Theme: Humanity in Crisis: Leadership

While Covid-19 immerses us in loss, it also shines a light on the systemic fractures that were already in place. Acting as disasters do, this pandemic has widened our chasms, highlighted our flaws, and exacerbated our inequalities. It is devastating. And it is also an opportunity to reimagine better societal systems in healthcare, education, government, nutrition, and everything in between. TEDxWrigleyville’s October 2020 program will highlight some of the leaders rising from the ashes of these malfunctions to bridge the widened divide, innovating the vision of our very humanity.

Chicago History Museum
1601 N Clark St
Chicago, IL, Illinois, 60614
United States

Bassel Almadani

Bassel and the Supernaturals

Bettina Chang

Journalist / Cofounder of City Bureau

Bettina Chang is cofounder and editorial director at City Bureau, a nonprofit civic journalism lab based on Chicago’s South Side. Previously she was executive digital editor at Chicago magazine; she also edited at DNAinfo Chicago and Pacific Standard magazine. As a writer she’s covered bail reform, Illinois’ budget catastrophe and Sporty the Dog. As an editor and mentor she’s helped build a community of BIPOC journalists and allies, and is an advocate for racial equity and representation in newsrooms. In 2015, Bettina cofounded City Bureau to repair harmful local news coverage of people of color, envisioning journalism as a tool for change rather than an extractive practice. The organization’s mission is to bring communities together in a collaborative spirit to produce a new kind of media that is impactful, equitable and responsive to the public.

Cara Schlecker Ketter

Violinist Cara Schlecker, alumna of The University of Michigan and the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings, is an avid performer and teacher in the Chicagoland area. She was the concertmaster and soloist of the Star Gate Orchestra and is a former Member of The Civic Orchestra of Chicago. Ms. Schlecker has performed internationally in the Rome Chamber Music Festival and the InterHarmony Festival of Hinterzarten, Germany. She made her Lincoln Center debut in 2012 and has had the pleasure of performing several times at both the Stanley Kaplan Penthouse and Le Poisson Rouge. She has been featured on Chicago’s classical station WFMT radio’s “Introductions.” Ms. Schlecker was featured on national television with the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings in their PBS special, “A Grand Mercer Christmas.” She has performed and toured with artists such as Rod Stewart, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, Chuck Leavell, Jo Dee Messina, the “Ten Tenors” of Broadway, and Martin Short, to name a few. A frequent recitalist, Ms. Schlecker has performed chapter recitals on behalf of the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Wagner Society of America. Her recording, of Igor Frolov’s Concert Fantasy on Themes from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, was released through The University of Michigan’s “Gershwin Initiative.” Ms. Schlecker is on faculty at Triton College, has served on faculty at Sherwood Conservatory of Music at Columbia College Chicago, and is currently the orchestra director at Batavia’s Immanuel Lutheran School.

Greg Geffrard

Educator / Actor / Spoken Word Artist

Greg Geffrard is an educator, actor, and spoken word artist. He has been dedicated to decolonizing spaces of art creation and has championed those willing to engage in the immediate conversation about what equity looks like within our institutions since moving to Chicago in 2012. He has been a teacher with Steppenwolf since 2015 and a Sexual Assault Prevention Educator since 2016. He has partnered with Chicago Inclusion Project, Steppenwolf Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Old Town School Of Folk Music, and Chicago Arts Partnership in Education to facilitate challenging conversations, create curriculum and formulate initiatives to aid in the creation of brave spaces for art to be cultivated. He is currently creating Antiracist workshops with the Poetry Center and an adjunct professor at Columbia College Chicago. His work broadly speaking focuses on the empowerment of historically dehumanized populations and being self generators of radical joy.

Isaiah Day

Isaiah Day, a native of Chicago, Illinois, is currently a Freshman at The Juilliard School pursuing a BFA in Dance. His early dance training includes Yielded Vessel Dance Ministry at New Life Covenant Southeast and Hubbard Street Youth Dance Center. Isaiah is an alum of The Chicago Academy for the Arts where he trained with Patrick Simoniello, Deborah Goodman, Natalie Rast, and Randy Duncan. Over the course of his high school career, Isaiah trained at Hubbard Street, Joffrey Academy of Dance, American Ballet Theatre, The Juilliard School, and Royal Ballet School for summer intensives. Isaiah was a guest performer for WE Charity’s 2019 tour in Illinois and a National YoungArts Foundation Finalist for Modern Dance in 2019. He also danced alongside cellist Yo-Yo Ma at TEDx Wrigleyville ‘Humanity: A View from Inside the Pandemic’ in 2020.

John Morris Russell

Conductor of Cincinnati Pops Orchestra

A master of American musical style, John Morris Russell has devoted himself to redefining the American orchestral experience. In his tenth year as conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, the wide-range and diversity of his work as a conductor, collaborator and educator continues to reinvigorate the musical scene throughout Cincinnati and across the continent. As Music Director of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra in South Carolina, Mr. Russell leads the classical subscription series as well as the prestigious Hilton Head International Piano Competition; he also serves as Principal Pops Conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, following in the footsteps of Marvin Hamlisch and Doc Severinsen. As a guest conductor, JMR has worked with many of the most distinguished orchestras in North America. With the Cincinnati Pops, Mr. Russell leads performances at historic Music Hall, concerts throughout the region, as well as domestic and international tours.

Karen Teitelbaum

President and CEO of Sinai Health System

An experienced executive, Karen has spent her career in leadership positions with some of the most industry-challenged healthcare delivery organizations. With experience in business development, strategy, turnaround, and community development, Karen is a nationally recognized leader focused on ensuring corporate viability and growth in the health services arena, while building community assets. Since 2014, Karen has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Sinai Health System, Chicago’s largest private healthcare system serving vulnerable communities, with a service area of 1.5 million Chicagoans. She drove a successful turnaround of financial, philanthropic, and operational performance. Results to date include a year-over-year improvement in the bottom line, taking the organization from a loss of $42M to a profit of $6.5 million, improved EBIDA from a negative $14.8M to a positive $30.3 million and increased philanthropic giving from $2.3M annually to $10.9M.

PJ Caposey

Author / Educator

PJ Caposey is a dynamic speaker, a transformational leader, an educator, and an author. PJ began his career as an award-winning teacher in the inner-city of Chicago and has subsequently led significant change in every administrative post he has held. PJ became a principal at the tender age of 28 and within three years was able to lead a small-town/rural school historically achieving near the bottom of its county to multiple national recognitions. After four years, PJ moved to his current district, Meridian CUSD 223, as superintendent and has led a similar turnaround leading to multiple national recognitions for multiple different efforts. PJ is a sought after keynote presenter, consultant, and provider of professional development and has recently keynoted several national conferences specializing in time management, the tyranny of the status quo, school culture, continuous improvement, social media, and teacher evaluation.

Quentin Fulks

Political Strategist

Quentin Fulks is a top political strategist in Illinois, currently serving as the Chairman and Executive Director of Vote Yes For Fairness, a ballot initiative committee leading the fight to pass the Fair Tax in Illinois. He is also the President and Executive Director of Think Big Illinois, a 501c(4) dedicated to passing progressive policies in Illinois, as well as the Senior Political Advisor to Governor Pritzker, managing all political outreach both nationally and in state. After graduating first in his class with a Masters in political science at American University in 2015, Fulks worked in top positions at several national political organizations. In his role as Pritzker’s Deputy Campaign Manager during his successful gubernatorial campaign, Fulks was responsible for directly managing a $171 million budget and a staff of over 250 employees statewide.

Yo-Yo Ma

Yo-Yo Ma is the world’s most famous cellist. He has produced more than 75 albums and received numerous awards, including 18 Grammy Awards. The acclaimed musician also served as artistic director of the Silk Road Project, an organization dedicated to promoting the various traditions along the ancient Silk Road trade route. In 2001, Ma was awarded the National Medal of Arts. In 2010, he was named a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Yo-Yo Ma has been giving back with his music during these uncertain times. Using the hashtag #SongsOfComfort, the acclaimed musician has been tweeting out recordings of himself playing the cello, hoping to bring joy to those on the frontlines of fighting the coronavirus pandemic and to those who are staying at home. “In these days of anxiety, I wanted to find a way to continue to share some of the music that gives me comfort,” he tweeted. The idea for #SongsOfComfort sparked from asking what he could do for others. So now, he’s using his music as an act of servitude — and is inviting others to join him. Isaiah Day, a native of Chicago, Illinois, is currently a Freshman at The Juilliard School pursuing a BFA in Dance. His early dance training includes Yielded Vessel Dance Ministry at New Life Covenant Southeast and Hubbard Street Youth Dance Center. Isaiah is an alum of The Chicago Academy for the Arts where he trained with Patrick Simoniello, Deborah Goodman, Natalie Rast, and Randy Duncan. Over the course of his high school career, Isaiah trained at Hubbard Street, Joffrey Academy of Dance, American Ballet Theatre, The Juilliard School, and Royal Ballet School for summer intensives. Isaiah was a guest performer for WE Charity’s 2019 tour in Illinois and a National YoungArts Foundation Finalist for Modern Dance in 2019. He also danced alongside cellist Yo-Yo Ma at TEDx Wrigleyville ‘Humanity: A View from Inside the Pandemic’ in 2020.