Team Stories

 

MOHAMMED (A.Z.) ABU ZEINAB

I’m excited to share what I see. If I had one gift to give anyone, it would be to share an experience, one that left me changed. And it is the greatest joy and reward when someone sees through their own eyes everything you see. My hope for anyone person in TEDxYouth@Glendale is to experience and really feel a moment where they feel still and just are. Nothing else is but the one thing you have been waiting to see, for a long time, your self. I have spoken in a TEDx, attended a TED event and now organizing a TEDx event I choose to share and deliver a piece of each those experiences with everyone involved.

 

AMEYA AMONKAR 

(Bio Coming Soon!)

 

ABDUL BASITH SHAUKATH

(Bio Coming Soon!)

 

RICK BEITMAN

(Bio Coming Soon)

 

THAEDRA BRONDUM

Having the opportunity to give back to the Glendale community by helping youth think in new ways is a pleasure. This event will create new ideas and spread creative thinking to the community. Working with students aged 11-15, in a region where creative thinking isn't encouraged forced me to think of new ways to bring creativity to the learning process. As someone who is organized and wants to keep communications open I am able to use that to help keep things moving in large projects. My goal is to be the background support for those who can bring new views of the world to youth communities through a successful TEDxYouth@Glendale 2015 event.

 

MARISSA BURKETT

I am so excited to be able to facilitate the sharing of new and novel ideas with youth in the West Valley. As a Thunderbird student, I see firsthand how increasingly large the world is getting and how important it is to understand it at a macro level. Our theme, #WorldinMind, is a great opportunity to begin introducing young people to these concepts. I have lots of theater experience both on stage and behind the scenes and have managed multiple productions, many of which contained a predominantly teenage cast. I plan to use these skills to ensure that the day of the event is a meaningful experience that they will carry with them long after.

 

ALINA BUZGAR

Growing up in a challenging environment I remember the desire and excitement of being able to contribute to my own community together with my friends and under the guidance of amazing teachers. Our thirst for knowledge and positive change was a great representation of the need we had for personal achievement as well as creating a thriving environment for all. Work and life has taken me to many different countries and continents since my teen years, but the desire to know each community receiving me and to contribute to the best of my knowledge and abilities is as strong as ever. TEDxYouth@Glendale is the instance that will allow me and so many others to witness the amazing ideas bubbling up from this community that will reach today’s youth and tomorrow’s leaders.

 

LEAH FUNK

Leah is excited to be involved in TEDxyouth because she believes everyone, regardless of their background, should have the opportunity to experience these sorts of inspirational events. She is honored to work with this amazing team of people.

 

VARUN HIRKELAR

(Bio Coming Soon)

 

TROY KINNEY

I live among teenagers twenty-fours hours a day, every day with my own children, and with my students at work. It has been this way for the past eighteen years or so.  There are some really bright and fantastic youth out there.  I love to see opportunities like TEDxYouth@Glendale where these young adults can see their potential now; that they can be encouraged and told that they do not have to wait to share their ideas and take action. The youth are a vital part of our community and should not be simple bystanders. I want to get 300+ students to this event with their teachers in order to challenge, strengthen, and invigorate them to go out and affect not just their own lives, but also the lives of this community.

 

TEEJAY LUNA

(Bio Coming Soon)

 

STEVE LUNA

I believe curiosity is the seed that grows into knowledge, an experience, a life lesson, a wild imagination, and to answers. TED Talks sparks curiosity and that is why I enjoy TED so much. TEDxYouth@Glendale will become apart of this great network of ideas worth sharing and igniting the curiosity of our local youth community into endeavors to better themselves and the world around them. As the president of the TEDx Club here at Thunderbird, I will work to align our students and coordinate with the school clubs to share their story of the world they experience. Together, we can truly make TEDxYouth@Glendale and Thunderbird a One Global Place where curiosity rules.

 

MICHELLE MONTEIRO

MBA in Global Management & Consulting, May 2015 -- Michelle is an agile leader in international and domestic expansions. She is a second-year MBA student at Thunderbird, where she has been focusing on emerging markets and consulting. 

 

While at Thunderbird, she spent five weeks in Chad for a Thunderbird Emerging Markets Lab under ExxonMobil and Africare assessing a multi-year women’s empowerment project. Just prior to that in 2014, she led a team for the Financial Times Global MBA Challenge tasked with creating a proposal to increase training of pediatric oncology personnel in Ghana. 

 

Michelle has 10+ years of international business experience in corporate expansion, economic development, foreign direct investment and trade. She has worked with government and trade organizations from local to national levels, both US-based and global, for the purposes of business and high-level political events and public relations initiatives. She possesses a broad range of skills from strategic planning to identifying pivotal alliances to logistics and new international market launches. She has managed teams both directly and remotely, including multiple high-impact international teams. Currently, she is studying for her PMP certification and will complete her SCIP certification immediately post graduation. 

 

ANDRES PORRAS

Perhaps you have always wondered: “who had that great idea” or “who created such an amazing event”. Well, with TEDxYouth@Glendale we all are making history.  I’m thrilled to be part of an event that will change the lives of more than 500 of Glendale teenagers. But not only that, this TEDx event will set standards for future TEDx events in the Valley of the Sun. Being held at Thunderbird School of Global Management, we expect to develop in teenagers what we call a “global mindset”. I´ve been passionate about helping others and lighting the path for those who need a little push. My experience working with NGOs grew a passion in business and social development. In my position as Partnerships Coordinator I will ensure all the necessary resources to the successful completion of TEDxYouth@Glendale.

 

CANDICE SPARKES

I am so excited to be a part of such an amazing event. Being able to help the youths of the Glendale community to open up their minds and ignite the fire within. I believe that this event will allow all in attendance the opportunity to know that if they can dream it, they have the ability to achieve it. My years of event planning and operations management has equipped me with the skills and know how to successful be the Event Manager of the TEDxYouth@Glendale event. I plan on contributing my planning, coordinating and execution skills to the event along with my passion to help others and of course the dedication it will take to see the event through to its completion. I look forward to being a part of history as my fellow T-birds and I, open up the world & mind of our youths.

 

NEETIKA VARMA

It is an excellent opportunity to be part of an event which is going to make a positive impact on young individuals mind. As a global leader, it is very important for me to create a legacy for the next generation and TEDx is an event which definitely works in that direction. This kind of opportunity is not available to many kids around the world and since I grew up in an emerging economy, I understand the need to shape young minds at an early age. TEDxYouth@Glendale is a medium to contribute my experience of mentoring teams and talent development for the benefit of student community at Glendale. WorldInMind is an important concept for the budding leaders and no better place than Thunderbird to organize this event.

 

ANTHONY VELTRI

TEDxYouth@Glendale is a fantastic opportunity for students and community members, alike, to experience energy and ideas that drive change. There is power in seeing something live, and while music and speeches can move us emotionally, nothing compares to the feeling of connectedness that is derived from “being there”. I am delighted to have the privilege of bringing Glendale a live event that will promote unity, knowledge and empowerment to countless members of our local and global community. Having instructed martial arts to Chicago youths, I understand that by teaching young men and women how to own their power, we give them the tools to take control of their lives and direct their energy towards self-development. Additionally, my marketing background allows me to see and communicate this value, so we can secure partners who will help us make this event even more impactful. What we seek resides within ourselves. Join us at TEDxYouth@Glendale and discover the World in Mind.