Black History Month: Five Speakers for Your Next Event
- By Declan McManus
- Feb 01, 2022
Every February, we celebrate Black History Month and recognize all of the achievements and contributions of African-Americans in the United States. This year's theme for Black History Month, as endorsed by President Biden, is "Black Health and Wellness," and looks to focus particularly on the legacy of Black scholars and medical practitioners. As you plan an event to honor Black History Month, consider one of the incredible keynote speakers available to book now on Engage:
1. Amy Dubois Barnett
Amy Dubois Barnett is the Senior Vice President and General Manager of BET Digital. She is responsible for overseeing large parts of BET's content creation, social programming, and development. Prior to her time at BET, Barnett was the Chief Content Officer for theGrio, and Executive Vice President for their parent company, Entertainment Studios. Her accolades do not stop there, as she has also spent time at ESPN, developing and launching The Undefeated. While she has held numerous important possessions at impressive publications such as Ebony, Harper's Bazaar, and Honey magazine, Barnett found the time to establish an accomplished career as an author. She has been nominated for the NAACP Image-award as a nonfiction and fiction author. You can currently also catch her as an on-air correspondent for CNN, or possibly on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Nightline, and various other programs. Barnett is the perfect speaker for your event celebrating Black History Month and available to book today!
2. Harold Varner III
Harold Varner III is a PGA Tour golfer, just one of a handful of African-American professional golfers to play at the highest level. In 2016, Varner won the Australian PGA Championship in just the third year of his career. As a collegiate golfer, Varner attended East Carolina University, where he was the first player in school history to be named Conference USA player of the year. Just last year, Varner became a first-time father with the birth of his son Liam, and this has motivated him to continue his philanthropic efforts with his foundation, the HV3 Foundation, that aims to bring awareness to the rising cost of entry and access in sports. The foundation tries to ensure that children who do not have the means still have the opportunity to learn the valuable lessons that come from sports. Varner views his role as a PGA golfer as bringing with it the responsibility to inspire kids everywhere with his play because as he says,"the scoreboard doesn't read color, it reads numbers." Book Varner for your next event to hear the inspiring stories of his rise to success and the amazing things he is doing to bring others up with him.
3. Kai Kight
Kai Kight is a classical violinist turned innovative composer. After being inspired by his mother, who regretted not bringing her ideas into the world after a cancer diagnosis, Kight decided that he wanted to embark on a mission to cause a global mindset shift. To Kight, ingenuity is the norm, not the exception, and he aims to bring this inspiring message to his audiences for them to implement and infuse into their own homes and workplaces. Kight is a graduate of Stanford University's design and engineering program, the d. School, and has spent time as both a Mayfield Fellow and a Kleiner Perkins Design Fellow. Additionally, Kight has performed at many of the world's most iconic performance venues and some not so traditional ones, including the White House and the Great Wall of China. Some of Kight's past clients include world-class organizations including The Walt Disney Company, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and the Super Bowl winning Seattle Seahawks. Consider making Kight the next keynote speaker for your very own world-class organization.
4. Rodney Woods
Rodney Woods is the founder, Board Chairman and Chief Executive Officer or Diversity in Promotions, Inc. (DIP). DIP is a Dallas-based strategic marketing firm that specializes in minority and women-owned business enterprise development and diversity program management. They also work on compliance matters with a primary focus on diversity procurement and supplier diversity initiatives. In the past, DIP has worked with impressive clients such as Volkswagen, Toyota, Victoria's Secret PINK, Adidas, Converse, General Motors and Walgreens. At his alma mater, the Tucks School of Business at Dartmouth, Woods received a reward for "Building a High Performing Business." Outside from his traditional business ventures, Woods is the creator of the Playbook Investors Network, which is a web-based educational platform that aims to bridge the gap between diverse companies and institutional and private investors. Woods has spent his career empowering minority business owners and he is sure to bring the same passion to the audience at your next event.
5. Nikki Lanier
Nikki Lanier is the CEO of Harper Slade, a racial equity advisory firm that helps organizations and communities work toward equality for all. Lanier is involved in more than 25 different nonprofit boards, commissions, and civic communities, and it is through her countless hours dedicated to these efforts that she has become a highly regarded speaker and thought leader in matters surrounding diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism in both a corporate and civic setting. Lanier has advised everyone from college presidents to candidates for elected office and Federal Reserve leaders, doing all she can to implement strategies that will create meaningful and long lasting change. Choosing Lanier as the keynote speaker for your next event will ensure that your audience is inspired and equipped with action items that will allow them to make a true difference in the world around them.
Should I book a speaker for my event?
In today’s age, our attention span is dwindling. A technological era in which we can get rushes of dopamine to our brain in a couple seconds by scrolling on a variety of social media platforms has created an atmosphere where we quickly become uninterested by something if we are not immediately curious to hear more. In an event, this means being able to grab your audience’s attention immediately and pull them in, wanting to hear more. This is where hiring a speaker for an event comes into play. The speakers that are on Engage’s website are some of the most high-class, interesting stories you will ever hear. Engage has the stories and speakers that will hold your audience captive with interest.
To learn more about Engage, its talent, and how to book your next speaker contact us at info@letsengage.com or visit https://www.letsengage.com/.
