TEDxRobinson Road

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check the event website for the latest lineup.

• Ana María Gaona

  Ana María Gaona is a leadership strategist and next chapter advisor who spent three decades leading teams through high-stakes transitions in healthcare and public service. Her work guiding organizations through complex change is what now grounds her perspective on what transformation actually asks of people. In 2022, she retired early, choosing possibility over predictability. That choice led her to co-found Two Peacocks Travel and Flores de Juanita, and to the TEDx stage, where her talk, "Change Is Never Just About You," traces four generations of her family, from her parents' immigration from Mexico and Spain, to her own choice to leave a career built over those same three decades, to her daughter's fearless next chapter, to her five-year-old granddaughter who asked for luggage as a birthday gift. Ana's belief: change isn't something you survive. It's something you follow, and every time you do, you quietly rewrite what's possible for whoever is watching you next.

• Dr. Rita Renee

  Dr. Rita Renee is an International Keynote Speaker, Author, Voice Strategist, and Executive Leadership Coach who helps women and leaders come out of their silence, lead with clarity, and show up with authority without losing themselves. She holds advanced degrees in leadership, business, theology, and counseling, including a Ph.D. in Leadership and Organizational Development, an MBA in Management, and graduate training in Practical Theology and Clinical Theocentric Psychology. Through her speaking, coaching, and transformational teaching, Dr. Rita equips audiences to own their voice, clarify their message, and lead with confidence, courage, and purpose.

• Helsa Thompson

  Helsa Thompson is a wellness entrepreneur, educator, and equity advocate working at the intersection of wellness, belonging, and justice. As Founder of The Aura House, a sanctuary providing safe, healing spaces for BIPOC communities, she built a movement. Born from her journey overcoming chronic fatigue, anxiety, and burnout, the studio empowers others to take control of their physical, mental, and emotional health. She also serves as Program Manager of L&D at Yoga Alliance, driving accessible programming globally. A TEDx speaker, Helsa weaves personal storytelling with evidence-informed tools for resilience. Driven by the belief that wellness is a birthright, she co-founded Black Boys Meditate with her sons to introduce mindfulness to underrepresented youth. Certified in yoga, meditation, Somatic practices, and Sound Healing, Helsa uses movement, breath, and stillness to help release trauma and promote nervous system regulation.

• JaCoi James Pugh

  JaCoi James Pugh is an entrepreneur, speaker, author, and Co-Founder and President of Black Women’s Wall Street, Inc., where she leads initiatives that empower ambitious Black women through business education, leadership development, financial literacy, and strategic networking. A respected business strategist, JaCoi helps entrepreneurs and organizations strengthen operations, build meaningful partnerships, and position themselves for sustainable growth. She is known for making complex business and financial concepts practical and actionable while championing economic empowerment and generational wealth. As the author of The Single Mother’s Path to Wealth, she draws from her own journey to inspire others to build lasting legacies. Guided by her VISTA philosophy—Vulnerable, Intentional, Strategic, Transparent, and Authentic—JaCoi is committed to helping people think bigger, lead boldly, and create lasting impact.

• Jenn Greenhut

  Jenn Greenhut is a speaker, author, and founder of The Zero Negative Foundation, a nonprofit supporting patients and caregivers, and Love, Zero Negative, a purpose-driven accessory brand. After being diagnosed with stage IV triple-negative breast cancer, Jenn discovered that changing a single question could change an entire experience. That question led her to explore how life's challenges can uncover the three superpowers we all possess: Love, Gratitude, and Trust. Through her speaking and writing, Jenn shares practical tools for navigating adversity, shifting perspective, and reconnecting to what matters most. She is the author of Everyone Needs a Larry and creator of the Pinch Me Method™, a framework for interrupting overwhelm and meeting life's challenges with greater presence, purpose, and possibility.

• Maleshia McGinnis

  Maleshia “Mel” B. McGinnis is an attorney and best-selling author with 25 years’ legal experience. Mel is the owner of MPowered Sports & Entertainment, LLC, a consulting company that assists athletes, artists and executives with their business needs. She is the author of the critically acclaimed book “Reflections of Life, A Collection of Poetry, Prose and Images,” and co-author of the Amazon best-seller “Mindset First Money Second: The Things I Did to Stop Living Paycheck to Paycheck...for Good.” Mel has been a featured poet in spoken word showcases throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, including the House of Blues in Dallas. A Louisiana native, Mel earned her Bachelor’s Degree and Juris Doctorate from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Mel is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc, and The Links Incorporated. She is happily married to financial literacy expert, Major (Ret.) JB McGinnis, and lives by the motto“success is intentional, so do it on purpose.”

• R. Karl Hebenstreit

  R. Karl Hebenstreit, PhD, PCC, PHR is an international speaker, author, certified executive coach, and leadership/team/Organization Development Consultant. With 25+ years of experience helping leaders and teams exceed their goals, Karl brings human-centric, results-driven energy to every engagement. His PhD in Organizational Psychology studied the Enneagram and employee engagement, and led to him becoming an IEA Accredited Professional with Distinction, an IEA Accredited Professional Professional/Teacher, and iEQ9 Faculty member. Driven to create a more emotionally intelligent world, Karl is the author of three award-winning books: The How & Why: Taking Care of Business with the Enneagram (PenCraft Award), Nina and the Really, Really Tough Decision (PenCraft/Readers’ Favorite, available in 6 languages), and Explicit Expectations (Axiom Award). Karl’s fourth book, Enough, Already and Fully Functional, As You Are, is on the way.

• ShySpeaks Amos

  ShySpeaks (Shy Amos) is a hip-hop and spoken word artist, civic designer, and founder of CivilizedX, a company creating cultural experiences that strengthen civic engagement and community belonging. Through music, storytelling, festivals, public conversations, and creative placemaking, she explores how art can move people from expression to participation. A U.S. Army veteran and entrepreneur, ShySpeaks has been commissioned by nonprofits, municipalities, and community organizations to create original works addressing issues such as literacy, housing, food insecurity, women's history, and civic engagement. Her work sits at the intersection of culture, creativity, and community, helping people discover that the arts don't just reflect society, they help shape it. Please let me know if there's anything else you need as we prepare for the video premiere.

• Thandi Montgomery

  Thandi Montgomery, founder of Thandi Monee’ and VP of the Montgomery Legacy Foundation, graduated from Florida A&M University and has a Master’s in Business Administration. She served as a marketing executive for brands including Capital One, Verizon Wireless, and Wingstop. Thandi inspires people to reconnect with who they are so they can live and lead as their true selves. As a transformational speaker and certified coach, she has taken her message from boardrooms to the TEDx stage, Dartmouth and beyond. Her signature programs, Resilient Narratives and FREE to Be Me, help individuals heal through creativity and break free from people-pleasing. A Stage 1 breast cancer survivor, she endured 4 surgeries, 16 rounds of chemo, and 30 rounds of radiation and was honored by the Dallas Cowboys as a Star Survivor. A world traveler, she has explored South Africa, Dubai, Italy, France, Spain, and more. She is happily married to Joshua Montgomery, the mom of two and lives in Dallas, TX.

• Toni Purry

  Toni Purry is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and executive communication strategist with nearly three decades of experience shaping narrative at the intersection of visibility, positioning, and brand confidence. A veteran PR expert, she spent over a decade leading a luxury travel and lifestyle PR agency, earning her story-driven campaigns more than 50 industry awards. She is the author of My Hype Book, a guided motivational journal helping individuals reframe how they see themselves by acknowledging their success. Today, Toni specializes in corporate speaker and spokesperson development and executive media training. She created the Know Your Narrative™ storytelling methodology, which helps executives strategically use personal story to strengthen corporate messaging with clarity, humanity, and resonance, without shifting focus from the organization.

• Trinity Ojo

  Trinity Ojo is an entrepreneur, inventor, and former All-American athlete whose work explores the intersection of data, human behavior, and decision-making. She is the Founder and CEO of BizPerks Data & Insights, an intelligence infrastructure company focused on helping organizations transform complex information into actionable insight. She is also the inventor of CityPerks, a patented system designed to help communities better understand and strengthen local economic activity. Throughout her career, Trinity has explored a powerful idea: when we have the courage to see things as they are, we can create better outcomes for ourselves, our organizations, and our communities. In her TEDx talk, Have the Courage to Follow the Data, she shares how embracing evidence over assumptions can unlock growth, clarity, and opportunity.

• Ty Bradshaw

  Ty Bradshaw is a certified personal trainer and life coach with over 20 years of experience helping people lead themselves well physically, mentally, and spiritually. As a fitness entrepreneur and personal development coach, Ty has worked with individuals within organizations navigating burnout, transitions, and the gap between potential and practice. His work blends personal development, discipline, and reflection, shaped by both professional success and seasons of personal setback. In his coaching, Ty walks alongside people in honest conversations, helping them slow down, ask better questions, and take ownership of their daily choices. His approach is practical, reflective, and relational focused on helping people build sustainable change from the inside out.

• Tyler Ryan Hall

  Tyler Ryan Hall is The Identity Architect and founder of TRH Creative Group who helps mission-driven people stop shrinking, master their message, and build the identity to live bigger. In this TEDx talk, Tyler introduces the Bully Voice™ — the internal voice shaped by shame, rejection, embarrassment, and unwanted exposure. Through a deeply personal story of being bullied in a high school locker room, he reveals how painful moments from the past can become an identity we carry for years, quietly shaping our confidence, visibility, relationships, work, and purpose. Using his AEIOU Self-Mastery Framework—Acknowledge, Expose, Introduce, Own and Upgrade—Tyler shows how to separate from the voice that keeps us small and consciously create a new identity rooted in self-trust, courage, and congruence. His core belief is simple: You were not born to shrink. You were born to live bigger.

• Zee Najarian

  Zee Najarian has spent over 18 years as a Payroll Director, orchestrating complex, deadline-driven operations across 20 countries all the while quietly wondering if there was more to life than the next payroll cycle. That question led her on a multi-year journey through degrees, side gigs, and nonprofit boards, until she discovered that meaningful change doesn’t require a dramatic overhaul. It just requires 10 minutes a day. Zee now uses her experience navigating high-stakes systems to help others build a life they actually love, one small intentional habit at a time.