Theme: Illuminate

Six speakers will illuminate the TEDxUniversityofMississippi stage, piquing curiosity, revealing hidden perspectives, and inspiring us to see and understand ourselves more fully. Come early to enjoy the Illuminate Art Gallery. Preshow entertainment by The Mississippians jazz band will begin after 6:30 PM CST. Speakers will take the stage at 7:00 pm CST. We'll also enjoy the beautiful sounds of violinist and flutist, Jiwon Lee during the show.

Ford Center for the Performing Arts
351 University Address
University, Mississippi, 38677
United States

Alisha Rai

Disability Advocate & Physician

Alisha Rai is a disability advocate and family physician practicing in Alberta, Canada. She creates a safe space for real talk about infertility, birth trauma, and unconventional paths to parenthood. Together with her husband, Liam, Rai founded Hope for Cerebral Palsy, a non-profit providing access to private early intervention therapies for children with cerebral palsy.

Bryn Loftness

Data Science Researcher

Bryn Loftness is a passionate researcher addressing the existing gaps in current pediatric and family-care mental health resources. Loftness develops machine algorithms integrating wearable sensors, health records, and off-body sensors to unlock insights into human behavior and well-being. She envisions the application of these new technologies revolutionizing the modern mental health care system, starting at the crucial early stages of life when children have the greatest potential for long-term success. Loftness is currently a PhD candidate in the Complex Systems and Data Science program at University of Vermont and a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow. She also holds a Visiting Researcher position in the Sabeti Lab and the Brown University MAPPS Center through her affiliation with the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

David James Hamilton

Improv Performer and Instructor

David James Hamilton is the founder of Anubis Improv. He has been creating improv curriculum and coaching since 2014. He performs improv with the dupe troupe Kinross Kasunick, and is a member of the film collective Windbreaker. He believes anyone can harness the power of improv to develop active listening skills and enhance communication capabilities.

Jason Bouldin

Painter and Artist

Jason Bouldin is a nationally acclaimed portraitist from the Mississippi Delta. He received a BA in Art History from Harvard University and received his studio training directly from his father, renowned artist Marshall Bouldin III. In 2002, Jason won the international competition for the Portrait Society of America’s Draper Grand Prize. Although working professionally as a portraitist, he avidly pursues landscape and still life studies.

Jaylin R. Smith

Journalist and Activist

Jaylin R. Smith is a native of Greenwood, Mississippi and a graduate student at the University of Mississippi matriculating in Journalism and New Media. Being a black woman raised in the Mississippi Delta has given Jaylin a host of experiences that have molded her values of community, social activism, self-identity, and cultural awareness. Smith received two bachelor's degrees in mass communication and speech communication from Mississippi Valley State University.

Jazmine D. Kelley

Diversity Scholar

Jazmine D. Kelley is a Diversity Education & Strategic Initiatives Director at the University of Mississippi. Kelley is currently pursuing a Doctor of Education in Higher Education from the University of Mississippi and explores the relationship between student success and institutional effectiveness for systematically excluded groups. In her studies she found a reciprocal relationship between how institutions make decisions and the ultimate success of students. Kelley has a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology as well as a Master of Science in Food Science, Nutrition, and Health Promotion from Mississippi State University.