Our Theme
The mystery, the drama, the anticipation! Why in the world would we make the theme of our event “That Makes Two of Us?” Rest assured, let me explain (from a student perspective). Have you ever had that moment in class—or at work—when you are having a really crummy day and absolutely nothing is going as planned? You exclaim your exhaustion to a peer or co-worker and they say, “well, that makes two of us.” It’s such a simple phrase, and its definitely not solving anything. Your problems and worries are just the same as how they were before the phrase was said, but in some way, you might feel a bit better. It’s that exact feeling that this event is trying to package in a bottle: the power of two people. Sometimes, and especially for high schoolers, half the problem is merely the fear that you are the only one facing it. By coming together, both over our insecurities and the strength of our ideas, we can change the world, one “that makes two of us” at a time.
Our Organizers
Hi everyone!!! This is Rebe Wahl, the organizer of TEDx@DanielHandHS, and I am so happy that you are here! Before presenting the students on our team (the much more exciting part), I wanted to talk super briefly about why I wanted to organize a TEDx Event for Daniel Hand. So we all know—students, staff, and parents alike—that Hand has no shortage of wildly impressive achievements. From excellent academics to note-worthy athletics, there are so many opportunities for students to pursue their interests and talents. But at times, with all of these possibilities, there also comes intense pressure to excel in any arena that you choose. From my experience, the majority of this pressure comes from student-to-student interactions, where we—often unknowingly—create a cut-throat environment where healthy competition has turned into a race to be the “winner,” even if doing so involves putting down peers in the process. And don’t get me wrong, I have totally acted on the same pressure when I feel like I need to be not just great, but excellent at academics or sports. The worst is that when I feel this much pressure, my interests don’t excite me anymore, but instead they begin to exhaust me. I don’t feel as connected with my classmates because it seems like we are in constant competition, and I have to keep both my guard, and my grades up. That being said, I wanted to organize TEDx@DanielHandHS to remind us—both as students and as a community—of how important it is to stick together, even in the face of many chances for personal gain. It is more important to create an environment where all students feel they can be open and honest with each other instead of concealing their worries and putting up guards in the name of competition. While competition should always remain in healthy doses, it should never reach a degree where we allow it to separate us from each other. Because although it sounds totally cheesy, at the end of the day, we are so much stronger (and happier) together as teammates than we are as individual competitors.
Our Team
It’s common knowledge that any grand project simply cannot be accomplished alone, so meet the dazzling faces of our growing student team for TEDxDanielHandHS! While applications for speakers and specialized members of TEDxDanielHandHS are still very much underway, these incredible students have hopped on the “TEDx Train” early (woot woot), and our team is only getting stronger. Whether aspiring speakers, technology wizards, insanely-talented artists, and everything in between, each student brings their own spice and sparkle to the event. At the end of the day, TEDxDanielHandHS is true to what it was always intended to be:
to the students, from the students.