When I grow up, I want to be a(n)

A speaker network that reflects the full range of opportunity in Boston.

Whether they’re leading construction sites, producing music, or developing software, we want our speakers’ career paths to feel accessible. Our instructors work closely with teachers to identify speakers who can connect with students on a personal level. Over the last three years, One Bead’s speaker community has grown to include over 200 professionals, many of whom are Boston Public School graduates themselves. Their presence in the classroom—and the stories they share—are what make our programming so impactful.

18%

of our speakers consider themselves entrepreneurs.

10%

of our speakers are founders.

1 in 2

speakers make plans to reconnect with a student after meeting them.

Meet some of our speakers:

  • Jennifer Ha

    Architecture
    Design Principal, Hue Architecture

  • Lee Pelton

    Community Services
    CEO & President, The Boston Foundation

  • Danny Garcia-Decoteau

    Business Management
    Owner, Hair It Is Barbershop

  • Dianne Austin

    Business Management
    Co-Founder & CEO, Coils to Locs

  • Cory McCarthy

    Education
    Assistant Superintendent of Student Development and Advancement, Boston Public Schools

  • Natacha Chough

    Science
    Flight Surgeon, NASA—Johnson Space Center

  • Liat Berry

    Technology
    Product Manager, Google

  • Amundam Mancho

    Healthcare
    Resident Pediatric Physician, Boston Children’s Hospital & Boston Medical Center

  • Sania Santos

    Legal Services
    Attorney, Silva Santos PC

  • Dana Robinson

    Public Services
    Firefighter, Boston Fire Department

  • Jo Diaz

    Science
    STEM Education Sr. Coordinator, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

  • Olusegun Oduolowu

    Media
    Host of Boston Globe Today

Explore our network.

  • Francis Holder, Dog Trainer, The Pawsitive Dog

    Jo-Ann Keith, Founder & CEO, Stinky's Kittens & Doggies Too

    Martin Wright, Business Owner, President & Dog Trainer, Argos Dog Training

  • Jennifer Ha, Design Principal, Hue Architecture LLC

  • Andrés Holder, Executive Director, Boston Children's Chorus

    Ayana Mack, Visual Artist & Entrepreneur, Ayana Mack Design

    Daniel Kim, Third Chair Violist, Boston Symphony

    Danny Rivera, Jr., CEO Artistic Director, AIR Boston

    Daphne Walker, Founder & Creative Director, Canvas Studio Boston

    Edward Galan, Co-Founder, A Trike Called Funk

    Eliana Escobar, Digital Artist & Afterschool Art Teacher, Little Voices

    Ella Wechsler-Matthaei, Founder & CEO, Soca Fusion

    Emmanuelle Dubuisson, Artist, Phia Art

    LesleyAnn Moore, Founder & CEO, The Poetic Artiste

    Leslie Guity, Owner & CEOOrangesticity LLC

    Liana Farmer, Founder, bylianarae

    Michael Talbot, Owner & Freelance Artist, Talbot's Art LLC

    Sabrina (Phree) Claudio, Multidisciplinary Artist, ArtByPhree

    Shaumba-Yandje Wa Dibinga, Founding Artistic Director, OrigiNation Cultural Arts Center

    Stephen Sampson, Actor, Greater Joy Productions

  • Alberto Calvo, Co-Owner, OPPED, Inc. d/b/a Compare Supermarkets

    Alex Hildebrandt, Founder, SUYO Pisco

    Catherine Waiswa, Founder & CEO, Love Balungi LLC

    Ciara Aguilar, Senior Business and Technology Consultant, SEI

    Colette Phillips, CEO & President, Colette Phillips Communications

    Dana Bonner, Owner, Pink and Pretty

    Daniel Garcia-Decoteau, Owner, Hair It Is Barbershop

    Derick Foster-Toney, Owner & Executive Manager, Chez-Vous Roller Skating Rink

    Dianne Austin, Co-Founder & CEO, Coils to Locs

    Edward Toney, Owner, Chez-Vous Roller Skating Rink

    Elaine Chow, Founder, ChopValue Boston,

    Elson Fortes, Co-Owner & Creative Artist, Crazygoodz

    Glynn Lloyd, Executive Director, Foundation for Business Equity

    Herby Duverné, Founder & CEO, Windwalker Group

    Jae'da Turner, Founder & Managing Director, BGM Apparel

    Jenny Santiago, Stylist, Jaeni Braids

    Jody Mendoza, Owner & CEO, Mojitos Country Club

    Julie Cabral, Area Administrative Manager, Kleinfelder

    Juliris Montalvo, Managing Member, Juli’s Beauty

    Katelynne Bazile, Founder & Global Team Lead, Lumiere Rene Candle Company & Emerging Talent Programming & Operations, HubSpot

    Keisha Jean-Louis, Founder, QueensKnow

    Marc Amedee, Barber & Owner, Marxmen Cuts Barbershop

    Myranda Peterson, Founder, Creator & Director, House MVP

    Shonte Davidson, CEO, Better Together Brain Trust (BT2)

    Thiago DeSouza, Founder, Urban Cargo LLC

    TiElla Grimes, Founder & Principal, InnHer Uplift Consulting

    Tonya Winston, Founder & CEO, B. Royal Boutique

    Widline Pyrame, CEO & Founder, Fusion Dolls

    Wilson Fortes, Co-Owner, Artist & Creative Engineer, Crazygoodz

    Zelmon Johnson, Owner, Olive Tree Books-n-Voices

  • Alex Lynn, Youth Recreation Program Manager, Community Rowing Inc.

    Annissa Essaibi-George, President & CEO, Big Sister Association of Greater Boston

    Ashley Eadie, Director of Community Engagement, Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts

    Bekah Salwasser, Executive VP of Social Impact, Red Sox Foundation

    Christina Bryant, Chief Administrative Officer, St. Mary's Center for Women and Children

    Dana Harris, Program Director, The 3Point Foundation

    Daniel Enriquez Vidaña, President, Innovation Studio

    DeShawna Green, Leasing Manager, Boston Public Health Commission

    Elijah Evans, Executive Director, Bikes Not Bombs

    Jamaal Williams, Assistant Director of Training, PEAR Institute

    Javier Suarez, Manager, Community Rowing

    Jennyde Dessius, Program Director, Girls' LEAP

    Josiah Bramble, Program DirectorHarlem Lacrosse

    Lee Pelton, CEO & President, The Boston Foundation

    Lily Mendez, Former CEO, Mass Mentoring Partnerships

    Michael Curry, President & CEO, MA League of Community Health Center

    Nicole Purvis-Donnell, Director of Programming, Quincy Geneva New Vision CDC

    Niurka Pitts, Director of Housing, Boston Public Health Commission

    Pedro Cruz, Executive Director, Mayor's Office of Youth Engagement and Advancement

    Samuel Ellison, Manager of Partnerships, YW Boston

    Sandra McCroom, President & CEO, Children's Services of Roxbury

    Tony Galvao, President, Concrete LYFE

    Turahn Dorsey, Chief Impact Officer, Eastern Bank Foundation

    Wil Cardwell, Managing Director, Partnerships and Summer Learning Boston After School & Beyond

    Yvonne Montilla, Deputy Chief of Staff, The New Commonwealth Fund

  • Arturo Natella, Founder, Amaru

    Mackenson Charles, Chief of Programs, Black Economic Council of Massachusetts

    Thaddeus Miles, Senior Director of Diversity Initiatives, MassHousing

  • Adkeem Jackson, Senior Director of Community Mobilization, MA Charter Public School Association

    Annie Turner, Director of Corporate Responsibility, ASA

    Austin Ashe, Sr. Associate Director, Culture and Belonging, MIT Sloan School of Management

    Brian Alkins, Teacher, ECC

    Cory McCarthy, Assistant Superintendent of Student Development and Advancement, Boston Public Schools

    Derrick Young, Co-founder & Executive Director, Leadership Brainery

    Farah Annylusse, Teacher, Boston Public Schools

    Jeff Joseph, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs, Regis College

    Jonathan Allen, Co-Founder & Director of Development, Leadership Brainery

    Kayanna Scott-Brown, Managing Director, Network Engagement, Teach for America

    Lea Serena, Executive Vice President, Boston Teachers Union

    Linda Mindaye, Educational Consultant

    Marsha Inniss-Mitchell, Executive Director of Postsecondary Initiatives, Boston Public Schools

    Natasha Lopez, Founder & CEO, College Connects

    Nicole Rodriguez-Rowe, Assistant Director of Strategic Alliances Leadership Brainery

    Rafaela Polanco Garcia, Boston Public School Committee Member

    Rashaun Martin, Managing Director of Recruitment, Cultivation and Diversity Programs, Boston Public Schools

    Sarah Kamya, Founder, Little Free Diverse Libraries

  • Amiyah Richardson, Software Engineer, Liberty Mutual

    Amon Millner, Associate Professor of Computing and "The Unruly Professor", Olin College of Engineering

    Demetri Harrison, Senior Site Reliability Engineer, Siteimprove

    Nick Dejesus, Open Source Programs Engineer

  • Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, Pastor, New Roots AME Church

    Ronald Thompson, Beekeeper and Data Analyst, The Best Bees Company

  • Cecelia Lizotte, Owner, Suya Joint All African Cuisine

    Cheyvonne Heywood, Founder, Lyme Lyfe Juices

    Daniel Carrillo, Head of Operation, Taqueria el Barrio

    Jelissa Lamboy, Pastry Chef, The Sugar Connection

    Kamaal Jarrett, Founder & CEO, Hillside Harvest

    Misha Thomas, Transformative Development Initiative Fellow, MassDevelopment

    Shonda Little, Chef, SouthernTwist

    Tam Le, CEO, T. Le Enterprise

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  • Amundam Mancho, Pediatric Resident, Boston Children's Hospital

    Brett Mitchell, Pediatric Resident, Boston Children's Hospital/Boston Medical Center

    Cerica Horton, MRI Technologist, Boston Children’s Hospital

    Faven Russom, Pediatric Resident Physician, Boston Children’s Hospital

    Florence Ip, Doctor, Boston Children’s Hospital

    Jakara Griffin, Resident Physician, Boston Children’s Hospital

    Jeffrey Edwards, Resident Physician, Boston Children's Hospital/Boston Medical Center

    Jezmarie Rodriguez, Patient Service Representative, Harvard Vanguard

    Jocelyn McGill, Physician, Boston Medical Center (BMC)

    Krista Gon, Consultant, Day Health Startegies

    Lillian Zerihun, Doctor, Boston Children's Hospital

    Michaelle Cherisol, Medical Writer, Harvard Medical School/MGH

    Nia Cabey, Nurse, Cambridge Health Alliance

    Omer Elshaigi, Physician, Boston Children's Hospital

    Rita Wang, Resident Physician, Boston Children's Hospital

    Sierra Atwater, Resident Physician, Boston Children's Hospital

    Theresa Poon, Registered Nurse, Brigham and Women’s Hospital

  • Charldyn Valcin, Sales Consultant & Founder, Host Valcin LLC

    Iliana Ramirez, Co-Founder & CEO, Meaningful Occasions

    Jonil Casado, Community Engagement Manager, City of Boston

    Marvina Wilkes, CEO, Red Dress Events LLC

  • Andrea Campbell, Attourney General of Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts

    Geraldine Gruvis-Pizarro, Director of Advocacy and Pro Bono, Volunteer Lawyers Project

    Gina Endres, Director of Workforce Development and Community Engagement, The Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice

    Jenny Chen, Associate, Ropes & Gray LLP

    Karen Bobadilla, Immigration Attorney, De Novo

    Karla Mojica Perez, Intake Manager, Greater Boston Legal Services

    Madeleine Rodriguez, Partner, Foley Hoag LLP

    Rilwan Adeduntan, Assistant United States Attorney, Department of Justice

    Sania Santos, Attorney, Silva Santos PC

    Simone Gaines, Quality and Compliance Manager, Vertex

    Thanithia Billings, Associate, Ropes & Gray LLP

  • Shamara Rhodes, CEO, Boston Got Next Entertainment

    SB John, Owner, SB John Entertainment

    Melisa Valdez, In-Arena Host, Boston Celtics

    Richy Pena, Music Producer

  • Andre Weiss, Student

    Beatriz Santiago

    Domingos DaRosa, Owner, DaRosa Property Maintenance

    Jana Amin, Student

    Janay Johnson, Manager, USPS

    Khymani James, Student

    Leonard Perez, Product Manager, Interpop LLC

    Maya Koreth, Student

    Suwada Hinds, Board Treasurer and CFO, New England Anime Society Inc.

    Toiell Washington, CEO, The Master's Tools

    Willy Vallejo, Installer, XPEL

  • Dalvin Jones, Football Assistant Equipment Manager, New England Patriots

    Evan Pierce, Vice President, People & Culture, Boston Celtics

    Waseem Givens, Director Of Youth Development, Boston Celtics

  • Curtis Chambers, Financial Counselor, CLC Consulting and Coaching

    Isis Ortiz-Belton, Vice President, Commercial Banking, Eastern Bank

    Jeanette Velasquez, Founder & CEO, Velasquez Tax & Business Services, LLC

    Joseph OGarro, Senior Vice President, BDC Capital

    Kayla Lopez, Bank Manager, TD Bank

    Michael Reid, AVP - Branch Manager III, Eastern Bank

    Russell Holmes, Financial Advisor, Baystate Financial Services, LLC

    Thuy Le, Senior Associate, BDO

  • Christine Rose, Owner & CEO, Imani Massage

    Geoffrey Janey, Owner & Founder, JET Boston

    Issam Hatahet, Functional Strength & Transformation Coach, BT Strength and Wellness

    Juan Sosa, Yoga Instructor

    Nieisha Deed, Founder & CEO, PureSpark

    Sinceree Clarke-Diego, Founder & CEO, BreakFIT Wellness

  • Brian Walker, Change Management Consultant

    Christopher Worrell, State Representative, MA House of Representatives

    Julia Mejia, Boston City Councilor At-Large, Boston City Council

    Liz Miranda, State Representative, MA House of Representatives

    Melissa Beltran, Peer Support Specialist, Boston Public Health Commission

    Oumou Cherif, Director of Outreach, Office of Massachusetts Attorney General & Founder, Children Education Alliance Inc

    Samantha Montano, State Representative, MA House of Representatives

  • Bernadine Desanges, Senior Workplace Investigator, City of Boston

    Gorden Souza, AVP, Recruiter, Eastern Bank

    Magdalena Barbosa, HR Consultant

  • Adebukola Ajao, Digital Marketing Consultant, B.D.Y. CONSULT LLC

    Annisa Benjamin, Founder & CEO, ABMI

    Charlene Volmar, Marketing Account Director, JPA Health

    Dalinda Ifill-PressatDirector of Marketing & Communications, Children's Services of Roxbury

  • Daron English, Creative Director, AVARIA

    Drake Curtis, Photographer, Photosbydrizzy

    Erica Ayisi, Independent Journalist & CEO & Founder, Akosua's Closet

    Gregory Molina IV, Managing Partner, The Media Men

    Gregory Warfield Jr., Producer & Director, Sweeter The Juice Films

    Kevin Thai, Owner & Photographer, Three Circles Studio

    Larry Lawson, Executive Producer, CBS/Paramount/WBZ

    Melissa Rawlins, Senior Communications Strategist, Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology (CCAT)

    Olusegun Oduolowu, Host of Boston Globe Today, Boston Globe Media Partners

    Ryan Sullivan, Managing Partner, The Media Men

    Victoria Griggs, Co-Founder, Producer, Photographer, Art Director, Web Dev, & Creative Direction, Sweeter The Juice Films

  • Dr. Pilar Tucker, Founder, Clinician, Change Agent, Non-Profit & Consulting Businesses

    Kurt Faustin, Mental Health Expert, The Dropout Academy

    Melanie Robinson Findlay, CEO, Upwards N Onwards LLC

    Priscilla Rodriguez, Clinician, The Home for Little Wanderes

    Tamara Leroy-London, Founder, Owner, & Clinician, Healing with Trust Therapy, LLC

  • Aaron Haynes, Streetcar Operator, MBTA

    Ashley Armand, Deputy Director of Community Engagement, MBTA

    Ciara Martinez, Bus Driver, MBTA

    Dana Robinson, Firefighter, Boston Fire Department

    Eric Bradshaw, Patrolman, Crime Stoppers, Boston Police Department

    Kamisha Green, Police Officer, Boston Police Department

    Londen Fryar, Trash Man, Capitol

    Robert Franklin, Firefighter, Boston Fire Department

    Xavier Cruz, Firefighter, Boston Fire Department

  • Clara Arroyave, CEO, Co-iving Cashflow

    Elijah Wilkerson IV, Realtor, Thumbprint Realty

    Jeff Similien, Broker

    Josue Velney, CEO, Velney Development

    Kyle Zene-Moore, Broker & CEO, Zander Realty Group

    Nicky Allen, Commercial Advisor, Thumbprint Realty

    Sarah Rodewald, Broker & Owner, SR Realty LLC

  • Domonique Downing, Associate Director, Verizon Wireless

  • "Crew" Elenoe Smith, Director, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

    Anne Okrah, Supply Chain Specialist, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

    Christianah Aloba, Senior Research Associate, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

    Denisa Kim, Founder & CEO, Anteros Bio

    Jo Dias, STEM Education Sr. Coordinator, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

    Natacha Chough, Flight Surgeon, NASA-Johnson Space Center

    Sanjana Thompson, Scientist, Prime Medicine

    Sarah Martinez Roth, Senior Scientist, Vertex

    Taniya Mishra, Founder & CEOSureStart

  • Alfredo Alvarez Lamela, Owner, Cross Of the South Development

    Liat Berry, Product Manager, Google

    Pariss Chandler, Founder & CEO, Black Tech Pipeline

    Rana el Kaliouby, Co-Founder & CEO, Affectiva (Smart Eye)

    Sundeep Patel, CEO, Iorad inc.

  • Ari Staples, Stewart, Lund Rebar

    Frank Amato, Business Agent, Local 12 Plumber and Gasfitters

    Matthew DiGaetano, Carpenter & Owner, NorthEast Carpentry

Nominate a speaker.

All nominated speakers are invited to participate in a 30-minute introductory call with a member of our team. After the call, if the nominee is still interested in participating, they will be asked to fill out a consent form. Not all nominees are guaranteed an opportunity to speak.