Wesleyan Professor and ‘Disrupted’ Host Dr. Khalilah Brown-Dean to speak at The Bushnell on Oct. 23.

Submitted

Wesleyan University professor Dr. Khalilah Brown-Dean will be the keynote speaker at the 2024 Luminary Celebration, the joyful annual fundraiser hosted by the West Hartford-based Aurora Women and Girls Foundation.

The event, which is open to the public, will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts. Click here to register.

“I am honored to serve as keynote speaker for such an awe-inspiring occasion,” said Brown-Dean. “The Luminary Celebration provides a space to unite in our collective commitment to the holistic success of women and girls.“

A graduate of the University of Virginia and Ohio State University, Brown-Dean is the Rob Rosenthal Distinguished Professor of Civic Engagement and Executive Director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life. She is also the well-known host of the “Disrupted,” the award-winning Connecticut Public Radio show and podcast on which Aurora appeared in November 2023 to discuss its collaborative research report, “Elusive Equity.”

Proceeds from Luminary will support Aurora’s community investments, especially its College Success programs and groundbreaking research about women and girls in CT.

“Dr. Brown-Dean knows that access to higher education can be a route to opportunity, and that sharing knowledge – with her students, her listeners, or her fellow scholars at the Allbritton Center – can inspire collective action and change,” said Aurora Executive Director Jennifer Steadman, Ph.D.  “I know we will leave the Bushnell energized by her insights and ready to change the world for women and girls.”

Aurora is grateful to the following Community Partners for their annual  operating support: Ares Management; Barnes Group; the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity, and Opportunity (CWCSEO); Cowdery, Murphy & Healy; Eastern CT State University; Family First Life; the Goss Family; the Green & Blue Foundation; Liberty Bank; Max Cares Foundation; NBT Bank; Jennifer W. Pennoyer, MD;  PeoplesBank; PNT Data; Pullman and Comley; Robinson + Cole; Ruel Ruel Burns Feldman & Britt; Symetra; Tokio Marine HHC; UConn Health Disparities; The Village for Families and Children; Trinity College; Wealthspire; Whittlesey; and the YWCA Hartford Region.

About Aurora Women and Girls Foundation

The Aurora Women and Girls Foundation was founded in 2000 by a group of community leaders who sought to lift up women and girls through focused philanthropy. Aurora galvanizes resources to increase gender and racial equity through economic security, educational attainment, and leadership for women and girls in the Greater Hartford region. We envision strong, equitable communities in which all women and girls realize their potential and are full, valued, and sought-after participants — economically, politically, and socially.

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