Let’s talk.

That’s the message from high school students involved in the TEDxYouth Club at Sewickley Academy.

The club was made possible last year by alumnus Anjali Shah and the school has partnered with TEDx to host an official conference annually.

Shah was determined to create a local club that is imaginative, educational and fun. This year, senior student and club president Landon Dishart is growing the club and is excited to continue the collaborative event into the future.

A TEDx event brings together speakers for a live talk gathering that includes prepared talks, demonstrations and performances that cover a wide range of subject matter. The events are not used to sell anything and are bias-free and community-driven, with an emphasis on a diversity of topics.

This year’s theme was “The Fundamental Importance of Resilience.”

Eight speakers participated in May’s event. The under-two-hour event was open to the public and held in the Rea Auditorium on campus.

Courtesy of Sewickley Academy The TEDxYouth Club at Sewickley Academy hosts a free public TEDx conference annually on campus.  

The club meets beginning in September and puts in months of preparation to organize, network and coordinate local speakers from various professional industries.

Speakers at May’s event included Albert Wright, CEO and president of West Virginia University Health System, Dr. Parag Batavia, founder of Neya Systems and adjunct professor at Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute, Heather Terrell, bestselling author and attorney, PA U.S. House of Representative Valerie Gaydos (SA ‘85), Christine Shambach, senior vice-president and head of mergers and acquisitions for PNC Financial Services Group, Lawrence C. Connolly, horror/fiction author and former Sewickley Academy teacher, Sebastian Tan, a junior at Sewickley Academy and founder of the nonprofit OutsideConnection and Coach Dave Gray, founder of CDG Sports and a sports mentor.

Shannon Rankin, Sewickley Academy director of student life, said the club brings value to the students because it promotes collaboration and independent organizational skills.

“This is so unique because it’s student-run. They are the ones meeting with the speakers, introducing the speakers and reaching out to them. The adults that help well we are here to just give support,” Rankin said.

Joyce Hanz | TRIBLIVE Sewickley Academy senior and TEDx Club co-president Landon Dishart photographed on campus on Sept. 23.  

Dishart said the club has ramped up his organizational productivity.

“You’re dealing with real people. You have to work with their schedules and coordinate. There’s a lot of hustle involved,” Dishart said.

The club meets throughout the academic year. It was created for enrichment purposes and is expected to enroll about 10 students this year.

“Your network is your net worth,” Dishart said. “I’m passionate about this because you get to work with amazing faculty and students and you also get to build a network with very successful people and they can offer very valuable advice.”

Courtesy of Sewickley Academy Sewickley Academy senior Rayna Thakkar, co-president of TEDx Youth Club at Sewickley Academy.  

“We reach out to people who grew up in Pittsburgh connection,” said co-president Rayna Thakkar, a senior from Franklin Park. “It’s a neat experience and one that I didn’t expect to get in my high school years. Especially the conference was inspirational I’m very STEM-focused and my family is in the medical industry. I was inspired by one speaker who highlighted the success of his journey in the professional sports industry.”

The 2025 TEDx peer speaker is a requirement of the club and one will be selected from interested applicants for the 2025 event. The theme is in the discussion stage, Thakkar said.

Thakkar and Dishart are anxious to get started and club enrollment is underway on campus.

“I’m excited to get into the planning and the organizing of the conference and to get to the networking. It’s cool to talk to leaders and people who are really successful and they can resonate with other students,” Thakkar said.

The club sponsors are social sciences teacher Michael Cesario and senior Sewickley Academy dean Charlotte Bodgewic.

Dishart is a private pilot and he hails from a family surrounded by aviation and military fighter pilots.

He flies regularly from the Butler County Airport.

Additionally, Dishart studied abroad in Switzerland his sophomore year and credits the Switzerland Semester experience with changing his life.

These life experiences and networking and his experience with TEDx have helped him to set goals beyond high school.

“It was a non-technology program with rigorous academics and intense physical activity. It was completely off the grid but it taught me a lot of things about discipline, working hard and conquering your goals.”

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