Theme: Beyond the Horizon

TEDxVCU is looking beyond the horizon: the limit of a person’s mental perception, experience, or interest. Our speakers will take us through ideas and stories that push us past our habitual horizon. The live, in-person event held at the Institute for Contemporary Art on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus, a live streamed via Youtube, will ask attendees and viewers - what's beyond your horizon?

Institute of Contemporary Art
601 W Broad St
Richmond, Virginia, 23220
United States

Chris Mayfield

CEO of Profusion Consulting

Chris Mayfield is the founder of a leadership and organizational development consulting firm, Profusion Consulting. Chris has nearly twenty years of experience in private sector companies, including QVC, Circuit City, and Louis Berger International, and was the COO of a handicap accessible vehicle manufacturing company. Chris is a retired Marine Corps Logistics Officer, having served for 24 years, including tours in Somalia and Iraq.

Cynthia Ong

Medical Student at Virginia Commonwealth University

Cynthia Ong is currently a second-year medical student at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine. While she attributes all of her success to the love, support, and opportunities provided to her by the sacrifices of her first-generation immigrant parents, she also acknowledges the struggles associated with growing up in this household dynamic. As a future physician, she wishes to one day inspire others to live their lives to the fullest potential, and hopes that this TedTalk is another means to do just that.

Ira Birch

Graduate Student at Virginia Commonwealth University

Ira Birch is an artist and creative technologist. They are a candidate for a Masters of Science at the VCU Brandcenter. In their free time, they can generally be found in a swamp.

Jayakumar Jayaraman

Pediatric Dentist and Founder of Date of Birth Foundation

Dr. Jayaraman is a Pediatric Dentist, Scientist, and social entrepreneur. In addition to his primary clinical expertise in pediatric oral surgery, his research interests are in human biology, anthropology, and forensic dentistry, particularly on age estimation from teeth. Considering inadequacies in birth registration practices, in 2013, he started Date of Birth Foundation, the world’s first charity to promote accurate birth records that has established collaboration in different countries. Dr. Jayaraman is currently Associate Professor of Pediatric Dentistry at the VCU School of Dentistry, Richmond, Virginia.

Kirthana Srinivasan

Undergraduate Student at Virginia Commonwealth University

Kirthana Srinivasan is a fighter and creative thinker with an aspiration to inspire and impact people. Kirthana is a third year undergraduate student at Virginia Commonwealth University who will graduate this spring 2022 with a BS in Bioinformatics. Kirthana is the President of the Undergraduate Society of Bioinformatics, VP of the Center for Health and Human Rights, and the YA Representative for an internationally renowned spiritual and service-oriented community. She studied at Thomas Jefferson HS and Stone Bridge HS. Her notable achievements include interning at the UVA Medical School at the age of 16, earning a First Place National Title in Mathematics, publishing independent research in the field of Medical Entomology, and being distinguished as a National Public Forum Debate champion. She is also the founder and director of Tapasya Academy of Dance, a classical Indian dance institution. In her free time, she loves dancing, meditating, traveling, and having deep conversations!

Madeline Narkinsky

Undergraduate Student at Virginia Commonwealth University

Madeline Narkinsky is a senior studying supply chain management at VCU. They are the author of “Surviving School for the Autistic Teen”. He spends his free time playing a ridiculous amount of cookie clicker and writing short stories along with bad poetry.