Theme: Opening Doors

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).

Washtenaw Community College
4800 Huron River Drive
Morris Lawrence Building - Towsley Auditorium
Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48105
United States

Chase Hyatt

The Transformative Power of Positive Male Role Models

Chase Hyatt grew up in Ann Arbor and graduated from Skyline High School. He is an avid reader and writer and is especially interested in the variety of ways people use language to communicate. His goal is to become a high school English teacher so he can share his passion for literature and language with future generations. His talk is inspired by the men who helped shape him into the person he is today.

David Schuit

Simplify Life, Amplify Meaning

David Schuit is an academic with a diverse background in language studies, community health, and higher education. Mr. Schuit has been a passionate advocate for living simply and engaging the community. In his spare time, he studies the meaning of life and looks for ways to live simply. His presentation will explore the benefits of living simply and how it has brought amplified meaning to his life.

Karen Shaper

Find Your Purpose

Karen Shaper’s passion for learning has taught her she is a lifelong learner. Karen’s teaching allows her to pass on her experience and talents using positive communication with forward-thinking, never backward. She teaches new learning techniques using horses for reading and communication.

Kian Theeke

Weaving the Threads of History

Kian Theeke is a history student at WCC who graduated from Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor last year. He's interested in storytelling, especially the stories we tell ourselves, and spends a lot of his free time writing. His presentation will apply these interests to one another and explore how culturally ingrained ideas about history influence people.

Luis Paez-Cano

Migration: Identity and Belonging

Luis Paez-Cano was born in Colombia. Earned his master’s degree in History at the People's Friendship University in Moscow. Luis has worked at the Oakland Public Library for 14 years as a Library Assistant and at Borders Books, Music, and Cafe (downtown Ann Arbor) for 11 years. Luis's main passions in life are people's ways and following their paths to a common future.

Priti Shah

Art of Receiving Feedback

Priti grew up in a low-income, immigrant family. Due to her strong cultural upbringing and the illiteracy of her parents, English is her second language. Without guidance in appropriate communication and professional skills during her upbringing, she succeeded in becoming an engineer. She began studying feedback at her first employer, Walt Disney World. Priti developed this seminar based on a behavioral study she led and created while working at GM to evaluate the effectiveness of teaching and learning over the years to her peers. She is a certified yoga teacher, Indian Classical/Semi-Classical dancer, Jainism teacher, and an adventurer.

Rayan Salam

Master Your Perception: Manage Your Social Media Habits

Rayan Salam is a media communications expert with years of experience studying and working in the media industry. Having dedicated her career to teaching media and communications at the higher educational level, Rayan seeks to answer the question of how social media is changing our perception of reality. Rayan shares her insights on how we can master our perception through habits and navigate the evolving social media landscape while also advocating social change.

Shaila Vratny-Andrews

Healing One Breath at a Time

Shaila Vratny is known as Shaila Solshine in her field of work. She is a certified yoga instructor with a focus on breath and pranayama. She has been practicing this discipline for ten-plus years. Her goal is to take breath work into the corporate world, allow people access to her kundalini awakening program as well as spread conscious living to as many people as possible.

Stosh Zasadny

Ninth Grade Newlywed

Stosh Zasadny is a passionate college student who graduated from Plymouth Christian Academy. He believes that honesty and music make the world go around and has spent over a year making music for his Instagram band Beneath The Cloud (beneaththeclouds_35) and ZAHD (zahd_35). Having his own radio station as of September has allowed him to speak about important issues, and he hopes to make a career with his skills in the performative aspects of his character. He would personally like to thank Kassi, Nolan, Liliana, and his parents, for this story would be impossible without them.