Theme: Seeds of the Future

With the free-flowing access to information and ideas, it is easier for today’s youth to gain access to others’ perspectives and learn about the issues relevant to this modern age. Inspired youth have the power to advocate for change surrounding these issues through social media platforms. The foundation of the future lies in younger generations, as their actions will define tomorrow’s society. At the TEDxMillsHighSchool event, students, educators, and organizations will share their ideas regarding their plans for enhancing the future with community members from around the Bay Area. Based on our theme, Seeds of the Future, the stories shared will motivate audience members to take further steps towards advancing humanity. We hope to plant these seeds into our audience and encourage them to grow these ideas into actions, shaping the soil that is our future.

Mills High School
400 Murchison Drive
Millbrae, California, 94030
United States

Armand Domalewski

Business + Analytics Manager

Armand Domalewski is the son of refugees, born into poverty and fighting for the American Dream. He's worked as a debate coach, helping thousands of kids find their voice, and worked on efforts to build economic opportunity through political campaigns, non-profits, and civic initiatives. As the chief economic and data expert at Calbright College, California's first 100% online community college, he's working on building a new government agency to deliver cutting edge educational models to lift Californians out of poverty.

Dara Connolly

Confidence Coach

For the past 16 years, Dara Connolly has been leading a women’s Movement that she started out of her garage in Berkeley. She is a certified black belt instructor who knew that even her black belt wasn’t enough to help her live confident or fearless. Today she is a confidence coach who leads an award-winning program that teaches women to speak up to be heard, get paid what we deserve, and kick fear to the curb. In this TEDx talk, she will motivate parents to inspire long-lasting confidence in their teens.

Michael Stanton

Clinical Health Psychologist

Dr. Stanton is a Licensed Clinical Health Psychologist and Assistant Professor at California State University, East Bay. He holds a doctorate in Clinical Psychology with a focus in Behavioral Medicine from Duke University. He completed his internship and postdoctoral training at Stanford University and the VA Palo Alto Hospital. He received his B.A. from Brown University. Dr. Stanton's research focuses on examining how stress contributes to obesity. His clinical work in health psychology integrates mind-body skills such as mindfulness with cognitive behavioral therapy to treat health problems including obesity, hypertension, chronic pain, insomnia and depression. His work has been recognized at national and international scientific conferences. His articles have been published in such journals as Molecular Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine, PLOS ONE, and Harvard Review of Psychiatry.

Threya Sakshi

High School Student

Threya is an ambitious sophomore at Eastlake High School. She is an active participant in several non-profit organizations, one of which she co-founded, and is also a varsity Track-and-Field athlete. She wants to study medicine to pursue her passion for serving the community. She is especially interested in the field of psychology and mental health, having experienced the importance of mental wellbeing firsthand. Threya aspires to make the world a better place and enjoys inspiring others to be the best version of themselves. Her goal is to teach her audience to enhance their own lives by sharing experiences that have led her to unlocking the secret to being happy no matter what.