Conference Schedule

Session Description

Leadership isn’t easy. It’s hard, gritty, incredibly rewarding and equally humbling. That is even more true this year. The tide of American culture and American organizational culture is moving in so many ways, one of which is toward a greater awareness of those with diverse backgrounds.

Laila Hajji Down draws on her experience working as top talent for a global seed and chemical company, as a teacher in downtown Des Moines, and as a corporate organizational consultant and executive coach. Most notably, she draws on her personal experience as a daughter of a Moroccan immigrant, the sister of a black man, and a Citizen of the Chickasaw tribe.

While her personal experiences underpin her talk, it is grounded in history, research and pointed for you to take your awareness and move it to action to create real change in your organizations. Let’s let the tide raise all of our boats.

Learning Objective #1
INWARD

1. Examine the history and role diversity and inclusion has played in organizational culture as a whole.
2. Evaluate their organization’s culture for themes of inclusivity.

Learning Objective #2
OUTWARD

3. Identify ways to be DE&I advocates in their organization.

Learning Objective #3
ONWARD

4. Develop personal strategies for action within their organization.
5. Evaluate what is at stake if we don’t act to improve DE&I efforts within our organization.

Intended Audience: Private Sector / Public Sector

Laila Davis
Founder and CEO
Point One Development

From the Great Pyramids of Giza, to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Laila sat wide-eyed as a little girl listening to her father’s stories of traveling to France, Egypt, Australia, Korea and Canada. Her favorite stories were those of her dad growing up in Morocco. Today, she loves to retell some of those stories as well as her own stories spending months overseas with her Moroccan family and her experiences as a Citizen of the Chickasaw tribe while growing up in Oklahoma. The element of story and experience is what marks Laila as a speaker and consultant.

Laila has utilized her drive and innovation to achieve success early in life. Laila served as the 2006 – 2007 Oklahoma FFA State Secretary and a 2008 – 2009 National FFA Vice President. Laila has spoken to well over 100,000 people in over 45 states and across the globe. Laila worked for Syngenta after graduating Texas Tech University with a degree in Agricultural Education. She managed a multi-milliondollar sales territory for Syngenta. Laila sold seed, seed treatment and crop protection chemicals for three years. Her second week in her role was the launch of an integrated Syngenta. She had a front row seat to one of the largest corporate integrations in the agriculture sector to date. This experience, while challenging at times, provided her incredible insight in leadership and corporate culture shift. Laila sold advertising for a short time and taught high school agricultural education for a year. Laila has a Master’s Degree in Agricultural Education.

While Laila does have pretty cool heritage, when you meet Laila, make no mistake, you will know that she is an Okie through and through. She is a proud Oklahoman and her story is pretty unique as a Moroccan and Native American southern belle.

Laila uses her unique tapestry of heritage and corporate experience to engage audiences on topics of authentic leadership, authentic relationships and diversity and inclusion.

This southern belle has settled up north in Johnston, Iowa. She met her husband, Kevin (an Iowa native), in 2013. She and Kevin live in the suburbs of Des Moines with their three daughters, Audrie, Ella and Gentrie and two dogs – Wrigley and Willow.

Session Description

The Rules Have Change: New expectations for anti-racist behavior in 2020 Prior to 2020, diversity training has been abstract – focusing primarily on diversity concepts such as bias and privilege. Employees learned to avoid phrases of the moment and keep their personal viewpoints out of their professional space but were not taught the language of diversity—how to interact with people of other people groups with connection and vulnerability. In the blink of an eye, silence and privacy are not enough. Online conversations, politicized events and a continuous new cycle exposed the need for a more nuanced and honest cultural training.

In this session Liz will teach you:

• How to evaluate your own anti-racist tendencies.
• The behaviors that legally expose you and your staff.
• How to respond to accusations of racism.
• How to acknowledge racial issues in a healthy and productive way.
• How to respond in the presence of racism and cultural discrimination.
• Why cultural uniformity is a human resource challenge.
• How to learn from others without offending.
• How to develop employee guidelines for online interaction and civil activity.
• How to create anti-racist job expectations.
• How to develop a personal belief system around racial and cultural differences.

Learning Objective #1
The behaviors that legally expose you and your staff.

Learning Objective #2
How to respond to accusations of racism.

Learning Objective #3
How to respond in the presence of racism and cultural discrimination.

Learning Objective #4
How to create anti-racist job expectations. 

Intended Audience: Private Sector

Liz Nead
Speaker and Coach
Nead Inspiration

Liz, Founder of Nead Inspiration, is an adventure speaker, most recently climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and competing in the Iowa Strongman Games. She has authored several best selling books, Curry Up, an ethnic cookbook, The 180 Life, and 20 Beautiful Women. Her work has been ranked in Buzzfeed and reviewed by the Huffington Post. Liz created and hosted Life Dare, an Emmy-nominated television show. She blogs for Huffington Post and She Knows. She is a skilled story-teller and teacher, using her personal and professional experiences to create powerful personal development and team building strategies.

Whether she is climbing a mountain, flipping 300 pound tires, producing an award winning television, or exploring her roots in India, her audiences learns valuable lessons to build an influential life.

She also balances her passion-driven career with a busy family life, raising seven kids in a blended family with her husband, a retired Army Major.

Session Description

Learn how to use innovative self-care strategies for you and your teams of people. Join with 2-time Grammy nominated Artist, Founder of the Global Learning Foundation, and public speaker, Enrique Feldman, as he takes you on a journey of inspired and proven mental health strategies. You’ll walk away with unique recipes, mindset strategies, brain game health approaches, and more. Learn how to foster healthier environments for your own home and the workplace.

Participants should expect to learn:

Learning Objective #1

• Improved Performance Management

Attendees will experience foundational strategies for improved mindset, decision making under stress, and overall health, allowing them to be their best in the workplace.

Learning Objective #2

• Employee Safety

Attendees will learn how to help their teams of people improve their mental health and sustain it with concrete strategies, which are evidence and research based.

Learning Objective #3

• Talent Management

Attendees will experience how they can develop their teams of people in innovative and inspirational ways, under the expert guidance of the presenter, Enrique C Feldman.

Learning Objective #4

• Employee Retainment

Attendees will walk away with concrete strategies to elevate the daily experiences of their teams of people, leading to higher rates of retainment.

Intended Audience: Private Sector / Public Sector 

Enrique Hank Feldman
Artist, Educator, Public Speaker, Coach
Founder and Director of Education
Global Learning Foundation

Enrique is an Artist and Educator who’s influence is worldwide. His highlights include:

• Founder and Director of Education, Global Learning Foundation
• Co-Author of the children’s book series Sam the Ant®
• Creator, iBG®, Intellectual Brainwave Games
• Co-Creator, Sumerian®, Inaudible Tone Technology
• Author of “Living Like a Child”
• Co-Producer and Performing Artist for theatrical show “The Inner Journey”
• 2-Time Grammy Nominated Composer and Artist
• Co-writer of Arizona First Things First Early Childhood Standards
• Original Council Member for First Things First Early Childhood Initiative
• Former Professor of Music and Education, University of Arizona
• Former Professor of Music and Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• 12 Consecutive Years, NAEYC Presenter

Founded in 2000 with his mentor Dr. Carroll Rinehart, the Global Learning Foundation (GLF), formerly the F.A.M.E. Foundation, is focused on changing the paradigm of learning, with an emphasis on creating autonomous learners and using artistic approaches to engage the learner. Having served over 135,000 children and families, it has acted locally throughout the world. Enrique’s initiatives have been recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts, with it’s main focus on early childhood education through Grade 5. Enrique has presented numerous keynotes and workshops for organizations; from national entities such as ILA, NAEYC and NAFCC, many state and regional organizations such as NCAEYC, NYAEYC (2017 and 2019), and thousands of local workshops for fathers, parents, and communities. Together with a team of world class educators and artists, and their partner organizations, Enrique fosters sustainable, organic and research-based and evidence-based learning models which develop the potential of the learner with the intent of revealing purpose.

As an artist, Enrique is a pianist, vocalist, composer, conductor, and producer. He is an active performing artist on piano and vocals, singing in a gypsy and flamenco style, while also singing with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra Chorus.