College & Independent Schools
Performing Arts
Performing Arts:
Award-Winning Actor, Lost
Known for his role as "Benjamin Linus" in the hit series Lost, Michael Emerson is a 2009 Emmy Award winner for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series and a 2010 Golden Globe nominee.
Best-Selling Author
Therese Anne Fowler’s best-selling book Z, A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald brings justice to the legacy of F. Scott Fitzgerald's wife, Zelda. She speaks on her writing career and the importance of community libraries.
Actor, Comedian & Writer
One of Hollywood’s fastest rising young talents, Jermaine Fowler can most recently be seen in RETREAT for FX. He can previously be seen in Tim Story’s feature, THE BLACKENING, which premiered at TIFF in 2022.
Businessman, Gospel Singer & Motivator
The first Gospel artist to go platinum and multi-platinum, Franklin has transformed the genre. He inspires audiences across generations with his touching story and views on faith and culture.
Filmmaker & Researcher
Ron Galloway is the director of Why Wal-Mart Works and producer of Oflag 64: A P.O.W. Odyssey. He is a conservative columnist for Huffington Post and writes a Wal-Mart blog on why Wal-Mart does and does not work.
Singer/Songwriter
For more than 35 years, Debbie Gibson has been a true pioneer and force in the entertainment industry. A singer, songwriter, producer, musician, actor, and entrepreneur, she embodies what it truly means to be an icon.
Counselor & Stand-Up Comic
David Granirer is a counselor, stand-up comic and a pioneer in using humor to increase wellness, reduce stress, and cope with change. He also taught stand-up comedy to recovering drug addicts & cancer patient.
Actress of Stage & Screen
Jasmine Guy played the iconic southern belle "Whitley Gilbert" on the Cosby Show spinoff A Different World. She has performed on stage, screen, and TV, directs, writes, and has toured with her self-titled album.
Award-Winning American Historian, Bestselling Author & Journalist
Best-selling author, prize-winning journalist, acclaimed biographer and cultural historian Wil Haygood tells the story of America through the lens of history, politics, sports, race and the lives of change-making African-Americans.
Actor & Voice of Allstate Insurance Co.
Best known for his role on 24 and as the voice of Allstate, he also heads the Haysbert Humanitarian Foundation which provides education, food, energy and water to the next generation.
Broadway Star
One of the greatest voices of the new millennium, Jennifer Holliday gives concerts across the world. Having lived with depression for over ten years, she shares that there is a healing path out of the darkness.
Actor & Activist
Appearing in Ghostbusters and The Crow, Ernie Hudson’s journey to Hollywood success was not without difficulties. He shares how he overcame seemingly insurmountable problems and inspires others to persevere.
Motivator
With her unstoppable can-do spirit and no-nonsense wit, Suzie Humphreys lifts, jolts, nurtures and stretches her audiences! She has gone from administrative secretary to TV talk show host to 20 years in radio.
Former Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts
Bill Ivey is the Founding Director of the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise and Public Policy at Vanderbilt University, an arts policy research center. He’s a brilliant speaker on fine arts and author of Arts, Inc.
Playwright & Performer, Bridge & Tunnel
Sarah Jones is a Tony and Obie Award-winning playwright and performer known for her multi-character, one-person show Bridge & Tunnel. She is renowned for her humanitarian stories told through a multicultural lens.
Broadway Star
Sandra Joseph is a legendary Broadway star who played the leading female role (Christine) in The Phantom of the Opera longer than any other actress in history — more than 1,500 shows in a record-breaking 10 years.
Award-Winning Artist & Subject of the Hulu Series, Woke
Keith Knight is one of the funniest and most highly regarded cartoonists in America, and the creator of three popular comic strips. His life and cartoons are the inspiration of the Hulu streaming-series Woke, which he also co-created.
Conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra
With over 25 years experience as Conductor of the Boston Pops, Keith Lockhart's tenure includes over 2,000 performances, 45 national tours to more than 150 cities, and four international tours.
"Maria" on Sesame Street & Best-Selling Author
Having retired her iconic Sesame Street character “Maria,” Manzano now dedicates her time to speaking and writing on education, communication, and Hispanics in the media.
Emmy-Nominated Storyteller, Classically-Trained Opera Singer & On Tour with NPR's "The Moth"
Prepare to embark on a powerful and inspiring journey with Deonna Marie as she shares her incredible story of triumph over adversity.
Veteran Comedy Emcee & Professional Speaker
McInnis has been performing comedy, emceeing events and delivering humor keynotes for the past 15 years. She’s worked with corporations, associations and professional events to make sure the event is a HIT.
Acclaimed Cinematic Pioneer & CalArts Faculty
Considered a cinematic feminist pioneer and one of America’s foremost independent filmmakers, Menkes has shown widely in major international film festivals including multiple premieres at Sundance, the Berlinale, Cannes and more.
Physicist & Best-Selling Author
Leonard Mlodinow, co-author with Stephen Hawking on the latest bestseller The Grand Design, explores the four-year effort to answer the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe and Everything.
Documentarian & Emmy-Winning Producer
Stanley Nelson, an Emmy-winning MacArthur “Genius” Fellow and member of the Academy of Motion Picture Art & Sciences, is the director of thirteen documentary features.
Dir. Center for Health Policy Research & Ethic
Len Nichols is the director of the Center for Health Policy Research & Ethics, a professor of health policy at George Mason University, and the founder and director of Health CEOs for Health Reform.
Conductor / Symphonic Music Presenter
After a distinguished career at the helm of two American orchestras, Roger Nierenberg is now emerging as a creative force for innovation in the presentation of symphonic music.
Emmy, Tony & Grammy Award-Winning Actress
Cynthia Nixon has completed her final season of HBO's celebrated series, Sex and the City, in which she played "Miranda Hobbes," a role that garnered her 2002 and 2003 Emmy nominations.
Creator of Noonoouri
Joerg Zuber combined love for fashion, beauty, and self-expression led him to create Noonoouri, one of the most successful virtual influencers on Instagram.
Victim of Brain Injury - Mathematical Marvel
When Padgett was attacked by muggers outside a karaoke club ten years ago, he thought he was going to die. Repeatedly kicked in the head, his brain trauma caused him to develop a mysterious mathematical gift.
Author, Emcee & Producer
Dubbed "the conscience of rap" by Rolling Stone, KRS-ONE's Temple of Hip-Hop Kulture, is a hip-hop preservation society that promotes hip-hop as a strategy toward health, love, awareness and wealth.
Journalism Professor, NYU & Editor, PandoDaily
As a journalism professor at New York University and editor of PandoDaily, he has successfully navigated through the world of print and online media, providing his own unique theories and opinions on them.
Co-Host, Pod Save America
Dan Pfeiffer is a former White House communications director, noted political and digital strategist, Pod Save America co-host, CNN contributor, and best-selling author.