Meet the Speakers
KUDA BIZA
Growth Only Comes Out of Your Comfort Zone
Kuda Biza builds profitable companies to solve the world’s biggest problems: education and hunger. He is the Co-Founder and CMO of the company Nunbelievable, which provides 2 meals for every box of cookies sold. He is also the Co-Founder of #ThisisMyEra. His talk will be about stepping outside your comfort zone to grow and reach your maximum potential.
Growing Power for Young People
Megan Chen is an author, activist, and social entrepreneur. She is a current junior attending Newark Charter High School. She is also the founder and executive director of The Urban Garden Initiative. Her talk will cover the importance of taking the first step to solving a large issue and her experiences with The Urban Garden Initiative.
ARIANA ABRAMSON
Ariana Abramson is a social entrepreneur and STEM advocate. She is the CEO and Founder of RevSTEM, a platform for high school girls of color to apply STEM topics to entrepreneurship. Her talk will focus on using STEM as a platform and space for creativity and out of the box thinking.
JACLYN DIGREGORIO
The Simple Formula that Builds Courage
Jaclyn DiGregorio started her first business while in a senior in college which helped women struggling with food and body image. Her book, The CUSP Method, is also an Amazon bestseller and she is the Founder of Clarity and Action Consulting. Her talk focuses on courage: the most essential ingredient in using your voice, spreading your ideas, and creating true impact.
LIAM MCKENNA
Lessons from Innovation
Liam McKenna is a junior at Conestoga High School and a member of the Tri-M music honors society, as well as the National Honors Society. His talk will be about how deep brain stimulation is used to treat Parkinson's and the current medical trend of interfacing technology with biology.
TIFFANY YAU
Dream Big, Think Smaller
Tiffany Yau is a social entrepreneur and the proud founder & CEO of Fulphil. Her personal mission is to inspire youth, girls, and minorities to realize their potential to make an impact on the world. Her talk will be about decoding the stereotypes of what it means to make an impact and understanding the importance of youth.
BEN CONARD
What Juggling Taught Me About Life
Ben Conard is the founder of Five North Chocolate, which stands for great taste and sustainable sourcing. He is also a US Ambassador for Congress and has been named Top 10 Biggest Fair Trade Advocates in the World. His talk will be about juggling different activities and being prepared for the unexpected.
Meet the Speakers
MCKENNA REITZ
The Simple Formula that Builds Courage
Jaclyn DiGregorio started her first business while in a senior in college which helped women struggling with food and body image. Her book, The CUSP Method, is also an Amazon bestseller and she is the Founder of Clarity and Action Consulting. Her talk focuses on courage: the most essential ingredient in using your voice, spreading your ideas, and creating true impact.
SAZ ROSS
Growth Only Comes Out of Your Comfort Zone
Kuda Biza builds profitable companies to solve the world’s biggest problems: education and hunger. He is the Co-Founder and CMO of the company Nunbelievable, which provides 2 meals for every box of cookies sold. He is also the Co-Founder of #ThisisMyEra. His talk will be about stepping outside your comfort zone to grow and reach your maximum potential.
LAKSHMI SHYAMAKRISHNAN
Lessons from Innovation
Liam McKenna is a junior at Conestoga High School and a member of the Tri-M music honors society, as well as the National Honors Society. His talk will be about how deep brain stimulation is used to treat Parkinson's and the current medical trend of interfacing technology with biology.
Growing Power for Young People
ALE D'AGOSTINO
Dream Big, Think Smaller
A Classroom that Inspired an Empathetic Scientist
PRANAVI PRATAPA
This Party Trick Changed My Life
Ben Conard is the founder of Five North Chocolate, which stands for great taste and sustainable sourcing. He is also a US Ambassador for Congress and has been named Top 10 Biggest Fair Trade Advocates in the World. His talk will be about juggling different activities and being prepared for the unexpected.
KD HURLBUTT
A Classroom that Inspired an Empathetic Scientist
Ariana Abramson is a social entrepreneur and STEM advocate. She is the CEO and Founder of RevSTEM, a platform for high school girls of color to apply STEM topics to entrepreneurship. Her talk will focus on using STEM as a platform and space for creativity and out of the box thinking.
Meet the Speakers
MCKENNA REITZ
Having a Bad Hair Day
McKenna Reitz is an inspirational speaker and a Challenge Coach who works with men and women to reframe life’s challenges into gifts and opportunities so they can pursue their purpose with clarity and confidence. After losing all her hair due to Alopecia, McKenna uses her journey of having this autoimmune disease to help others overcome the loss in their life by resetting the mindset of their “loss” into growth and opportunities in their lives
SAZ ROSS
Get Lost: A Guide to Accessing Creativity
Saz has spent 10 years in the field of art education. The love of art education led her to facilitating professional development workshops for the Maryland State Department of Education as one of the youngest Roster Artists ever hired while working as an Educational Director of an art education non-profit called Leaders of Tomorrow Youth Center. Saz is a young creative leader and she believes it is time for young professionals to view themselves as the same in order to make positive changes in our world.
LAKSHMI SHYAMAKRISHNAN
Accessing the Exclusive
Lakshmi Shyamakrishnan is an MS candidate in Marketing Analytics at the University of Maryland. As a member of three underrepresented demographic groups in the business world - as a disabled woman of color - she is a passionate advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and has spearheaded research into accessibility and inclusion initiatives in her community. With her degree, she plans to pursue a career in People Analytics in the Human Resources field to increase diversity overall in the corporate world.
VIVEK PANDIT
The Hidden Movement of Gen Z
Vivek Pandit is a gradutae of Brown University and author of We Are Generation Z: How Identity, Attitudes, and Perspectives Are Shaping Our Future. Currently, he is working at a startup studio co-founding a company that provides financial coaching as a service to overwhelmed Americans. During his free time, he run We Are Gen Z, hosts the podcast 501 Hustle, through which he collaborates with passionate Gen Z activists from around the world.
ALE D'AGOSTINO
Where are You Really From?
Ale D’agostino is currently a third-year at the George Washington University, double majoring in Criminal Justice and Political Science. Having the desire to run for public office, Ale aspires to increase the representation of minority women, through not only elected representatives, but also within Congressional staff members. She currently serves as co-founder and Vice President of the Leading Women of Tomorrow George Washington University Chapter.
PRANAVI PRATAPA
Bias in Tech Algorithms
Pranavi Pratapa is an 18 year old freshman majoring in mathematics and computer science at the University of Michigan- Ann Arbor. Within my school, I’m involved with LSA Student Government and Sahana, an Indian classical arts organization. In my free time, I love to sing, paint, and hike. Pranavi is passionate about educating and taking action on the prevalence of bias in current tech algorithms.
KD HURLBUTT
Gen Z's Mental Health is a Climate Priority- Here's Why
KD pulls from her experience as a Stanford environmental engineer, sustainability manager for a Fortune 500 company, and a burnout prevention consultant and coach for Salesforce, Kaiser Permanente, and Silicon Valley startups. She creatively weaves accessible science, relatable stories, and practical tools into fun frameworks that shift the way people experience stress and sustainability. She's committed to building an economic ecosystem that's inclusive, just, and equitable for all.
JACOB WITTENBERG
How We Gain Control by Giving It Away
Jacob Wittenberg is the founder of FRNDLY, host of Groundbreaking, and a content creator and musician.
As a recent Boston University graduate with a degree in Public Relations and minor in Business
Administration, Jacob pursues his mission to empower young creatives and their initiatives through
FRNDLY, a media group acting as a launching pad for young creators through consultation, design, and strategic development, and Groundbreaking, a podcast highlighting the projects of today's young innovators.