TEDx ‘breaks through’ in Wyandotte County
August 11, 2015 | Andrea Essner
This year, TEDxWyandotte seeks to break down barriers in their urban community.
Wyandotte County, Kan., a community known for its diversity and urban challenges, is currently in a state of transition. The county as a whole is working towards neighborhood and school improvements, ultimately hoping to claim a new position in the Kansas City metropolitan.
TEDxWyandotte, set for Sept. 15 at Kansas City Kansas Community College, is responding to the transitions by welcoming local speakers involved in the county’s changes to come share their stories about “Breaking Through.”
Here’s a bit about each of the speakers:
- Vi Tran is a local artist who believes that art can affect social change through “The empathetic power of storytelling.” Born outside of Sai Gon, Vietnam, Tran began his artistic journey as a performer in refugee camps. After resettling with his family in Garden City, Kan., Tran continued to tell his story and ultimately chronicled his family’s escape from refugee camps in a performance memoir called The Butcher’s Son.
- Annette LeZotte is an art historian and serves as director of Kauffman Museum. LeZotte will speak about the Kauffman Museum exhibit “Sorting Out Race: Examining Racial Identity and Stereotypes in Thrift Store Donations.”
- Hong Hong Hui is a first-year doctorate music student at University of Missouri-Kansas City. She grew up in Hong Kong playing piano, violin and pipa, a traditional Chinese string instrument that has inspired her throughout her life. In her presentation “My pipa speaks for me,” Hong Hong will discuss how the instrument brings Chinese and American cultures closer.
- Shannon Oleen’s work is founded on the belief that hard work, the right attitude and passion will prompt you to achieve your dreams. This belief has led her to NFL cheerleading, living on a canoe and working with a myriad of well-known TV personalities, such as Anne Burrell of the Food Network. Oleen hopes to inspire audiences to seize their dreams in her presentation “The millennial divide.”
Featured Business
2015 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
KC designers put streetwear innovation, culture on Kritiq runway (Photos)
Fashion entrepreneurs at Sunday night’s Kritiq fashion show shared many of the same struggles on their ways to the runway, Mark Launiu said. “One of our designers here was asked, ‘What’s your inspiration?’ And I think a lot of us can relate,” said Launiu, co-founder at MADE Urban Apparel and lead organizer of the event.…
Tax bill guts historic tax credits used to rehab Westport Commons, Kemper, lofts
Plexpod Westport Commons wouldn’t exist without the historic tax credits used to make the massive renovation and preservation project financially feasible, said developer Butch Rigby. A GOP-led tax reform bill introduced this month to simplify the tax code, however, would eliminate the Reagan-era tax credit program, which provides a 20 percent federal tax credit for…
Ruby Jean’s juices unity, entrepreneurism with Troost opening (Photos)
Chris Goode is helping change what Troost Avenue means to Kansas City, pastor Stanley Archie said Saturday morning at the grand opening of Ruby Jean’s Kitchen & Juicery. Troost has been a place of division, he said, noting years of racial segregation along the corridor where those with a “permanent tan” weren’t welcome west of…
The Jam KC offers space for musicians to get loud, turn up
In a small, Midtown Kansas City room brimming with musicians and their instruments, Allen Monroe peers over his 1963 Hammond B-3 organ at a handful of onlookers. A toothpick concealed by a thick grey mustache emerges as he smiles, preparing to deliver a gentle jab to the artists around him. “Remember, you don’t have to…