

September 10, 2021 King Center Concert Hall
855 Lawrence St, Denver, CO 80204
With gratitude to our VIP Event sponsor

MEET THE PRESENTERS BIOS

Thomas Austin
Alumni
From a young age, Thomas knew he wanted to help people. A variety of volunteer experiences and some meaningful mentors along the way pushed him to pursue a career in social work. Over the past 10 years…
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Renee Fajardo
Staff
Renee Fajardo is a mother of seven and a cultural activist who has spent the past 30 years preserving and promoting the rich heritage of Colorado’s multicultural communities through her work as a storyteller and writer. She has…
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Bethany Fleck Dillen
Faculty
Bethany Fleck Dillen received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of New Hampshire. While there, she also earned a master’s in the Science of College Teaching. Her research centers on cognitive development in childhood education and university classroom contexts. Both lines…
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Andrew Hudson
Community Member
Andrew Hudson is the founder and President of Andrew Hudson’s Jobs List, Colorado’s premier online job board.
Started in 1998 with a few hundred followers, today, more than 35,000 subscribers receive the his email jobs updates and hundreds of thousands more visit AH Jobs List each month.
MoreDominique Hunt
Alumni
In today’s globalized world, Dominique is a third-culture person raised in cultures other than his or her family’s country of nationality. This is becoming increasingly common thanks to our shared dynamic of modern life on earth. His background led him…
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Eric James
Faculty
Eric James has had many jobs, including counting 5-cent aluminum-can deposits in Vermont, persuading people to keep their America Online dial-up internet access and balancing dan-dan noodles and chicken-dumpling soups as a P.F. Chang’s food runner. The way those jobs…
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X
Student
X (Antwaun D. Johnson) is a first-generation student, graduate of Overland High School and resident of Denver’s Five Points (District 9), which includes the Auraria Campus.
X was awarded the Stephen M. Hay leadership and activism award and Blacxera, the student organization he founded, was named…
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Michael Kilman
Faculty
Michael Kilman is an anthropologist, author and filmmaker based in Denver. He holds a master’s degree in Applied Anthropology from Portland State University. In 2013-14, he conducted his graduate research on the Denver-based community theatre known as the…
MoreEvan Mazunik
Community Member
Evan Mazunik plays contemporary music as a composer, pianist and musical director in Denver. Despite starting piano lessons as a nearsighted 4-year-old with stagefright, Evan has discovered the joy of music through improvisation. He conducts ensembles…
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Svetlana Mikhaylova
Student
Svetlana was born in Moscow but immigrated to Colorado as a teenager. She moved around quite a bit throughout childhood and as a result developed a habit of being minimalistic. She says she has never owned…
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Jacob Mora
Faculty
Jacob Mora hails from Denver. Working within dance, music, film, theatre, art and fashion, Jacob performs, produces, directs and teaches across the nation.
Jacob is the founder and artistic director of Moraporvida Contemporary Dance (MPVCD), a 501(c)3 nonprofit dance company that is…
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Nicole Predki
Faculty
Nicole is a dancer, scientist, interdisciplinary artist and maker of many things. Borrowing the words of Salvador Dali, she strives to be “a carnivorous fish swimming in two waters, the cold water of art and the hot water of science.”
She has performed…
MoreJoseph Schneiderwind
Alumni
Joseph Schneiderwind graduated with a B.S. in Engineering Physics in 2009 and an M.S. in Applied Mathematics in 2011, both from the Colorado School of Mines. After working for a few years, he returned to school for a Ph.D., passing candidacy exams before returning to Colorado…
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Alexander Sherman
Student
Alexander Sherman was born in Tampa, Florida, in February 1992. In 2001, he moved to the Boulder area to be with family. For the past 20 years, he has been trying to impact people and communities wherever he goes.
The topic of his TED Talk relates specifically…
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Jann & Shari Simmons
Faculty
As a mother/daughter duo, Shari and Jann are authors and speakers who bring awareness to audiences across the country about the impact of trauma/stress. They have a podcast on the Mental Health New Radio Network that highlights inspiring stories…
MoreTED
In the spirit of TED’s mission, “ideas worth spreading,” TEDxMSUDenver is a TED-style event planned and coordinated independently, under license from TED.
TED is a global community, welcoming people from every discipline and culture who seek a deeper understanding of the world. We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and, ultimately, the world. On TED.com.
TEDx
TEDxMSUDenver is a local gathering where live TED-like talks and performances will be shared with the MSU Denver community. The TED format is a suite of short, carefully prepared talks, demonstrations and performances that are idea-focused, and cover a wide range of subjects to foster learning, inspiration and wonder – and provoke conversations that matter. All TEDx events present multiple issues and a diversity of voices from many disciplines. After all, what’s the fun without a little variety?