The conference opened with an inspirational presentation by Kaplan Mobray. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and College of Arts & Sciences, Kaplan was named one of the Top 40 Under 40 by The Network Journal magazine and received the 2008 Rising Star Award by the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources (NAAAHR). He shared with the students life-success strategies from his best-selling book, The 10Ks of Personal Branding. Students were asked to think about their current strengthens and challenges and how they present themselves to others.

Beaver students participated in a number of workshops with other students of color from around the region. Workshops such as “Latino Voices,” “Identity: They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” “Media Images,” “Introduction to Salsa Dancing,” and “Native American Bead Making” provided students with an opportunity to both talk about important topics and have also some fun together!

Beaver Middle School students who attended were Jessica Ainooson, Miah Andrews, Sam Bacherman, Stephen Gousby, Charlee Manigat, Beverly Nwankwo, Micaela Pierce, Elias Pimentel, P.J. Tucker, and Alex Volcy, along with faculty members Juan Figueroa, Middle School Math, and Robert Principe, Director of Educational Leadership.