Speaker Series & Parent Resources

LFCDS believes the social emotional growth and well-being of each child is essential to successful learning both immediately and in future endeavors. The School began the Special Speaker Series to assist our community in gaining access to some of the world's top experts in child development. Our fall series takes place in our newly renovated Performing Arts Center. All lectures begin at 10:00 a.m. and close with a question-and-answer session.  A book signing follows the talk, and our speakers often host a more intimate conversation in the school's 15,000-volume Library for interested attendees. The LFCDS Special Speaker Series is free and open to the public.

On Tuesday, October 23, 2018, LFCDS hosted Dr Eboo Patel, a leading voice in the movement for interfaith cooperation and the Founder and President of Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC), a national nonprofit organization dedicated to making interfaith cooperation a social norm. He is the author of the best-selling books Acts of Faith, Sacred Ground, and Interfaith Leadership. Named by US News & World Report as one of America’s Best Leaders of 2009, Dr. Patel served on President Obama’s Inaugural Faith Council. Dr. Patel’s lecture, entitled “Out of Many Faiths: Religious Diversity and What it Means for Our Children,”  addressedr the following:

• How exposure to other religions enhances our own experience and helps children build relationships across religious divides
• How students, families, and educators can explore the worldview diversity around them and better understand the role of interfaith cooperation in modern society
• How to create spaces where students can connect, share ideas, and engage in transformative dialogue to strengthen our society and our country

Dr. Patel holds a doctorate in the sociology of religion from Oxford University, where he studied on a Rhodes Scholarship. For more than fifteen years, he has worked with governments, social-sector organizations, and college and university campuses to help realize a future where religion is a bridge of cooperation rather than a barrier of division.

On Tuesday, September 25, 2018, LFCDS welcomed New York Times best-selling author Dr. Tina Payne Bryson, Founder and Executive Director of The Center for Connection in Pasadena, CA. Dr. Bryson addressed more than 135 parents and educators in the School's newly renovated Performing Arts Center where she discussed the science and strategies detailed in her most recent book The Yes Brain, co-authored with Dan Siegel. Her talk highlighted the following:

Dr. Bryson has given keynote addresses and has conducted workshops and seminars for parents, educators, and clinicians around the globe.

Every year, LFCDS hosts a number of guest speakers as part of the Special Speaker Event series that is free and open to the public. In September of 2017, we welcomed award-winning psychologist and Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence Dr. Marc Brackett. In October, we welcomed Dr. Lisa Damour, New York Times best-selling author and columnist. Speakers in prior years have included New York Times best-selling authors Dr. David Walsh and Jessica Lahey, nationally-acclaimed child psychologists Dr. Michael Thompson, and Dr. Ned Hallowell, Early Childhood Coordinator for Northwestern University’s Center for Talent Development Ann Gadzikowski, school consultant and past president of the National Association of Independent Schools Pat Bassett, New York Times best-selling author Rosalind Wiseman (Queen Bees and Wannabes), acclaimed author and business coach Michael Brandwein, and public lecturer and clinical psychologist Dr. Carl E. Pickhardt, among others.