School District of the Chathams Spotlight:

TEDxYouth@Chatham Extends Beyond the Stage to Reach a Global Audience

Contributed by the School District of the Chathams

The 2nd Annual TEDxYouth@Chatham virtual event PERSPECTIVE premiered on June 6, 2020, reaching over 1,500 people globally.

Host Christina McCabe, a Chatham High School teacher, set the tone for the night highlighting the importance of connecting around ideas that matter and providing a platform for student voice, particularly during a time when students are feeling disconnected due to Covid-19.

Maddie Boland opened with her talk titled “Seeing the Invisible” by asking us whether we would “rather fly or be invisible” and inspiring us to view others with gratitude. As a stage crew member, she reminds us that just because people are “invisible” that doesn’t lessen their importance, as they are often critical to making things run effectively and in many cases they are the reason things happen at all.

Hailey Doyle shared how she builds relationships and never stops learning through “The Magic of Language.” Her love for her adopted sister led her to fall in love with learning about the world and inspired her to learn a new language. She believes that language can help you find a new you that might have been silent.

Hailey Doyle

Ben Stern took his headphones off to listen to his grandma to help him reconnect with himself. Listening inspired him to step out of his comfort zone and achieve something he thought was unattainable--becoming class president. He reminded us how important it is to use two winning words “I’m listening” stressing that listening with intention takes on heightened levels of importance when you cannot be together and are communicating through a variety of virtual platforms.

In her talk “You would Never Think,” Chatham Middle School science teacher Rachel Goldberg challenged us to be vulnerable, empathetic and courageous, sharing her experience living with spina bifida as a student and an educator.

Using Crocs as a metaphor, Matthew Goldstein talked about the impact of Climate Change in “A Croc is a Powerful Thing” tasking us with the responsibility to connect more with nature and to give more than we are taking. Crocs representative Melissa Layton surprised the group by joining the live talk-back session to read a letter from CEO, Andrew Rees, signifying the power of student voice.

Closing out the night with his talk “Setting the Stage for a Better World,” CHS junior Jacob Mathews highlighted how concerts relieve stress and bring people together for a shared experience. Mathews encouraged us to live in the moment and make real connections with those around us. He also debuted his new song “A Moment, A Feeling,” that was inspired by his talk which is now available on Apple Music and Spotify.

Jacob Mathews

This year’s event was once again sponsored by the Chatham Education Foundation, Colin Devlin, Keller Williams Realty, Pembrook Group, Merrill Lynch and Situation Events. Local restaurants Blossom, Mexican Spice, Sorriso Kitchen and Scoops curated special TEDx Takeout To Go menus.

All Talks will be available on TED.com