Keynote Plenary Sessions

Carlos Moreno, Co-Executive Director, Big Picture Learning
Carlos Moreno has been a teacher, a principal, a director, and now a Chief Executive Officer. But through it all he has been and continues to be an observer and a learner. A proud native New Yorker, Carlos is a passionate educational trailblazer committed to supporting school and district leaders to create high-quality, non-traditional schools designed to tackle systemic issues related to equity in education. He currently serves as Executive Director for Big Picture Learning, a nonprofit organization that, since 1995, has developed over 150 such schools in the United States and throughout the world. He also co-founded and leads the Deeper Learning Equity Fellowship in partnership with the Internationals Network for Public Schools. Carlos holds undergraduate degrees in marketing and business from Johnson & Wales University along with a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership. Most recently Carlos was named a Pahara-Aspen Institute Fellow – a fellowship designed to sustain diverse, senior leaders who are reimagining public education.

Facilitator: Rhonda J. Broussard, Founder & CEO, Beloved Community
Rhonda J. Broussard (she/her/hers) is an author, social entrepreneur, and futurist. As the Founder & CEO of Beloved Community, and Founder of Awa by Beloved, PBC. Rhonda works at the nexus of Equity in Schools, Equity at Work, and Equity at Home. Rhonda founded Beloved Community to create sustainable paths to regional racial and economic equity. Her vision for Beloved Community is informed by her leadership in education and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s goal “to create a beloved community” that would “require a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives.”

Rhonda has been a change-agent in diversity, equity, inclusion and international education throughout her career. Previously, she founded a network of language immersion and International Baccalaureate world authorized schools, was a National Board Certified Teacher and taught in public schools in drop-out recovery, college access, working class, immigrant, and affluent school communities. She has served on the board of the EdNavigator, Missouri’s Charter Public School Association, PROMO – Missouri’s Statewide LGBTQ Advocacy Organization, Agile Learning Center of New Orleans, and Washington University in St. Louis YMCA-YWCA.

Rhonda is steadfast in her commitment to community engagement and leadership as a Highland Leader, a Tulane Mellon Fellow, a Pahara-Aspen Fellow and an Eisenhower Fellow. She currently serves as a Board Director for Generation Hope, Diverse Charter Schools Coalition and New Orleans African American Museum. Rhonda has earned a Bachelor of Arts in French and Secondary Education from Washington University in St. Louis, a Masters of Arts in French Studies from The Institute of French Studies at New York University, and has studied in Cameroon, Martinique, Finland, New Zealand and metropolitan France. Rhonda is the author of One Good Question: How Countries Prepare Youth to Lead. You can find Rhonda, her wife Kim, and her bilingual family living on native Bulbancha land also known as New Orleans, Louisiana where she studies, performs, and teaches dances from the African diaspora.

David Ramirez, New Orleans Charter Science and Mathematics High School
David Ramirez is a student at New Orleans Charter Science and Mathematics High School – “Sci High.” He is 16 Years old and is a part of the National Beta Club, the National Honor Society and Vice President of his school. David is an alumni of YPAR Academy 2023 and a mentor for YPAR Academy 2024. Some interesting facts about David – his favorite color is red and he learned to drive at the age Of 11.

Samarah Bentley, Louisiana State University
Samarah Bentley is a freshman at Louisiana State University, double majoring in French and Screen Arts with interests in cinematography, directing, producing, and acting. She is multilingual, having studied French, Spanish and Mandarin. As an activist and artist, her talents lie in youth advocacy and developing creative solutions alongside peers to better her community. The New Orleans Children and Youth Planning Board, 826 New Orleans, Geaux Girl, Jrnola, YPAR Academy, and Girl Scouts to name a few, have shaped both her personal growth and community awareness. She is the creator of Project Often Reality, a community driven initiative that addresses diversity in the media, education, and media literacy. Samarah has received several awards in writing, media arts and French language proficiency and has published articles in Gambit Weekly and Lifestyles Health and Wellness magazine. Samarah was the inaugural Mayor for the day for New Orleans’ first female mayor and has interviewed the First Lady of France. She is currently working on her third novel, with hopes to publish her first within the next few years.

Dr. Sabba Quidwai, CEO, Designing Schools 
Educator, social scientist, and entrepreneur Dr. Sabba Quidwai believes that cultures of innovation begin with a culture of empathy. Her career began as a high school teacher and evolved to Director of Innovative Learning at the University of Southern California, and later being recruited as an Education Executive at Apple. These experiences deepened her insights as a social scientist, focusing on designing learning experiences that equip everyone with the skills and strategies to be irreplaceable in a world with AI. She shares this research in her 2022 documentary, examining why and how design thinking is your human advantage in an AI world.