Theme: Ready For Anything

TEDxRushU will provide a platform for the brightest minds to converge and inspire. We are committed to creating an event where participants are challenged to communicate their passions in an exciting and engaging dialogue. Speakers will present their forward-thinking ideas and all participants will leave the conference inspired and empowered to create positive change.

Malcolm X College Auditorium
1900 W. Jackson Blvd.
Chicago, Illinois, 60612
United States

Dino Rumoro

Dino P. Rumoro, DO, MPH, FACEP completed his Emergency Medicine residency training at Cook County Hospital where he was named the Chief Resident in his senior year. Upon graduation he became a practicing attending emergency physician at Resurrection Medical Center in Chicago where he helped develop and establish an emergency medicine residency training program that graduates 12 emergency physicians per year. After serving as the Associate Program Director for five years, Dr. Rumoro was hired at Rush in July of 2001 as the Clinical Chairman for the newly established Department of Emergency Medicine and was subsequently named Academic Chairman in 2010. In addition to growing the emergency department to one of the busiest in the city, Dr. Rumoro developed the Advanced Trauma Training Program which focuses on pre-deployment advanced medical training for the military. In 2005, Dr. Rumoro was named to Rush’s Office of Transformation as a Clinical Transformation Officer to assist with the planning and building of the Tower and a state-of-the-art emergency department appropriately named the Center for Advanced Emergency Response partially funded by the McCormick Tribune Foundation. The “Center” was designed to be the first chemical, biological and radio-nuclear civilian-based response facility to augment the existing trauma system. Dr. Rumoro also serves as the President of the 1,300 member Medical Staff of Rush University Medical Center and is the acting Vice Dean for the Office of Integrated Education and Clinical Faculty Operations.

Grace Wethor

Grace Wethor is a 15 year-old actress and model based in Los Angeles, CA. When Grace isn’t working on set, she is busy with schoolwork; Grace is currently a freshman and is homeschooled. Outside of acting and modeling, Grace is an advocate for pediatric brain tumors; after being diagnosed at age 13. At such a young age, Grace has developed a unique eye and authentic style which has led her to be very creative and work hard at perfecting her craft. In addition, Grace is a Teen Vogue It Girl, a Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation spokesperson, and has recently teamed up with The Project For Girls; a platform to empower young girls to be their true selves. With a great passion and dedication to her work, she has inspired many other adolescents to pursue their individual dreams in spite of perceived setbacks.

Harold Green

Memorable Spoken Word Artist… Captivating Lyricist… Compelling Motivational Speaker… Inspirational Playwright…Thrilling Actor…New Age Poet…Modern day RENAISSANCE MAN……all describe the unique talents of Harold Green III. Endowed with an array of gifts, Harold is one of the most versatile artists this generation has seen. Harold Green is forever evolving as an artist, and refuses to be placed in a box. Green’s ability to speak cogently, in great detail, and with such passion further defines him as a uniquely chosen vessel – one totally engulfed in his lyrics and transforms them into undeniable masterpieces! Green has appeared on many major blogs such as: FakeShore Drive, 2DopeBoyz, The Ellen Show Blog, and Black America Web (Tom Joyner). He co-hosts a popular open mic in the south loop of Chicago called “SoulSpeak” with Lawrence “Binkey” Tolfree. Green has performed at universities across the nation including, but not limited to: Grambling State University, Quincy University, Howard University, Iowa University, Nicholls State University, and University of Illinois at Chicago. Green has written four full-length plays, and starred in over a dozen. His first book is entitled “From Englewood, With Love”. He has been apart of innovative groups such as Black Orchard, Fatboy Skinny, and a collaboration with his songstress wife, Charisma Sweat-Green, HNIC – Harold N’ the Incredible Charisma. The most important thing is that Harold Green is a creator, a constant creator. He is a visionary that brings ideas to life. His words will bear hug you and force you to make eye contact. Once you get hooked on Harold Green’s art it won’t let you go, because he won’t give you that chance.

James Conners

James J. Conners, MD, MS, is an associate professor in the Department of Neurological Sciences at Rush University Medical Center. He received his medical degree at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago and a Master of Science degree in neuroscience from Loyola University, where his research focused on neuronal regeneration. Dr. Conners then completed a medical internship, neurology residency and vascular neurology fellowship at Northwestern University. At Rush, he is currently Head of the Section of Cerebrovascular Disease, as well as the medical director of the Comprehensive Stroke Program, Rush’s Telestroke program and the Mobile Stroke Unit program. The Rush Telestroke program is the largest in the Chicagoland area and the Mobile Stroke Unit is one of only a handful in the country and the first in Cook County.

Jeff Mumford

Jeff Mumford is Owner and CEO of Mumfurious Movement. He has made it his life's mission and journey to help people move and live as healthy of a life as possible. Jeff specializes in dietary coaching, personal training, and mobility coaching all the while instructing and professionally dancing West Coast Swing. Taking his knowledge of the body, he has married that to his knowledge of West Coast Swing. His lessons and workshops about improving movement and dance are equally about the “WHY” as it is the “HOW”. Often the “WHY” is due to being in a physically deconditioned state or having poor mobility and flexibility. Once people are made aware of the "WHY", which is often being in a state of poor conditioning or mobility/flexibility, they are able to take greater strides incorporating the "HOW" to overcome their challenges. Staying true to his passion of health and fitness, when he is not at work or instructing clients you can often find him working on his own fitness Dog House Crossfit box. Jeff’s day-to-day work and life’s mission stem from the idea of giving back to people not just in his immediate community, but also around the country and world. Be it talking offline for several hours to help someone fix issues they are having, traveling around the U.S. to different events to share his expertise, or heading to Nicaragua for a few weeks to train medical staff about increasing their patients’ mobility, flexibility, and physical fitness, you can always find him finding ways to give back.

Marlon Haywood

Marlon was born and raised on the Southside of Chicago in the Englewood area. Never one to let his environment dictate his future, he attended Northern Illinois University (NIU). Marlon received his Master’s Degree in Adult & Higher Education and a Bachelor’s of Arts in Liberal Studies from NIU. Currently, Marlon is a Doctoral student in the Educational Leadership program at Roosevelt University. Marlon’s life’s mission is to be a positive source of change in the lives of young people, in particular young minority men. His professional resume is one deeply rooted in service. While serving as a Transition Specialist, he noticed the completion rate for African American males that receives their GED was low. To serve as an intervention, he co-developed the male mentoring program Urban Male Initiative, a program that provides academic support to first generation and minority male students at Malcolm X College. Within the City Colleges of Chicago, he served as adjunct faculty for the all-male College Success course sections at Malcolm-X and Kennedy-King College. Marlon has expanded his work to include elementary and high schools, where he started Urban Male Network, a non-profit organization to work with teenage male youth in Chicago. Additionally, Marlon’s active in leadership with Mentor Teacher Brother, Inc. (MTB), a non-profit organization that mentors young African American male high school students in the Roseland community. MTB is the national philanthropy program for Phi Rho Eta Fraternity, Inc, in which he is a proud member. Moreover, Marlon served as a Health Disparities Research Fellow for three years at Rush University Medical Center working on the BMO Harris Bank grant project in partnership with Malcolm X College and the Medical Home Network. There he did research, designed curriculum and other initiatives to address the socioeconomic and health disparity issues in low-income communities in Chicago. Currently, Marlon serves as Project Manager for Community Engagement at Rush University Medical Center. Still, even with all the work he does with the aforementioned organizations, Marlon felt there was more he could do. He founded Marlon Speaks, LLC, a platform that allows him to use his voice and experiences to promote social change as a motivational speaker.

Susan Swider

Susan Swider, PhD, APHN-BC, FAAN is a Professor in the Department of Community, Systems and Mental Health Nursing at Rush University in Chicago. Dr. Swider has practiced in acute care, home health care and public health settings over the past thirty years. Her research has focused on program development and evaluation of community health workers, and engaging urban communities in health promotion, and health policy to support health promotion efforts. She has also taught public health nursing at the pre-licensure and graduate/specialty level at several universities, and co-directed 10 years of HRSA supported work to develop an on line doctoral program in Advanced Public Health Nursing, ensuring that it met the Quad Council competencies for Public Health Nursing practice. She is a member of a number of public health and public health nursing organizations, and is a past president of the Association of Community Health Nursing Educators (ACHNE). In her role with ACHNE, she served on the Quad Council for Public Health Nursing organizations, and was a member of the Task Force that revised the Competencies for Public Health Nursing (2010-2012). In 2011, Dr. Swider was appointed by President Obama to the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion and Integrative and Public Health, a group designed to advise on the development and implementation of the National Prevention Strategy. She is also a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and of the Institute of Medicine of Chicago. In 2016, she was appointed to serve on the Community Preventive Services Task Force of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Swider strives daily to be an engaged and informed mother, wife, daughter, sister, friend, neighbor, nurse, teacher and citizen. Some days it works better than others!

Terry Peterson

Terry Peterson is the vice president of corporate and external affairs at Rush University Medical Center and the chairperson of Rush’s Diversity Leadership Council. Mr. Peterson’s primary responsibilities include leading, developing and implementing federal, state and local government relations initiatives for Rush. He is also tasked with exploring health disparities and works with providers, government and community leadership to address inequities in healthcare delivery in Chicago and Cook County. Mr. Peterson also serves as Chairman of the Chicago Transit Board. He was appointed to that position in October 2009 by Mayor Richard M. Daley and retained by Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Mr. Peterson oversees the business of the Chicago Transit Authority and works closely with CTA’s day-to-day senior leadership. Mr. Peterson’s other professional accomplishments include: •Chief Executive Officer, Chicago Housing Authority, 2000‐2006. Mr. Peterson led the organization’s $1.5 billion program to transform Chicago’s public housing from unsafe, high‐density developments to safe, low‐rise mixed‐income communities. •Alderman, Chicago, Illinois’ 17th Ward, 1996‐2000. Mr. Peterson generated more than $200 million in development for the Auburn‐Gresham and Englewood communities. •Mr. Peterson also served as executive assistant to Mayor Daley and as assistant commissioner of the City’s Department of Planning and Development. Mr. Peterson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Chicago State University and a Master of Public Administration from Roosevelt University. He is also an alumnus of Harvard University Graduate School of Design’s Advanced Management Development Program in Real Estate. Mr. Peterson currently serves on the board of Chicago Transit Authority, Urban Partnership Bank, Roosevelt University, Navy Pier, Leadership Greater Chicago, Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), City of Chicago Plan Commission, and is a member of the Executives’ Club and the Economic Club of Chicago.