Olathe North students organized and presented at the first annual TEDx event in the Johnson County area on March 8. The goal of TEDx is to spark conversation, connection and community.

“It’s different from TED itself because TEDx is independently organized by people all around the country” said Arielle Li (11), co-president and organizer for the event.

The event showcased 13 different high-school-aged speakers from across Johnson County, six of which attend Olathe North. All of the speakers had to go through a rigorous application process between September and November.

“Applicants submitted a one minute recording of the first minute of their speech. We chose based on topic diversity and had a third party review”, Li said.

The theme of this years event was “Inspiring Change” and all the presentations were meant to provoke conversation on change surrounding a variety of topics. Mame Saye Drame (11) was one of the speakers selected for the event. She chose to speak on what it meant to her to experience creating change.

“I was able to incorporate a personal story into my speech but also share my views on how anyone has the power to create a lasting impact within their community” Drame said.

The speakers all prepared their topics and presentations with the hope of sharing something impactful with the audience members. For Drame her goal was to empower others to take action.

“My hope is that listeners walked out that evening with greater clarity and awareness on just how much power they have within themselves” Drame said.

Drame says the experience has impacted her as well. TEDx provides a large stage for anyone to share the topics most important to them, not only in person but through online channels as well. Drame and the others took full advantage, and were rewarded with a meaningful learning experience.

“The overall process allowed me to express and expand my creative and conceptual abilities” Drame said.

In order to provide this opportunity, Li first needed to get a license to host the event. She filled out the application on the TEDx website and answered the questions about the venue, teacher sponsor and tentative topics. 

“We started planning really early just in case we needed any buffer time. We got officially licenced in December even though our actual event was in March leaving plenty of time to figure out the logistics” Li said.

In the end, with help from the Olathe North staff and community the event was able to take off. It’s success was assisted by the DSVA department, the video production videographers and Ms. Fleetwood the teacher sponsor. This year’s event marks the first of many, and will allow for more students and community members to be inspired in the upcoming years.

“I hope that people will realize that we have so much potential and are the leaders of the future generation” Li said.