Join us for EDTalks, a lively series of networking and education events designed to engage young professionals in public education issues. We’re moving to St. Paul in September and will feature interactive activities and presentations focused on Creativity, Innovation and Education. Portions of the event will be filmed by Twin Cities Public Television for broadcast in November and January.

Our special edition program includes;

Pre-Show Demonstrations: 5:45 – 6:15

Engaging activities by Urban Debaters, FIRST Robotics, Youth Thrive

Main Event: 6:30 – 7:30 pm

Host: David Gillette, tpt Special Correspondent and creator of Illustrated Essays

TED TALKS EDUCATION Video by Sir Ken Robinson, English author, speaker and international advisor on education and the arts for government, education and arts organizations

Presentations by:

• Yvonne Ng on STEM Education
• John Turnipseed on Mentorship
• Roger Cummings on Art and Learning

Networking and Learning Exchange: 7:30 – 8 pm

Opportunities to interact with local education leaders, artists and community organizations

Sponsors: This special EDTalks is presented by AchieveMpls and The Citizens League in partnership with Twin Cities Public Television, Young Education Professionals-Twin Cities and DRIVE Emerging Leaders. The program is sponsored by a generous donation from the Verne C. Johnson Family Foundation and a grant received from WNET New York Public Media as part of TED TALKS EDUCATION, the first-ever TED project specifically produced for television and part of American Graduate: Let’s Make It Happen.

For more information: Contact Cassandra Fenelon at 612.455.1570 or cfenelon@achievempls.org. Space is limited - register today! CEU credit available for teachers upon request. For more information,

Our September presenters:

Yvonne Ng: STEM Education

Yvonne Ng is a mechanical engineer, engineering education specialist, consultant and author who combines practical insights with creative approaches to developing STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) curriculum for schools and training teachers and students. Yvonne is Project Engineer at Pongratz Engineering and President and Chief Consultant at Engineer's Playground, which provides expertise, activities and lesson plans to nurture and develop the lively curiosity and hands-on abilities that make children natural engineers. She is former Assistant Professor and Executive Director at St. Catherine University's National Center for STEM Elementary Education and author of the book, Engineering for the Uninitiated: Discover If Engineering Is Right for Your Child, and founder of Engineer’s Playground LLC. She recently appeared in the Emmy-nominated series SciGirls on PBS.

John Turnipseed: Mentorship

A former gang leader, trafficker and drug dealer, John has served as Director of the Fathering Center at Urban Ventures Leadership Foundation for over 15 years. Overcoming the deadly effects of a violent, absent father and a downward spiral of gang life, John is passionate about changing urban cycles of recidivism, poverty and patterns of choice by modeling how to rebuild relationships and create pathways to success. Since his conversion in 1994, he has been a community leader, pastor, speaker and author of curriculum on parenting. He received the 2013 Local Legend Award at the General Mills Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Breakfast and the 2007 TPT and Amicus Everyday Hero Award. He is the subject of Turnipseed, the first of three films about his transformation from a feared gang leader to a redeemed, community leader.

Roger Cummings: Art and Learning

Roger Cummings is Artistic Director and a founder of Juxtaposition Arts, a youth oriented non-profit visual art center in Minneapolis known for community collaborations, studio classes and workshops, public mural programs, and art exhibitions. Roger embraces non-traditional approaches to education and artistic practice with very concrete outcomes in mind: training young people to become working artists with the entrepreneurial and leadership skills necessary to make a living and make difference in their community. Roger studied at Harvard University, where he served as a Loeb Fellow. If he had a mantra, it would likely be a variation on “learn by doing” — “learn by doing art.”

Check out videos and photos from our past EDTalks!