2024 SPEAKER LINEUP

Adam Joel - Writer & Director of The Last Drop

Adam Joel is an impact-driven filmmaker and a survivor of relationship abuse. He is the Writer and Director of The Last Drop— a short sci-fi film about relationship abuse inspired by the memories of real survivors. Adam is leading an international campaign using this revolutionary film and his own story as a survivor to help people identify and react to the lesser known forms of abuse that tend to occur BEFORE a relationship turns violent. To transform from a survivor into an activist, he consulted dozens of other survivors and an Advisory Board of experts in the fields of abuse prevention, education, and social work, including The One Love Foundation and The Safe & Together Institute.  Adam is providing his services as a survivor storyteller to help educators, advocates, policymakers, and community groups lead meaningful conversations about relationship safety all over the world.

V. Thomas George - Family Doctor, Student Mentor, Author

Dr. V. Thomas George practices medicine as a family doctor in Austin, Texas where he lives with his wife and two children.  With a medical degree, a master’s degree in healthcare quality and safety management, and experience as chief of quality of his clinic, he has a unique and broad understanding of population health.  Alongside his clinical practice, he mentors medical students and healthcare professionals. Dr. George is also the author of an award-winning book, “Health in Flames: A Doctor’s Prescription for Living BEYOND Diet and Exercise”.  He has been featured on several podcasts and is also an active blogger and recently started a YouTube channel. 

Vincent Sneed - Music and Voice Educator

Vincent Sneed has been a music educator in public schools in Georgia for the past 20 years. He has taught both high and middle school which included teaching concert band, jazz band, chorus, music history, music theory, music appreciation, piano, and guitar. Sneed also has taught voice and provided music for churches across the state for the last 25 years. In 2012, he was selected as the Teacher of the Year for the Muscogee County School District in Columbus, Georgia, Star Teacher in 2013 as well as Teacher of the Month on numerous occasions. Additionally, he teaches piano lessons to all ages and conducts masterclasses on jazz improvisation to aspiring young jazz musicians. His graduate school work included research into the influence of the Blues on all modern popular music genres.  He is a currently a member of the National Association for Music Education and Georgia Music Educators Association. 

Jenny Fernandez - Executive and Team Coach, NYU and Columbia Professor

Jenny Fernandez, MBA, is an executive and team coach, Columbia and NYU faculty, and future of work and brand strategist. She works with senior leaders and their teams to become more collaborative, innovative, and resilient. Her work spans Fortune 500 companies, startups, and higher education. Jenny has been recognized by LinkedIn as a “Top Voice in Executive Coaching, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, and Personal Branding” and was invited to join the prestigious Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches community. She is a contributing author in Leadership and Branding at Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Fast Company. She has been interviewed by Washington Post and HuffPost about Gen Z, Careers, and the Future of Work. She is a keynote speaker, moderator, and panelist in leadership, Gen Z, and the new world of work. 

Mike Raab - Executive Director, The Garage at Northwestern University

Mike Raab is the executive director of The Garage at Northwestern, the university's student entrepreneurship hub that has incubated more than 1,500+ student-founded startups which have collectively raised more than $1B in funding. Mike leads the team in building programming and resources to empower students to solve the problems that they see in the world and bring their ideas to life. He is also an award-winning co-author of Founded: The No B.S. Guide for Student Entrepreneurs. Prior to leading The Garage, Mike was an investor at Sinai Ventures in San Francisco, an early-stage venture firm where he focused on consumer, media, and gaming technology startups. Mike began his career in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles, helping 21st Century Fox transition its business from linear network TV to the streaming era. He holds a B.S. in Communication (TV/Film) and MBA from Northwestern University.