Speakers

Neil Swidey is a bestselling author, magazine writer and multimedia journalist. He is the author of "Trapped Under the Sea," which was named one of the best books of the year by Amazon and Booklist, and "The Assist," which was named one of the best books of the year by the Washington Post. He is also a coauthor of "Last Lion: The Fall and Rise of Ted Kennedy," which led to his work as a contributing analyst for NBC News. He is editor-at-large of the Boston Globe Magazine, and as the magazine's longtime staff writer, he won a host of national awards, including eight Sigma Delta Chi Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists. He has been an Emmy Award nominee (New England, for his work co-producing short documentaries) and a finalist for the National Magazine Award. Before joining the Brandeis faculty, he taught multimedia journalism at Tufts University, his alma mater. As a public speaker for the Penguin Random House Speakers Bureau, he keynotes conferences throughout the United States and Canada. His magazine pieces have been featured in "The Best American Science Writing," "The Best American Crime Writing," and "The Best American Political Writing." As an outgrowth of his first book, he founded the Alray Scholars Program, a mentoring and scholarship nonprofit that helps Boston students return to college and graduate. More info: www.neilswidey.com

Lauriano joined the United States Army at the age of 21 because since September 11th, 2001 he told his mother that he would join the military one day. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on August of 2010, and was shipped out to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma for Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training as a Multiple Launch Rockets System Crew Member (MLRS) completing two enlistment contracts equaling 6 years. After completing his training, he was stationed in Ft. Bragg, North Carolina as part of the 82nd Airborne Division. Six months into his new unit, he was deployed on a combat tour to Afghanistan attached to the Joint Special Operation Command Unit for 8 months in 2011-2012. He redeployed to Ft. Bragg where he remained until 2014 conducting exercises around the United States with various elements of the U.S. Army. 

 

In 2014, he was shipped to the Republic of South Korea for a 1-year tour in effort of the Korean Defense Mission. He returned to Ft. Sill in 2015 and remained there for the  remainder of his contract, training new soldiers on war tactics and Military Occupational Skill.

He was honorably discharged the United States Army on February of 2016 and enrolled at West Valley College on August of 2016. At WVC, he worked at the Veteran Resources Center as a Peer Advisor to his fellow veterans. He attained an AS Degree for Administration of Justice and was awarded the President’s Veteran Honors Award. He transferred to San Jose State University and continued in the field of Justice Studies where he will be graduating in the Spring of 2021. He worked a semester at SJSU as a Peer Mentor for Peer Connections. His responsibility at Peer Connections was to build a network of resources for transferring veterans and students from West Valley College to San Jose State University. 

He is currently working for the Santa Clara County Probation Department as a Group Counselor. He has also been volunteering with the organization ‘Fresh Lifelines for Youth’ as a Peer Mentor for at-risk youth for the past 3 years.