Aryana walks down the hallway during lunch, finding a perfect place to sit and have her lunch. While walking, she sees a poster advertising new speakers for the TEDx club. Click! She snaps a quick photo of the poster so she can fill out the Google form once she’s at home.

The WJ branch of TEDx, a nonprofit organization, is accepting new speakers and crew members to prepare for an upcoming event in January, hosted in the auditorium. The theme for this year’s event is “Stories That Shape Us.”

“I plan on speaking about how the culture and arts of my own ethnicities help me feel more connected to those said ethnicities and how I think it could be a universal experience,” new member, sophomore Aryana Moayedi said.

Applications to become a speaker are rolling in. While students fill out applications, the executive board of the club is also hard at work.

“It takes a few months to plan the events, since it takes some time to confirm a date for the event with administration,” social media manager, junior Sana Moayedi said.

However, being a speaker is not the only position that students can participate in. Students may also work on the crew.

“They [the crew] help set up microphones, cameras, etc,” Sana Moayedi said. “The event wouldn’t be possible without them.”

In regard to the event, emotions are heightened, “I’m honestly feeling both excited and nervous,” Aryana Moayedi said. “I’m nervous because I’m scared that I’ll mess up or something will go wrong with my speech. I’m also scared that other people are going to judge my speech.”

The club has biweekly meetings on Fridays that are mandatory for speakers. These meetings allocate time for the speakers to practice their speeches, peer review and make edits that are necessary in order to prepare for the event. Last year’s theme was “Catalyst to Success.”

“Last year I spoke about how small successes ultimately lead to greater success, so as not to downplay those smaller victories,” past member, senior Mya Andriamalala said. “I learned about being my authentic self and putting myself out there, which was really scary initially but overall such a great experience with no regrets.”

The events allowed speakers to expose themselves to more public speaking opportunities.

“I think that it’s a really good thing to take with you into the future,” Aryana Moayedi said, “I feel like it’ll be so helpful in college and later years.”