Colleges & Universities

As both an observer of higher education and an insider with academic appointments at two universities, APB speaker Jeffrey Selingo occupies a unique position to explain higher education’s critical and influential role in the world economy. In his latest article in The Atlantic, Selingo explains how, as colleges are preparing to reopen, they are overlooking the concerns of campus staff. 

APB speaker David Epstein has made it his mission to uncover the keys to achieving high performance in any domain, and to debunk popular myths along the way. In his recent speech at TEDxManchester, he discussed why specializing early doesn't always mean career success. Be sure to check out the video on TED.com!

APB speaker Cleve Jones is a renowned activist whose work began in the 1970s during the gay liberation movement. A mentee of groundbreaking LGBTQ+ activist Harvey Milk, Jones has gone on to co-found the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, create the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt and publish the memoir, When We Rise.

A political analyst for NBC and MSNBC and chief public affairs officer for MoveOn, Karine Jean-Pierre is now Kamala Harris’ Chief of Staff! Karine might be a new name to many, but she has been fighting against inequality for years.

Award-winning essayist and critic, frequent college speaker and best-selling author William Deresiewicz has a new book coming out on July 28th! The Death of the Artist: How Creators Are Struggling to Survive in the Age of Billionaires and Big Tech is a researched warning explaining how the digital economy threatens artists' lives and work—the music, writing, and visual art that sustain our souls and societies.

APB speaker John Quiñones is an ABC news veteran as well as the host of What Would You Do? on ABC with a new season premiering July 7th  at 10|9c. What Would You Do? is the highly-rated, hidden camera ethical dilemma newsmagazine, and Quiñones has literally become “the face of doing the right thing” to millions of fans. The bystanders on this hidden camera show are forced to make tough calls when directly faced with situations of racism, violence, hate crimes and other cultural issues going on everyday.

Oprah Winfrey has chosen New York Times bestselling author and APB speaker James McBride’s Deacon King Kong for her latest book club read. McBride’s novel is set in a Brooklyn housing project in 1969 and centers on the shooting of a drug dealer by an aging and tipsy church deacon. This book also pays tribute to community and to James’ own childhood in a Brooklyn project. "In a moment when our country roils with righteous anger and grief," Oprah says, "Deacon King Kong reminds us that when we come together as a community in compassion and empathy, our love triumphs."

In celebration of Pride Month, we honor APB speaker Cleve Jones, a renowned activist and speaker whose work began in the 1970s during the gay liberation movement. A mentee of groundbreaking LGBTQ+ activist Harvey Milk, Jones has gone on to co-found the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, create the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt and publish the memoir, When We Rise. 

New York Times bestselling author and APB speaker Wes Moore is about to release his new book, Five Days: The Fiery Reckoning of an American City, which was originally based on his personal journey to explore what happened in his hometown, but soon turned into a larger exploration of poverty and inequity; purpose and disillusionment; focus and frustration.

NBA legend and APB speaker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar recently wrote a poignant op-ed for the LA Times defending the protests taking place across the country. In this moving piece, Kareem defends these protests saying he doesn’t want to see stores being looted. He goes on to remind people that the protests are what happens when the black community has been pushed to their tipping point. “The black community is used to the institutional racism inherent in education, the justice system and jobs. And even though we do all the conventional things to raise public and political awareness…the needle hardly budges,” he says. “African Americans have been living in a burning building for many years, choking on the smoke as the flames burn closer and closer. Racism in America is like dust in the air. It seems invisible—even if you’re choking on it—until you let the sun in. Then you see it’s everywhere,” Kareem writes. Abdul-Jabbar also goes on to say that racism is deadlier than COVID-19.