Theme: A Fork in the Road

Due to COVID-19 and compliance with the California Department of Public Health, County of Los Angeles, and the City of Long Beach, we will not be able to hold a live event this year.

We are grateful for your support and share your disappointment that we could not meet in person.

Long Beach Playhouse
5021 E Anaheim St
Long Beach, California, 90804
United States

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Southern California A - Team Steppers

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. (ΑΦΑ) is the first African-American, intercollegiate Greek-lettered fraternity founded on December 4, 1906, at Cornell. The Southern California A - Team Steppers feature Koree Hines, Edward Ellis, Dejon Brown, Damien Sar, and Malik Ford.

Bashir Kashefi

New American

Bashir Kashefi is a security officer, father of three, and new American. His family settled in Southern California in 2017 after he served alongside the U.S. Forces in Afghanistan for seven years. Beyond his responsibilities at work and at home, Bashir acts as an ambassador for Miry’s List, a non-profit organization that welcomes new arrival refugee families. His calling is to keep people safe.

Bruce German, Ph.D.

Professor

Bruce German received his Ph.D. from Cornell University, joined the faculty at the University of California, Davis in 1988, and is currently Director of the Foods for Health Institute and professor at UC Davis. The goal of his research is to understand lactation to build the knowledge to improve human health through diet.

Ling Lam, Ph.D.

Psychotherapist

Ling Lam, Ph.D., is a Lecturer in Counseling Psychology at Santa Clara University, a licensed psychotherapist, and a former engineer who worked on the world's first HDMI chip. He believes in the strength and resilience of every person, and that the goal of psychotherapy is not just to alleviate pain but also to restore aliveness.

Lynn Hopkins

Rare Disease Advocate

Lynn Hopkins is the parent of a child with a rare, incurable genetic disease. She is a board member of the National MPS Society and an advocate for the rare disease community. Lynn is also a finance executive who creates the time to build awareness and promote meaningful conversations about curing rare diseases through her advocacy. She shares how rare disease is impacting you and why it is going to take more than investment in research to cure rare diseases.

Porscha Singh

Media Studies Scholar

Porscha Singh is a first-generation and non-traditional graduate at California State University, Dominguez Hills. She is majored in Film, Television, and Media Studies, as well as minoring in Women’s Studies. Her unique upbringing led her to her proverbial fork in the road. She speaks about the effects of keeping a secret and how it adversely impacts living authentically.

Roger Hanson

Seahorse Whisperer

Roger is a retired teacher and is widely known as a seahorse whisperer. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Hanson found a juvenile female seahorse in Alamitos Bay in 2016. He friended her, named her Daphne. Roger developed a symbiotic relationship with her and her herd that exists to this very day. He speaks about his experience and what they taught him that can change your life today.