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Speakers to Share 'Identifying Moments' at Virtual TEDxSUNYPotsdam Event

Tickets Now Available for TEDxSUNYPotsdam, Taking Place Nov. 14

Potsdam, NY (10/19/2020) — SUNY Potsdam will host its second TEDx event, welcoming virtual audiences for a day of "Identifying Moments," on Saturday, Nov. 14, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tickets are now available for the online event, at http://www.tedxsunypotsdam.com.

TEDx is an organization which provides a platform for "Ideas Worth Spreading" by supporting locally run events where local speakers give talks which are then posted online to a worldwide audience. This year the event will take place virtually with a live host and pre-recorded talks, a question and answer session with speakers.

Featuring nine SUNY Potsdam students and faculty, plus a guest speaker from New York City, the talks will all reflect on this year's theme, "Identifying Moments" -- offering the opportunity to reflect on how identity is shaped by circumstance, or about the characteristics of compelling moments themselves.

The featured speaker is Mino Lora, cofounder and executive director of People's Theatre Project, a social justice arts organization that creates ensemble-based theatre with and for immigrant communities to develop the next generation of diverse, socially-engaged artists and leaders. Lora's talk is titled "Joy is Resistance."

The slate of campus speakers includes:

  • Jim Fryer, associate professor of psychology, whose research focuses on motivation and personality
  • Jessica Hurlbut '20, a master's graduate who completed her Master of Science in Teaching degree in childhood education, "How to Win at the Race Called Life"
  • Karen Kus, assistant director for career services, Lougheed Center for Applied Learning, "Career Trajectory: Claiming Your Identity"
  • Kathleen Mahoney, professor of graphic, video and game design, Department of Art, "Anei Au: New Zealand's Maori Art, a Window for Examining Our Own Cultural Identity"
  • Jess Melendez '22, early childhood/childhood education major with a specialization in English, "Diverse Children's Literature"
  • Joseph Pease '21, theatre major, "Virtual/Actual Reality: A Study on Video Games and the Human Psyche"
  • Jordan Quiles '20, recent theatre and dance graduate, "Out of the Box"
  • Mei Shen, assistant professor of special education, "Helping Struggling Learners Succeed in Writing"
  • Janet Sussman, associate professor of costume design and history, "Moving Towards a Post-Gendered World"

These speakers will bring a diversity of ideas, research and experiences from a wide array of academic and career fields including subjects such as art and psychology. With SUNY Potsdam's diverse and creative community, TEDx offers a platform for the innovative research, dialogue and ideas happening on campus to reach a wider audience.

All tickets are $5, and can be purchased at http://www.tedxsunypotsdam.com.

The event is being hosted by the Arts Management Program & Department of Theatre and Dance at SUNY Potsdam. A group of 11 SUNY Potsdam Arts Management and Crane Institute of Music Business & Entrepreneurship student interns comprise the administrative team for the event. They are advised by the co-founder of TEDxSUNYPotsdam, Assistant Professor Joshua Vink.

TEDxSUNYPotsdam aims to serve the public college and community of SUNY Potsdam by celebrating and progressing the innovative ideas and practices on campus with a forum for public discourse. TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) is a nonprofit organization "devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less)."

The event is made possible with support from a Lougheed Applied Learning Grant funded by Donald and Kathy Lougheed, as well as from the Arts Management Program, Department of Theatre and Dance, The Crane School of Music, Crane Institute for Music Business and Entrepreneurship, Community Performance Series and SUNY Potsdam.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event:

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, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection. 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.)

About TED:

TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, often in the form of short talks delivered by leading thinkers and doers. Many of these talks are given at TED conferences, intimate TED Salons and thousands of independently organized TEDx events around the world. Videos of these talks are made available, free, on http://TED.com and other platforms. Audio versions of TED Talks are published to TED Talks Daily, available on all podcast platforms.

TED's open and free initiatives for spreading ideas include TED.com, where new TED Talk videos are posted daily; TEDx, which licenses thousands of individuals and groups to host local, self-organized TED-style events around the world; the TED Fellows program, which selects innovators from around the globe to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities; The Audacious Project, which surfaces and funds critical ideas that have the potential to impact millions of lives; TED Translators, which crowdsources the subtitling of TED Talks so that big ideas can spread across languages and borders; and the educational initiative TED-Ed. TED also offers TED@Work, a program that reimagines TED Talks for workplace learning. TED also has a growing library of original podcasts, including The TED Interview with Chris Anderson, WorkLife with Adam Grant, Pindrop and TEDxSHORTS.

Follow TED on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and on LinkedIn.

About SUNY Potsdam:

Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America's first 50 colleges -- and the oldest institution within SUNY. Now in its third century, SUNY Potsdam is distinguished by a legacy of pioneering programs and educational excellence. The College currently enrolls approximately 3,600 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its challenging liberal arts and sciences core, distinction in teacher training and culture of creativity. To learn more, visit http://www.potsdam.edu.

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Media Attachments

An image from the first TEDxSUNYPotsdam event, held in 2019. The next event will be held virtually on Nov. 14. Tickets are on sale now, at www.tedxsunypotsdam.com.

The poster for TEDxSUNYPotsdam 2020 can be seen here.

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