If you're an educator, and you're not listening to the student's interests - you're failing to make that connection to aid in their personal development and doing them a disservice. After this talk from Jeffrey Dessources, you'll understand the importance of being culturally responsive in the field of student development. Jeffrey Dessources is a dynamic public educator, author, emcee of Haitian descent. The native New Yorker is the author of five books including his latest Trill Motivation which through imagery, poetry and commentary tackles leadership and motivation from a contemporary perspective. He has delivered lectures at over 25 universities including Columbia and Princeton University and has performed globally in Indonesia, Italy and South Africa. He’s been featured in Ebony Magazine, The Root and Urban Cusp Magazine. He currently serves as the Director of Campus Life at New Jersey City University and Co Founder of the Educational platform, Trill or Not Trill. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx