Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

University to Host TEDx Event Featuring Thought Leaders and Innovators

Tuesday, March 25, 2025, By Cristina Hatem
Share
Office of Strategic InitiativesSyracuse University Libraries

University will host an exciting TEDx event on April 9, 2025 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Tan Auditorium of the National Veterans Resource Center, 101 Waverly Avenue, on the theme “Changing the Narrative.” The free event is open to students, faculty, alumni and members of the community and will feature thinkers, doers and innovators from a variety of fields who will share groundbreaking ideas and inspiring stories. Those interested in attending are encouraged to register in advance.

The theme of this year’s TEDx Syracuse University event invites both speakers and attendees to challenge conventional stories and reshape the way we think about the world. In a time where narratives—whether personal, cultural, or global—often influence perceptions and drive actions, the power to change the narrative holds the potential to unlock transformative change. At its core, changing the narrative is about creating spaces for voices to be heard and sharing stories that shape our lives, our communities and our futures. Five featured speakers will delve into their personal journeys and inspire attendees to take ownership of their own stories as they think critically about how they, too, can be part of changing the narrative in meaningful and positive ways. Attendees can also network, share ideas and engage with Syracuse University’s TEDx community.

Ryan Nkongnyu

Ryan Nkongnyu

Co-sponsored by Syracuse University Libraries and the Office of Strategic Initiatives and Innovation, the event is being coordinated by Ryan Nkongnyu ’25 (College of Visual and Performing Arts), who is majoring in Communications and Rhetorical Studies. Nkongnyu is an Our Time Has Come Scholar, as well as finance board member of the Syracuse Student Association, vice president of the Black Student Union, Mentor for JUMP Nation, and event coordinator for the Black Honors Society. He is also a writer for the Daily Orange and reporter for Citrus TV.

“In today’s world, our media and the messages we share have established narratives that affect the lens through which we all see our society,” notes Nkongnyu. “Changing the Narrative is meant to emphasize the role we all have as catalysts for positive change. Using our voices and platforms to positively influence, we can educate, empower and inspire others with our research, innovation and activism messages.”

Featured speakers and talk titles include:

  • Sonia Issa ’24, G’25: “Breaking Cycles, Not Ourselves””
  • Alie Sarvane ’25: “Redefine Your Life”
  • Melissa Martinez faculty, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications: “Be A Creator”
  • Jordan Pierre ’24: “The Danger of A Single Narrative Story”
  • Clare Frattarola ’10: “How Teaching Kids Emotional Intelligence Can Change the World”

“SU Libraries is pleased to sponsor TEDx at Syracuse University, and we hope it will spark thoughtful conversations and connections that will continue long after the event ends,” says David Seaman, dean of Syracuse University Libraries and University Librarian.

For more information about the event, or if special accommodations are needed, please contact Ryan Nkongnyu, rnkongny@syr.edu

  • Author

Cristina Hatem

  • Recent
  • Student’s Mobile Upcycled Clothing Business Turns Trash Into Treasures
    Friday, August 22, 2025, By Diane Stirling
  • Q&A for “Will Work for Food,” a new book exploring labor and the food chain
    Friday, August 22, 2025, By Ellen Mbuqe
  • Chaz Barracks Fuses Art, Scholarship and Community in Summer Residency
    Thursday, August 21, 2025, By News Staff
  • Welcome Week 2025: What You Need to Know
    Tuesday, August 19, 2025, By Kathleen Haley
  • How Otto the Orange Spent Their Summer Vacation (Video)
    Tuesday, August 19, 2025, By News Staff

More In Campus & Community

Heartfelt Gift Recognizes Accomplished Alumna and 3 Generations of Orange

William Pelton and Mary Jane Massie have created the Barringer Pelton Public Service Graduate Scholarship to honor their niece, Jody Barringer ’95, L’98, G’08 (M.P.A.), and support future public servants. After working for a few years as an attorney focused…

Families Offer Words of Wisdom During Welcome Week Move In (Video)

Nearly 4,300 new undergraduate students arrived on campus this week, many of them with families and cars filled to the brim. As families help their children settle into their home away from home, they’re also sharing advice for the year…

Chaz Barracks Fuses Art, Scholarship and Community in Summer Residency

With a GoPro strapped to his helmet and a microphone clipped to his bike, Chaz Antoine Barracks spent the summer pedaling through Homer, New York, transforming everyday encounters into both scholarship and art. The filmmaker, media scholar and postdoctoral fellow…

The New York State Fair: Everything You Need to Know

Late August in Central New York not only means the return of students to the Syracuse University campus, but also the return of the New York State Fair. The fair is a 13-day festival of entertainment, agricultural exhibitions, cultural performances…

Department of Public Safety Celebrates Graduation of 9th Peace Officer Academy

On Aug. 14, the Department of Public Safety (DPS) welcomed families, friends and colleagues of the 9th Peace Officer Academy recruits to a graduation event. The ceremony, held at Drumlins Country Club, was the perfect culmination of their accomplishments over…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.