K-12 Education

Richard Buery, CEO of Achievement First and APB speaker, has been appointed the new chief executive officer of Robin Hood. The non-profit is New York’s largest poverty-fighting organization. Buery will join Robin Hood in September.  

In a little more than a month, over 14,000 people from more than 200 countries will gather in Tokyo, Japan, for the Summer Olympics. They will be joined by thousands of delegates and members of the press. One month later, an additional 5,000 athletes and support staff will come together in Tokyo for the Paralympic Games.  These two enormous events have APB speaker Dr. Michael Osterholm, Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, and several of his colleagues deeply concerned. 

As a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter covering global humanitarian crises and suffering around the world, New York Times columnist and author Nicholas Kristof thought he had seen it all. But what has surprised him the most are the problems and hopelessness happening right here in the United States. An epidemic of despair, he calls it.  

Join us Tuesday June 8th and Wednesday June 9th for a showcase unlike any other, featuring today's top voices addressing issues shaping the diversity, equity and inclusion conversation. Get ready for four keynotes, six panels, over 50 speaker spotlights and more! +Register Now

Do you want to know how to strike a balance between addressing larger societal issues and meeting your own mental health needs? APB speaker and mental health advocate Dr. Nii Addy gives you the answer in his podcast, Addy Hour, alongside APB speaker and co-founder of March For Our Lives David Hogg. 

On May 26, 2020, Philonise Floyd learned that his older brother, George “Perry” Floyd, Jr. had been murdered by four police officers in Minneapolis after a store clerk alleged that he passed a counterfeit $20 bill. The world watched as named officer, Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. George’s death sparked a worldwide outpour of protests against police brutality, especially toward black people. Philonise vowed that George’s death would not be in vain, another hashtag on a t-shirt, and started the Philonise and Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, actively working to eliminate the daily impacts of police brutality, criminal justice reform and systemic racism.

APB speaker and "Maria" on Sesame Street, Sonia Manzano, has a new book called Coming Up Cuban, and it will be out in April of 2022. Coming Up Cuban is set in 1959 and follows the lives of four children who each represent different intersections of race and class in Cuba. Publishers Weekly recently revealed the cover.   

APB speaker, producer, and educator Michael Davis wrote the New York Times Non-Fiction Best Seller Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street and is a co-executive producer of the documentary, Street Gang, which is gaining immense praise on HBO.   

Heather Abbott’s life changed forever when she was struck by bomb shrapnel at the Boston Marathon and lost her left leg.  After receiving a prosthetic leg for walking, she was then told by her insurance that they would not cover anything additional. This became the catalyst for the Heather Abbott Foundation, which is dedicated to mission of giving fellow amputees the prosthetics insurance won’t cover.  Now recognized by CNN as the complete embodiment of a hero, Heather Abbott captivates audiences with her inspirational story of pain, anger, optimism and resilience.

New books from Maria Hinojosa, Michele Borba, Jessica Lahey, Steve Pemberton and Richard White to add to your reading list: