Jonesboro, AR – Jonesboro Right Now – A group of Arkansas State University students are bringing back a conference designed to bring speakers of all backgrounds together on to campus after a nearly decade-long absence.

Seung Ho Jeon, a graduate student studying accounting with data analytics, is one of the students who has worked to bring TEDx back to campus. TEDx is part of TED Talk, an internationally recognized program that aims to expose listeners to a variety of ideas, research, and perspectives.

“It’s really the main value of TEDx, and at the same time, [the speakers] wanting to spread their ideas to university students who have a lot to learn from this experience,” Jeon said.

The theme for this event is “Ideas Worth Spreading,” and will feature a lineup of 26 speakers from a variety of backgrounds. An opening panel will include remarks from recently named ASU System President Todd Shields, and state Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Jonesboro).

| ADD US ON GOOGLE NEWS: Click here to see more local news from Jonesboro Right Now

Other speakers include A-State faculty and alumni, as well as nationally and internationally recognized leaders in fields such as healthcare, entrepreneurship, creative fields, and more. Jeon said he was not expecting many applications for speakers, but said event organizers received 105 speaker applications.

“It got bigger than I expected it to be,” he said.

Topics to be discussed in artificial intelligence, education, leadership mentality, building confidence, and more.

Jeon said the idea to bring TEDx back to campus came after speaking with a friend who’d participated in a TEDx talk.

“When I realized that she did a TEDx talk and that she was one of the speakers there and we could host one here, that’s what really got the ball rolling,” he said.

From there, Jeon took the idea to leaders in the university’s Neil Griffin College of Business, and the plan blossomed from there. He said the idea was to host the TEDx event as an extension of Create@State, a symposium held annually in the spring semester that shows off student research and creative projects.

The last TEDx event was held nearly a decade ago. Todd Clark, chief marketing and communications officer for A-State, said previous events have been student-driven, so event frequency is dependent on the interest of students and leadership.

“Because students graduate and move on, there has to be someone willing to pick up the torch, build a team and take on the significant work involved in organizing an event of this scale,” he said. “After a 10-year hiatus, we’re excited to have a group of students who stepped forward to bring TEDx back to A-State, and the university is pleased to support their efforts.”

For Jeon, seeing a mostly-student driven initiative expand to such a large scale was something he never expected.

“I was thinking, ‘Maybe it’ll be a small event. How do we fill seats?’ But there are so many people coming and there are so many people that you can meet at the event, also, so, I was very happy about that,” he said.

More than 90 people have registered to attend, Jeon said. Those interested in attending can register any time online here, but registration is required to attend. The event lasts six hours, and Jeon said attendees can come and go as they please.

TEDxArkansas State University is set for Friday, Sept. 18 from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Fowler Center, located at 201 Olympic Drive on the university campus. It is free to attend and open to the public.

| DAILY BRIEF: Sign up for the Jonesboro Right Now Daily Brief Newsletter