Bulletin News

10/01/2013 

The first-ever TEDxCortland, a half-day event built on thoughtful conversation, has put together a powerful line-up that includes two speakers with ties to SUNY Cortland.

It’s now looking to fill a passionate audience.

The deadline to apply online to be an attendee is Friday, Oct. 4, and the event itself takes place Saturday, Nov. 9, from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Acropolis at Greek Peak Mountain Resort.

It will feature four live talks centered on the theme “Living—Smart, Well, Now,” mixed with screenings of other TED lectures. During a TED Talk, speakers are asked to give an engaging presentation in 18 minutes or less.

TEDxCortland speakers include:

· Joshua Bacigalupi C.A.S. ’13, an elementary school assistant principal with life experiences that include overseas teaching and military service in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army National Guard.

· Nancy Kane, a SUNY Cortland lecturer who teaches dance and stage combat and a past president of the National Dance Association.

· Jen Oleniczak, a trained and accomplished actress who founded The Engaging Educator, a New York City-based organization specializing in improv workshops and professional development for educators.

· Leana Wen, an emergency physician and the director of patient-centered care research at George Washington University.

Audience members are expected to be active participants and they’re invited to bring their own ideas and experiences. They’re chosen by an organizing committee based on a broad set of criteria.

Invited TEDxCortland attendees will be notified by Friday, Oct. 11. A $10 admission fee also will be required.

TED, which stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, is a nonprofit organization that supports independent, locally organized speaking events across the globe. Many TED Talk videos shared for free on TED.com circulate on the Internet because of their thoughtfulness and inspiration. They’re committed to the concept “ideas worth spreading.”

Bacigalupi, a seasoned educator focused on breaking the cycle of multigenerational poverty in schools, brings an array of life experiences and perspective to his TED Talk. He has faced poverty in education both domestically and internationally, having taught in Central New York, the Washington, D.C., area and Bogota, Colombia.

After the Sept. 11 attacks, he enlisted in the U.S. Army National Guard and in 2008 was deployed to Afghanistan. He earned the Combat Infantryman’s Badge and the Army Commendation Medal for his service there.

Bacigalupi also holds a certificate of advanced study in school building and district leadership from the College.

Kane, who Dance Teacher magazine has praised as a leader and trendsetter in arts education, has been dancing, teaching and choreographing since 1986. She has worked professionally in the U.S. and Europe, receiving grants and awards from the National Endowment for the Humanities and several other arts councils and organizations,

She teaches dance and stage combat at SUNY Cortland as a lecturer of performing arts and she is the director of the dance program at the Trumansburg Conservatory of Fine Arts. Kane also holds two master’s degrees, including a second one in kinesiology, or exercise science. Her research projects have helped people understand the physical demands and benefits of dance and musical theatre performance.

Since founding The Engaging Educator, Oleniczak has held workshops for educators from institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Apollo Theatre and the National Archives, among others. She also contributes regularly to the Huffington Post as well as ArtMuseumTeaching.com.

Oleniczak is a trained actress and improviser. She has performed across the country and currently she can be found improvising off-Broadway at the National Comedy Theatre.

Wen, a noted physician, researcher and patient advocate, authored the best-selling book When Doctors Don’t Listen: How to Avoid Misdiagnoses and Unnecessary Tests.

Inspired by her own childhood illness and her mother’s battle with cancer, she was named a Rhodes Scholar, received training at the University of Oxford and has served on the faculty at Harvard Medical School.

Wen has been featured in publications that include TIME, Newsweek and The New York Times, and on networks such as ABC, CNN and MSNBC. She also has spoken around the world on the low-tech revolution to healthcare reform.

For more information on TEDxCortland, visit its website or contact the Seven Valleys Health Coalition, where the program is based, at 607-756-4198.