Theme: Recovery

This event was held in the Ballroom of the Armor J. Blackburn Center on the main campus of Howard University. It featured six speakers, the Kevin Howard Band and vocalist Miriamm Wright, formerly of the Peaches and Herb review. The speakers and talks were as follows: Dr. Gary Harris (Associate Provost for Research and Graduate Studies at Howard) - "150 Years of Education and Research at Howard University," Dr. Georgia Dunston - Genomics and Self-Identity," Dr. Grant Warner & Dr. Legand Burge - "Startups as a way to Recover," Miss Haely Jardas - "The Misconception of Beauty," Dr. Robert Shepard - "What Made the Difference."

Armor J. Blackburn Center, Howard University
2400 - Sixth St. NW
Washington, District of Columbia, 20059
United States

Howard University Professors

Kevin Howard Band

Kevin Howard is a world class keyboardist, recording artist, composer, producer, and businessman. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA and recently moved to Maryland. Kevin is President and CEO of Key Chapter Entertainment, a company which includes full service recording and production. Kevin has received several awards which includes three “Best Jazz Performer Awards” from renowned local urban radio station WAMO; WQED Harry Schwab Excellence in the Arts Award; Best Jazz Performer Champions Association; Pittsburgh City Paper “top three jazz performers”. He recently toured with legend Ronnie Laws. He has also recorded and performed with saxophonist Marion Meadows,Norman Connors, Lonnie Liston Smith, Najee, and George Benson. In addition, he has shared the stage with Jonathan Butler, Cameo, Roy Ayers, Pieces of a Dream, Joe McBride and John Legend.

TEDx BTS

TEDx Behind the scenes footage at Howard University.

Gary Harris

Gary L. Harris, Ph.D., P.E. received his doctorate, master's, and BSEE degrees from Cornell University in Electrical Engineering-Electro-Physics in 1980, 1976, and 1975, respectively. Currently, he is a Professor of Electrical Engineering and the Director of the Howard Nanoscale Science and Engineering Facility in the College of Engineering, Architecture, and Computer Science at Howard University. Dr. Harris also serves as Director of the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN) at Howard and had previously held the position of Associate Vice President for Research from March 1995 to October 2000.

Georgia Dunston

As a child, Georgia Dunston developed an interest in the biology of race and decided to continue her study of biology after graduating from high school. She earned her B.S. degree in biology from Norfolk State University in 1965 and her M.S. degree in biology from Tuskegee University in 1967. Dunston went on to study at the University of Michigan, finishing her Ph.D. degree in human genetics in 1972. She then accepted a position at Howard University Medical Center as an assistant professor which she held from 1972 to 1978. Dunston is the recipient of several awards including the Howard University College of Medicine Outstanding Research Award, NAACP Science Achievement Award and the Howard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Graduate Faculty Member Award.

Grant Warner

Grant Warner is the director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship for the College of Engineering and Architecture and Computer Science, an associate professor, and a certified Lean Launchpad educator at Howard University. Dr. Warner specializes in research in finite element analysis of the human knee joint, energy harvesting of rotating structures and fluid-structure interaction, vibration and stability in rotating structures, and structural optimization. Dr. Warner is also interested in the promotion of STEM among African Americans as well as strategies for enhancing teaching and learning in STEM education. Dr. Warner has spearheaded a number of innovative programs to include HowU Innovate, a resource and networking initiative at Howard University, the Howard University-Hampton University I-Corps, a project aimed at transitioning university research to the marketplace, ConnectYard, a novel social analytic platform, and XepediaLabs, a business incubation firm.

Haely Jardas

Haely Jardas is an advocate for mental health and wellbeing. Her work in the field earned her the title of Miss District of Columbia in 2015. Her platform, "Mental Health Matters," was supported by her personal experiences and her work in the field. Ms. Jardas previously held the distinguished position of Communications Director with the Congressional Delegation for DC Statehood. She is currently the communications director for Lean and Hungry Theater and the Managing Director of DC's acclaimed spoken word and musical theatre company, La Ti Do. Ms. Jardas is also an award-winning actor and has been featured in productions with the Adventure Theatre's Musical Theater Center and in major festivals such as the New York Theatre Festival.

Legand Burge

Dr. Legand Burge's research interests lie in the field of distributed computing. The primary thrust of his current research is in global resource management in large-scale distributed systems. In particular, he is interested in middleware technology to support scalable infrastructures for pervasive environments capable of servicing a very large number of small (possibly mobile) distributed and embedded devices efficiently. He is also interested in the application of distributed high performance computing to solve computational science problems in Biology, Physics, and Chemistry. Dr. Burge is currently the director of the Distributed Systems Research Group (DSRG) and associate director of the Center for Applied High Performance Computing at Howard University. Dr. Burge is also interested in Computer Science Education and Diversity, and Tech Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Dr. Burge is a AAAS Fellow, and Fulbright Scholar recipient.

Miriam Wright

Miriamm sings with power and passion, soaring from high notes to low notes, unapologetically baring her soul with each note she shares! Once again, returning to the Bethesda Blues & Jazz stage, Songstress Miriamm has had the privilege of sharing her voice in places around the world from the United States to Japan, from Switzerland to Germany in concerts and stage plays. From Jill Scott to India.Arie. and Aretha Franklin to Will Downing, Miriamm has shared the stage with some of the biggest names in the business. She also toured as Peaches, one half of the classic R&B duo Peaches & Herb, appearing most notably in several pledge drives for PBS Broadcasting. Miriamm hit the big screen in the feature film “Cadillac Records” (Sony Music Films), portraying the role of background singer for Etta James (Beyonce’ Knowles).

Robert Shepard

Robert Louis Shepard, Ph.D. is a motivational writer and speaker who mentors people to help them identify their enthusiasm, then use their capabilities minus all potential limitations to add value to their personal lives, to the organizations they serve, and ultimately to the global community. He is described as a lightning rod of inspiration and a true pioneer based on how he forged new paths in his chosen profession and opened doors for others. His motto is, "It's more productive to focus on your capabilities than on your limitations." Dr. Shepard earned degrees in chemistry starting with a B.S. degree from (now University) in 1969, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Howard University in 1971 and 1973 respectively.In addition to within the U.S., he has traveled internationally to engage in research collaborations and present his research work in Scotland, England, France, Germany, Austria, Italy, China and Africa.