On April 26, 2013, Jefferson hosted the first ever TEDxTJHSST, a subset of the popular “TED” talks online. This year marks a return of last year’s conference, which may potentially turn into an annual staple of life at Jefferson.

TED talks, a well-known Internet phenomenon, stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. The purpose of the talks, which range from agriculture to physics, is to spread ideas to as many people as possible. TEDx conferences are when outside organizations hold a series of TED talks sactioned by TED.

“Last year was an exiting, fulfilling and humbling experience. I loved the opportunity it gave me to share my personal opinions and motivations with my peers, as well as attend the other presentations and learn from a variety of interesting people,” senior Lucas Kang, a presenter from TEDxTJHSST 2013, said.

The TEDxTJHSST conference at Jefferson is the work of the “One Question” second semester elective course, organized by Scott Campbell. In the class, students complete semester-long projects based on education and advocacy principles. Every year, several students team up to plan the TEDxTJHSST conference. This year, the team includes seniors Mason Chee and Simran Rohatgi  and juniors Ryan Morris and Katie Cox.

“I wanted to get involved in TEDx after hearing about it last year and watching some of the videos from our conference and other conferences. It’s actually the main reason I took One Question,” Rohatgi said.

At the TEDxTJHSST conference, students, parents, alumni and other individuals are invited to present. This year’s theme, “Overachieve,” addresses the 2013-2014 One Question: How can we maintain a passion for learning in a school system where a pronounced emphasis on achieving good grades has a tendency to reduce genuine interest in gaining a deeper understanding of subject material? The question was submitted last year by current junior Emily Rogers.

“We’ve chosen a theme and sent out a speaker application to students, teachers, and alumni. We’re also working on logistics involved with recording the speeches,” Rohatgi said.

Fill out a speaker application for TEDxTJHSST 2014 HERE!