TED talks have become a staple of education
and popular culture over the last few years. TED (Technology, Entertainment,
& Design) is a nonprofit organization devoted to “Ideas worth Spreading,”
usually through short presentations or talks. While viewers often associate
these talks with celebrities, or famous researchers, what if the person sitting
next to you in class made the video? On Tuesday, April 5, 2016, Adelphi University
hosted the inaugural TEDxAdelphiUniversity event. Organized by the Adelphi
University Center for Health Innovation (CHI), this independently organized
event, licensed by TED, featured TED Talk videos as well as nine exceptional
speakers under the theme of “What If…”
After
a brief introduction by Chairman of the Board of Trustees Robert B. Willumstad’05 (Hon.) and Elizabeth Gross Cohn,
Ph.D., R.N., executive director of the CHI, the speakers came together to
“collectively suggest ways we can improve ourselves, our communities, and our
society,” according to Dr. Cohn. Each of the speakers presented to an audience
of 100 in house guests and countless online viewers, to help present an
exciting new perspective on our world.
Adelphi University
President Christine M. Riordan took the
stage at the event. In her talk, “Dare to be Extraordinary, ” President Riordan
discussed the difference between an ordinary person and an extraordinary one.
“We think of ourselves as ordinary people leading ordinary lives, and yet, the
reality is that we have the opportunity to all be extraordinary,” she said. She
then went on to explain how her research has shown that all extraordinary
people share three key characteristics: passion, courage, and resilience. They
had passion to push themselves to change the world, courage to make the right
and sometimes difficult decisions, and resilience to rise up in the face of
adversity. President Riordan dared the audience members to be passionate,
courageous, and resilient, and to push themselves out of their comfort zones in
order to be exceptional extraordinary individuals.
The
event also featured eight other speakers including:
- Jennifer Krol ’17 is an undergraduate student at Adelphi, currently majoring in creative writing, in a 5 year master’s program for Childhood Education. Her talk, “The Culture Where No One is Culturally Competent: The Effects of Rape Culture on Children,” discusses how rape culture is instilled in girls from a young age, and how important it is to talk about these issues to empower girls to fight it.
- Rabbi Glenn Jacob D.D. is one of the interfaith chaplains and Hillel Director at Adelphi and the executive director of the New York chapter of Interfaith Power & Light. His talk, “God in the Public Square” discussed the difference between theist and non-theist god beliefs, and how non-theist god beliefs could change the way faith is discussed in public.
- Francine Conway, Ph.D. is a professor and chair of psychology in the Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies. Her talk, “Cultivating Compassion for the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) child—from Moral Indictment to Empathy,” discussed her experience having a child with ADHD, and how educators can develop compassion and empathy for these children, and how that empathy can be sued to more effectively treat ADHD.
- Bernadine Y. Waller is an adjunct professor and doctoral candidate at Adelphi University School of Social Work. Her talk, “Hindered Help: How Societal Stereotypes Hinder African American Women Intimate Partner Violence Victims from Getting the Help They Need,” discussed how negative stereotypes are the reason why African American Women are less likely to get proper help when they are the victims of intimate partner violence, and how we as a society can attempt to look past those stereotypes to help them.
- Dr. Deborah Serani is an associate adjunct professor at Adelphi University. Her talk entitled “What if…You Knew Depression as a Doctor and as a Patient,” discussed her personal and professional experience as a psychologist living with depression, and pointed out important suggestions from both the prospective of a patient and a therapist.
- Anthony Zenkus is an adjunct faculty member in the School of Social Work. His talk, “Watch the Gap: How Capitalism Negatively Affects the Development of Children and How We Can Do Better”, discussed how income inequality and racism affect the development of children, and how a shift in wealth and power can give who are economically and socially oppressed a chance to reach their potential.
- Madeline Dressner ’13, M.A. ’14 is an elementary school teacher at E.M. Baker School in Great Neck, New York who graduated with her bachelor’s degree in psychology and master’s degree in childhood education from Adelphi University. Her talk, “Using Technology to Empower and Foster 21st Century Advocacy, Citizenship, and Empathy in Children,” discussed how technology in the elementary school classroom can be used to teach children advocacy, citizenship, and empathy. She also discussed her experience participating with her students in “Apps for a Cause,” where students came up with ideas for apps that can help better the world.
- Robert Goldfarb, Ph.D. is a professor of communication sciences and disorders. His talk, “An Aphasiologist Has a Stroke,” described his experience as a professor who teaches about the effects of a stroke on the mind, suffering a major stroke himself, and how he managed to maximize his recovery efforts.
The day also included networking and dialogue opportunities so attendees
could reflect and discuss the serious issues brought up during the talks. Watch
the talks online at http://bit.ly/TEDxAdelphi
To learn more about this year’s event, follow @TEDxAdelphiU on twitter,
like TEDxAdelphiU on Facebook or visit TEDxAdelphiUniversity.com
