Robyn Silverman

It's time to help our girls. Fat-bashing in all of its chilling forms—jokes, ostracizing, food police, school bias, family sneak attacks—is one of society's last acceptable forms of prejudice. It's also a covert hot-button for bullying among young people. Ask any girl to word-associate "fat," and she'll give you a deplorable list of insults: ugly, lazy, stupid, unpopular, and, of course, bad. Do the same with the word "thin," and you'll get its desirable opposites: beautiful, successful, smart, well-liked, and good.

Media magnifies the dichotomy and family and friends often support the damaging messages. When girls of any size believe that fat is bad, they internalize that message and think, "If I'm fat, I must be bad, too." Based on Dr. Silverman's groundbreaking research and book of the same name, as well as her interviews with hundreds of young women, this keynote examines the heartbreaking weight obsession girls must cope with, how even those closest to these girls can inadvertently be body bullies, and how as a community we can come together to support them, inspire them, and help them overcome these messages so they can thrive.

In this powerful, effective program (which can be customized as either a one-hour presentation or an all-day retreat with hands-on exercises), Dr. Robyn Silverman presents leadership skills in an accessible way. Drawing from her experiences as a success coach, she provides powerful yet easy-to-implement leadership strategies that allow students to emerge as leaders among their peers. Participants will learn specific ways to create their future in advance, identify obstacles to success, "forward" themselves and others into action, and become a powerful example to others.

Often named "the highlight of any conference," participants come away with an action plan that they can put into effect immediately so that they can make a success of any partnership, group, team, or personal goal. Based on Dr. Silverman's best-selling book series of the same name, the students who attend this program will be able to apply these leadership skills in every area of their lives to enhance their success and lead the way! This session is ideal for team-building, group cohesion, and leadership training. It can also be used in a "train the trainers" format.

In this dynamic presentation on character and leadership, Dr. Robyn Silverman appeals to educators, parents, and mentors as the foundational builders of this generation’s future leaders and as the cultivators of their school’s or town’s community of character. “A Community of Character is not built by osmosis,” she explains, “it must be creatively and purposely seeded, tilled, tended, encouraged, expected, and developed.” Using multimedia and storytelling, Dr. Silverman frames the growth of role models into her easy-to-remember trademarked 5Es: Education, Expectation, Empowerment, Example, and Excellence. Participants leave with specific hands-on strategies for creating respectful school communities and responsible leaders.

From the dolls girls play with to the ads they see and the shows they watch, media's impact is far reaching and all encompassing. Based on her popular book, Good Girls Don't Get Fat, body image expert Dr. Robyn Silverman discusses how media makes girls feel and think about themselves and their bodies. Using engaging storytelling, powerful statistics, and illustrative video clips, Dr. Silverman covers the problem, the consequences, and, of course, what we can all do to take control back, stay aware, and make important changes that can help girls thrive.

Every day, many children must contend with feeling and being different from their classmates. From those with disabilities to those with weight concerns or other physical differences, children can be quick to choose these differences as "bullying hot buttons." We know from the research that children who have differences can be two to three times more likely to be victims of bullying than their peers who don't have such differences. In addition, the bullying experienced by these children was likely to be more chronic and often linked to their disability.

As many of these children don't feel that they can stand up for themselves in the same way as typically developing children, our intervention must be clear and specific. In this presentation, Dr. Silverman will not only outline the problem but also provide the parents and educators with solutions to help their children, including but not limited to: keeping a journal of specific incidents, how to support your child, being observant of the signs that your child may be a victim of bullying, and how to ask for help. Tips will relate to how to deal with in-school bullying and bullying in their online world, and Dr. Silverman will discuss system-wide enhancements that can lay a foundation for respect, acceptance, and camaraderie among all students.

Did you know that most young people are unable to name three adults in their lives who they can turn to for encouragement or help? That means that teachers and parents are even more important than most might imagine. In this presentation, Dr. Robyn Silverman discusses what children really require from the trusted adults in their lives in order to help them thrive.

Stemming from her acronym, S.P.A.R.K., she lays out the five main areas of children's success: Support, Passion, Action, Reason, and Knowledge, and how we can bring out the best in the young people in our lives. With a viewpoint that children are assets to be developed, not deficits to be managed, participants come away with specific action steps that they can take back to their homes or classrooms to create self-motivated "asset leaders" who are powerful examples to others.