ACT Regional Conference – 2026 – Workshop Leader
- Presented “Beyond Test Prep: Building ACT-Ready Thinkers Through Inquiry and Analytical Reading” at the ACT Regional Conference in Champaign, IL.
- Session description: “This session explores how inquiry-based literacy instruction and analytical reading can strengthen the skills students need for college readiness assessments. Rather than relying on isolated drills or short-term test strategies, participants will examine classroom practices that develop reasoning, evidence evaluation, rhetorical analysis, and reading stamina across disciplines. The session emphasizes practical approaches that help students become more confident readers, stronger thinkers, and more engaged learners while supporting success on assessments and in everyday classroom work.”
Indiana Suicide Prevention & Awareness Summit – 2026 – Workshop Leader
- Presented “Rolling for Connection: How Collaborative Storytelling Creates Protective Spaces for Belonging,” an original workshop designed for educators, community leaders, and mental health advocates.
- Session description: “Collaborative tabletop storytelling games such as Dungeons & Dragons can foster belonging, empathy, and inclusive participation in classrooms and beyond. This session explores how structured collaborative storytelling spaces support protective social connectedness, particularly for isolated and marginalized youth, and offers practical strategies for creating safe communities that promote resilience and thriving.”
Suck Less Tomorrow: A Podcast for Teachers – 2026 – Podcast Guest
- Guest on an episode of Suck Less Tomorrow: A Podcast for Teachers.
- Episode description: “We explore how teachers navigate political conversations in the classroom, the role of bias in education, and why fostering critical thinking is more important than ever. Ben also shares strategies for facilitating meaningful discussions, encouraging student participation, and helping students engage with complex ideas. Along the way, we talk about Dungeons & Dragons clubs, student leadership, civic engagement, and the lessons both of us have learned throughout our careers in education.”
Indiana Youth Group (IYG) Workshop – 2024 – Panel Member
- Participated in a panel discussion about LGBTQ+ issues in education.
- Workshop organized and hosted by Indiana Youth Group, a nonprofit organization that “promotes a space of acceptance, equity, and restorative practices.”
South Shore Summer of Learning at Duneland Conference – 2024 – Workshop Leader
- Presented “SEL in Secondary Classrooms: A Practical Approach,” an original workshop designed for high school educators.
- Session description: “Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) has gained momentum in recent years, but the daily practical applications of the educational method are often overshadowed by other sociopolitical conversations. In this session, attendees will learn about the practical benefits of integrating SEL-related strategies into daily lesson plans. Attendees will also receive scenario-specific tips for processing SEL-related topics, regardless of the subject of the class. This session was designed by a secondary classroom teacher for secondary classroom teachers.”
Northwest Indiana Suicide Prevention Council Symposium – 2018 – Presenter
- Presenter at “Is Your School Suicide Ready?” Symposium hosted by the NWI LGBTQ Coalition and the NWI Suicide Prevention Council.
- Participated in a Q&A with attendees after the presentation.
Commencement Speaker – 2015, 2016, 2018 – Speaker
- Three-time student-selected graduation speaker.
- Delivered the keynote address to three different graduating classes at Wheeler High School.
Purdue University Northwest Mental Health Workshop – 2017 – Guest Lecturer
- Spoke to Purdue University Northwest students about mental health issues.
- Presented “An Important Conversation,” a spoken creative nonfiction piece, before participating in a Q&A about depression and anxiety.
- Jennifer Marshall, co-founder and executive director of This Is My Brave, was the event’s keynote speaker.
This Is My Brave’s Chicagoland Storytelling Event – 2016 – Presenter
- This Is My Brave is an organization “dedicated to ending mental illness stigma through storytelling.”
- Presented “An Important Conversation,” an original piece of creative nonfiction.
UMC’s Call to Action Steering Team – 2012 – Presenter
- From June 2009 to May 2012, worked as a member of the UMC’s Call to Action Steering Team, a group created to identify areas of possible adaptation within the global organization and to help the denomination focus its efforts around global health, work with the poor, local growth, and developing leaders.
- Each iteration of the Call to Action Steering Team dissected statistical reports from organizations outside of the denomination and discussed possible reforms. As noted in the final Call to Action report, the CTA Steering Team advised the following:
- For a minimum of 10 years, starting January 2011, use the drivers of vitality as initial areas of attention for sustained and intense concentration on building effective practices.
- Dramatically reform leadership development, deployment, evaluation, and accountability systems.
- Collect, report and review, and act on statistical information that measures progress in key performance areas in uniform and consistent ways across all local groups and annual conferences, to learn and adjust our approaches to leadership, policies, and the use of human and financial resources.
- Consolidate program and administrative agencies, align their work and resources with global priorities and the decade-long commitment to build vitality, and reconstitute them with much smaller competency-based boards of directors in order to overcome current lack of alignment, diffused and redundant activity, and high expense due to independent structures.
- Presented the final Call to Action recommendations to the attendees and delegates of the 2012 General Conference in Tampa, Florida in May 2012.
The Arts
Founder and editor-in-chief of Perspicacity Magazine.
Participated in the following theatre productions:
- The Constant Wife (staged reading) at The Drama Group in Chicago Heights (Bernard Kersal)
- Words. (staged reading) at Bearcat Theatre Company (James)
- The Mousetrap at Crown Point Community Theatre (Detective Sergeant Trotter)
- The Producers at Memorial Opera House (Kevin/Ensemble)
- Picasso at the Lapin Agile at Crown Point Community Theatre (Albert Einstein)
- A Wonderful Life (musical) at Bearcat Theatre Company (Matthew)
- Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (staged reading) at the Indiana University School of Education
