you would like.

The add-on meal wristband available for purchase covers lunch and dinner on Friday. We ask that students come on Thursday having already eaten. Unfortunately, due to volume we are not able to accommodate dietary restrictions. Students with dietary restrictions are welcome to bring meals.

Some examples of meals we provided the past few years include BBQ sandwiches, Chick-Fil-A sandwiches, cheeseburgers and turkey sandwiches (all meals came with chips and a drink). Although we can’t guarantee specific meals, for YouthCON we expect to serve similar meals. Unfortunately, we are not currently able to accommodate food allergies or dietary restrictions. Additional food is available for purchase at the Cafe.

Yes. We will have snacks and meals available for purchase from the cafe during the conference. Students can also go off-site to grab food if they drive themselves to the event.

If the conference is NOT sold out, at-the-door registration will be accepted.

Partial registration is not available. We recommend registering and attending as much of the conference as your schedule will allow.

Financial aid applications will be available to students currently attending Gateway Youth on Wednesday nights beginning March 29th, 2025. If you are in need of financial aid for a current Gateway Youth, please contact his or her campus directly.

• Southlake Campus | youthslk@gatewaypeople.com

• Dallas Campus | youthdal@gatewaypeople.com  

• Frisco Campus | youthfrs@gatewaypeople.com

• Grand Prairie Campus | youthgrp@gatewaypeople.com  

• Justin Campus | youthjst@gatewaypeople.com

• North Fort Worth Campus | youthnfw@gatewaypeople.com  

• North Richland Hills Campus | youthnrh@gatewaypeople.com  

• Plano Campus | youthpln@gatewaypeople.com

• Prosper Campus | youthprp@gatewaypeople.com

Casual attire is recommended. The auditorium is enclosed and air-conditioned. Because the temperatures may vary, we encourage wearing jeans and layered clothing. We suggest bringing a light jacket or hoodie.

Please encourage your students to bring their Bible, a journal for notes and money for meal purchases onsite or conference merchandise.

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Backpacks and smaller bags are allowed onsite this year; however, please know that every time your student enters the premises their bag will be checked by our security team for safety (similar to a concert or Disney World).

All tickets for this conference are general admission. Doors open 15 minutes prior to each session.

Due to safety concerns, we do not allow adults into the building who are not registered YouthCON volunteers or staff members. We require every adult working conference to have a background check. This is the best way for us to ensure your student is safe. Thank you for understanding.

Please go here to register to be a volunteer at YouthCON.

Please contact our team at youthevents@gatewaypeople.com for further assistance.

YouthCON is designed for Middle School and High School students (6-12th graders for the 2025-2026 school year and students who graduated high school in Spring of 2025) as well as youth leaders and youth pastors.

Guest Church check-in begins on Thursday, July 17th at 12:00 pm. Even though the doors of the conference do not open until 4:00pm, we start check-in early to accommodate those traveling from out of town and those interested in avoiding lines. The conference concludes on Friday, July 18th by 10pm.

YouthCON takes place at our Southlake Campus at 700 Blessed Way, Southlake, Texas 76092.

The registration fee covers conference admission. Meals, lodging, and transportation are not included.

The registration fee covers conference admission and admittance to the Youth Pastor Track (for adult youth pastors). You may also want to bring additional money to purchase conference merchandise. 

If the conference is NOT sold out, at-the-door registration will be accepted.

Partial registration is not available. We recommend registering and attending as much of the conference as your schedule will allow.

No. Meals are not included in registration this year. You can purchase an add-on meal wristband while completing your students registration if you would like.

The add-on meal wristband available for purchase covers lunch and dinner on Friday. We ask that students come on Thursday having already eaten. Unfortunately, due to volume we are not able to accommodate dietary restrictions. Students with dietary restrictions are welcome to bring meals.

Some examples of meals we provided the past few years include BBQ sandwiches, Chick-Fil-A sandwiches, cheeseburgers and turkey sandwiches (all meals came with chips and a drink). Although we can’t guarantee specific meals, for YouthCON we expect to serve similar meals. Unfortunately, we are not currently able to accommodate food allergies or dietary restrictions. Additional food is available for purchase at the Cafe.

Yes. We will have snacks and meals available for purchase from the cafe during the conference. Groups can also go off-site to grab food if they would like.

Casual attire is recommended. The auditorium is enclosed and air-conditioned. Because the temperatures may vary, we encourage wearing jeans and layered clothing. We suggest bringing a light jacket or hoodie.

Please encourage your students to bring their Bible, a journal for notes and money for meal purchases onsite or conference merchandise.

Backpacks and smaller bags are allowed onsite this year; however, please know that every time your student enters the premises their bag will be checked by our security team for safety (similar to a concert or Disney World). For YouthCON staying overnight, we will have a bag check system for students’ luggage to be safely secured while they are in session on Wednesday night.  

All tickets for this conference are general admission. Doors open 20 minutes prior to each session. Any seat-saving before the doors open is not allowed. We will also be offering reserved seating for any large groups of 30 or more.

If you bring 30 or more attendees, you qualify for reserved seating! After you register, we will send you an email to confirm that you would like to take advantage of group seating.

There will be no childcare available. Please make outside arrangements for children younger than 6th grade if you plan to attend YouthCON.

Our heart is to take every precaution to keep the students attending YouthCON safe and provide a healthy atmosphere. As a result, we require any adult in the building to pass a background check including our staff, vendors, sponsor, volunteers and visiting youth pastors and their volunteers. Thank you for understanding and helping keep students safe.

Due to safety concerns, we do not allow adults into the building who are not registered YouthCON volunteers or staff members. We require every adult working conference to have a background check. This is the best way for us to ensure your student is safe. Thank you for understanding.

Southlake is a short, 15-minute drive from DFW airport. Dallas Love Field is a 35-minute drive.

Depending on where you are staying, there may be hotel shuttle transportation available to the event site. Please ask the hotel concierge what options are available before making your reservations.

We are unable to assist attendees with hotel and transportation arrangements. 

Please contact our team at youthevents@gatewaypeople.com for further assistance.