Theme: What Now

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

Adelphi University Performing Arts Center Concert Hall, Westermann Stage
1 South Avenue
Garden City, New York, 115303
United States

Aliha Nasrullah

Last year, Aliha Nasrullah co-founded a nonprofit called the Barkat Foundation, which provides free, basic healthcare to underprivileged men, women and children in Pakistan. This free-healthcare-for-all initiative has already helped more than 4,500 patients. Nasrullah moved from Lahore, Pakistan, to New York in 2014 to pursue her bachelor’s degree in biology at Adelphi University. She is currently enrolled in the joint seven-year dental program with New York University, College of Dentistry. In addition to running her foundation, she writes memoirs about her younger siblings and practices portrait photography. She is also a social activist and is passionate about women’s empowerment and interfaith harmony. Follow Aliha at: @alihanasrullah

Brooks Frederick

An internationally exhibited artist, Brooks Frederick is also an environmentalist, a social activist and an adjunct professor in Adelphi University’s Department of Art and Art History. He was raised along the Gulf Coast and now lives and works in Brooklyn. His recent paintings—made with oil and tar from the 2010 BP oil spill—were widely exhibited and have inspired community activism against environmental destruction. Frederick leads collective art-making events that bring people together to find solutions to societal challenges such as climate change, racism and economic injustice. He’s also an active partner with the Gulf Restoration Network and U.E.R. (United to End Racism). His work can be seen at brooksfrederick.com.

Dr. James Ferguson

After graduating from Adelphi University magna cum laude in 1977, James W. Ferguson received his bachelor’s degree in biology and psychology from Adelphi University, going on to earn his medical degree at SUNY Downstate Medical College in 1981. He then returned to Adelphi University to be among the first graduates in 2015 with a master’s degree of public health. In 2016, Ferguson received an honorary doctorate from St. George Medical School. A solo family physician in East Islip, New York, for the past 30 years, Ferguson has dedicated his life to improving the health of his patients. He continues to make house calls to many of them, and he trains young practitioners in healthcare. His passion and clinical knowledge were recognized with the 2016 Northwell Health Theodore Roosevelt Community Service award. His passion to help others in need, together with his expertise in tropical diseases, has taken him all over the world. He has worked as a volunteer physician in many regions, including Ghana and Haiti in 2010 following the earthquake. Ferguson has led multiple medical missions, including several trips to Honduras with premedical students. He worked with Patch Adams (a doctor who was portrayed by Robin Williams in a movie about his life) in Russia in 2013, and he visited Cuba in 2014. For the past 10 years, he has run a monthly free clinic for migrant farm workers from Central and South America working in the eastern end of Long Island.

Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds

A lifelong advocate for Long Island’s vulnerable kids, families and communities, Jeffrey Reynolds is the president/CEO of Family and Children’s Association (FCA). One of Long Island’s oldest and largest nonprofits, FCA serves 20,000 Long Islanders annually with multiple programs, including two addiction treatment centers, transitional housing for runaway and homeless teens and a newly constructed community recovery center. Reynolds holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a master’s degree in public administration and a doctorate in social welfare. He worked for the Long Island Association for AIDS Care for 19 years, where he started out doing case management and finished as vice president for public affairs. From 2009–2014, Reynolds was the executive director of the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence. There he helped launch evidence-based K–12 substance abuse prevention programs in Long Island schools, initiated a mentoring program for children of incarcerated parents and increased the number of families served each month nine-fold. The current heroin crisis brings Reynolds’ career full circle, from working with older African-American and Hispanic injection drug users in the 1980’s to assisting young white and more affluent addicts over the course of the last decade. Those cumulative experiences shaped his work on Governor Cuomo’s Heroin and Opioids Task Force, which released sweeping recommendations last year that resulted in the passage of a dozen pieces of legislation designed to address the drug crisis. Follow Jeff at @DrJeffReynolds

Dr. Michael Hynes

An educator, scholar and thought leader, Michael Hynes works as a public school superintendent of schools on Long Island. His mission is to spread the message of the importance of a holistic approach to educating children. He emphasizes the importance of play and recess in schools and yoga and mindfulness in the classroom. He’s also a public school advocate and university lecturer and has published numerous articles and been featured on several podcasts on school leadership. Hynes has focused his work on transforming schools by tapping into Potential Based Education, which focuses on the significance of social, emotional, physical and cognitive development for students. Hynes received his undergraduate degree in psychology from Bethany College and his doctorate in educational administration from Dowling College. He has undergone professional training to integrate organization learning and school leadership into programs at New York University, Stony Brook University and Harvard University. He has been awarded the “Friend of Education Award” and the “Distinguished Leadership Award” by Phi Delta Kappa. Follow Mike at @MikeHynes5

Dr. Stephen Mark Shore

The Superpower of Autism As a child, Stephen Shore, Ed.D., was nonverbal and diagnosed with “atypical development and strong autistic tendencies.” Institutionalization was recommended—but rejected in favor of parent-based intensive early intervention and support. Today, Shore is a clinical assistant professor at the Ruth S. Ammon School of Education at Adelphi University, teaching courses in special education and autism. His research and teaching focuses on matching best practices to the needs of people with autism. Shore is internationally renowned for his presentations, consultations and writings on lifespan issues pertinent to education, relationships, employment, advocacy and disclosure. His most recent book, College for Students with Disabilities, co-authored with Pavan John Antony, Ph.D., combines personal stories and research with promoting success in higher education. A current board member of Autism Speaks, president emeritus of the Asperger’s Association of New England, advisory board member of Asperger Syndrome and High Functioning Autism Association (AHANY) and advisory board member of the Autism Society, Shore also serves on the boards of the U.S. Autism and Asperger Association, the Scientific Counsel of OAR and other autism-related organizations. Follow Stephen at @tumbalaika

Kaitlinn Estevez

Kaitlinn Estevez is passionate about poetry and literature, and she can frequently be found performing spoken word poetry at open mic nights throughout New York City, or at Adelphi University, where she is a senior majoring in English. Her work has been published in Zaum Press, GirlSense and Nonsense Magazine, East Coast Ink and The Mighty. Local outreach has been at the center of Estevez’s career. She has worked with ministry, nonprofits, New York City Deptartment of Education, and had volunteered for UNICEF, homeless organizations and youth programs in the Metro New York area. Her goal is to integrate local missions and outreach with her creative writing work. Global missions are also a passion for Estevez. She has traveled to Costa Rica to serve with 6:8 Missions in poor communities and to Uganda with African Dream Initiative to work with children. She hopes to continue partnering with organizations such as these and incorporate missionary work into her career. Follow Kaitlinn at @_krpoetry

Katie Duffy Schumacher

Katie Duffy Schumacher is on a mission to empower children and adults to use technology with good intent by reinforcing the social and emotional skills of empathy, discipline, kindness and mindfulness. She is the founder of the national “Don’t Press Send” campaign and developer of the Don’t Press Send app, which has been downloaded worldwide. She’s also the author of “Don’t Press Send: A Mindful Approach to Social Media, An Education In Cyber Civics.” A frequent lecturer, she has used her years as a certified teacher, her mindfulness training and her on-the-job experience as a mother of three teenagers to engage her audience and spread her message of positive reform for online communication. She has appeared in numerous media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal’s WSJ Live TV, Beyond 50 Radio Show, Voice of America Radio, News 12, FiOS1 News, Newsday, local papers and family magazines. In addition, she is a featured columnist for Thrive Global Journal, and she has also contributed to The Hill, Entrepreneur Magazine and numerous other publications. Follow Katie at @DPS_Campaign

Kelley Lynn

Stand-up comedian, actor and writer Kelley Lynn has performed in the same lineups with Amy Schumer, Jim Gaffigan and Elayne Boosler. Lynn is probably best known for her comedy videos on YouTube; her most recent video, “I’ve McFallen,” has been viewed over 50 million times worldwide. She’s also known for her scathingly funny TV reviews of shows like “The Bachelor” and “Dancing with the Stars.” The latter show’s host, Tom Bergeron, tweeted that Lynn was “witty and wonderfully snarky.” Lynn is also a regular presenter at the “Soaring Spirits International” annual events called “Camp Widow,” a three-day conference held in the U.S. and Canada for widowed men and women. She is currently writing her first book, My Husband Is Not a Rainbow: The Brutally Awful, Hilarious Truth About Life, Love, Grief, and Loss, with a tentative release date of winter 2017. Her proudest accomplishment continues to be when she was blocked on Twitter by President Donald Trump. Lynn has a B.F.A. in Theatre from Adelphi University, where she went on to teach courses in acting and stand-up comedy for the past 16 years. You can see more of her work at ripthelifeiknew.com. Follow Kelley at @kelleyiskelley

Sarah Liberti

Sarah Liberti enjoys singing and playing clarinet, saxophone and flute in various school ensembles, all while privately concentrating on voice studies. She is currently in her fourth year studying for her Bachelor of Arts in Music Education at Adelphi University (having transferred from Suffolk County Community College). For her TEDx presentation, “Casually Suicidal: What Now,” she drew inspiration from simply scrolling through social media. “It was heartbreaking to realize how many people passively or actively post about death,” she said. “Social media is a credible way of interacting with others and expressing yourself in the 21st century. It seems like writing or joking about wanting to die has become just as ‘normal’ as posting about your day.” Whether it is as a music teacher or in another capacity, Liberti intends to dedicate herself to helping others express themselves, feel safe and find solutions to serious internal and external struggles.

Tara Funk

Tara Funk—a mother, wife, daughter and sister—has a passion for learning and language that has inspired her 20-year career in education, literacy and curriculum development. After earning a degree in psychology, she taught in south-central Los Angeles as a member of Teach for America. Following her experience in the nonprofit sector, Funk discovered her interest in developing literacy products that help children learn to read and write. She has worked as a director of instructional technology at Benchmark Education Company and as an executive editor at Scholastic.