2025 Masterclass

Sofia Edmundson

Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibilities & Belonging  NYPR

Sofia kicks off Masterclass this summer with last year's popular session, You, Inc. as part of Building on Your Foundation week.

She breaks down the work of knowing ourselves into our values, knowledge, skills and experiences with an emphasis on our inner voice and thought-provoking questions, such as "What do you well when no one else is watching?"

Manjit Devgun

Founder & Corporate Mind Coach  Manjit Meditation

"I’m passionate about re-wiring the mind for your authentic self.” Yes, please.

Globally renowned meditation coach Manjit Devgun returns for the 6th year in a row to support scholars in whatever moment of transition they are experiencing. For most of the Masterclass participants, it will be transitioning from high school to college — among other big life experiences.

Manjit guides scholars in a grounding meditation, and teaches skills that they can always tap into to feel calm, happy, and successful — and "tap into the magic of you."

Jayson Jones

Director, Learning Design and Innovation  McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research, NYU

SPlus Board member Jayson Jones brings back the critical workshop, "Asking for Help Is a Strength" to share about his personal journey as a first-gen scholar at Cornell University through a lens of social work and curriculum development training, and — our favorite — his signature sense of humor.

Drina Lee Edwards

Founder & CEO  Inside Out Development, Inc.

SPlus is PUMPED to introduce this brand new masterclass on the power of positive psychology with Drina Edwards. Drina will cover:

• What is positive psychology?
• How do we start our days?
• How do we ... continue them! Some guidance on naming our feelings (inside out!)

Scholars will participate in an exercise practice their new skills — as individuals, and as part of the cohort-building section.

Valerie Irick Rainford

CEO  Elloree Talent Strategies

As the founder of a company that is laser-focused on diversifying c-suites, Valerie inspires scholars by sharing her personal story of family history, lived experience, and perseverance — and her mission to make corporate America a more representative and inclusive space.

Valerie teaches invaluable life lessons through weaving in her own formative experiences, and captivates each listener — each and every time.

Robin Shelley & Brooke Gunnell

Partners Group

In this introduction to personal finance workshop, Robin Shelley and Brooke Gunnell of Partners Group will demystify the beginning steps to feeling empowered as scholars grow into more fiscal independence.

Tangela Reid, SHRM-SCP, SHRBP, CEP

Sr. Human Resources Business Partner  Prudential Financial

We think Tangela can do it all. Sitting in on her Resume Masterclass last summer was enlightening, but when we learned she was certified in evaluating DiSC personality tests — one of our favorite tools — we had to change course. 

Masterclass participants will complete their DiSC assessments before class so Tangela can jump into what it really means to be fueled by behavior styles Drive, Influence, Support, Clarity — or any combination — and best advocate for ourselves and collaborate with others.

Oscar Lahoud, M.D.

Deputy Chief Clinical Officer  NYU Perlmutter Cancer Center

A model community member who advocates for scholars in all possible ways, Oscar will be aptly kicking off our "Building on Your Community" Week.

With reflections on how he uses his professional and personal passions to navigate new and familiar spaces, Oscar will amplify the fires already lit within scholars to live inspiring (and inspired) lives, and build meaningful connections along the way.

Phuong Tran

Consultant  The Miles Group

Phuong, resident Millennial/Gen Z cusp community member is back to bring insights with her workshop, The Secret Sauce: Building Soft Skills to Thrive in Internships and Adulting in General. 

This interactive session will focus on the soft skills that are often overlooked (but critical!) for navigating internships, professional settings, and adult life.

Scholars will explore how to build confidence, communicate effectively, and connect authentically — all while staying grounded in their values.

Partners Group

Lunch & Learn: Careers in Finance

Partners Group, an innovating and global private equity firm, and the sponsors of SPlus' 2025 Masterclass, will host Masterclass participants plus additional scholars in their offices for a roundtable discussion about careers in finance.

Isabel Tewes

Senior Product Manager, GenAI @ Gmail  Google

Veteran Masterclass speaker, Isabel Tewes is back for her sixth talk in a row — this time in Building on Your Brand Week. A former editor in book publishing, Isa traveled to the west coast to dabble in e-books, and proceeded to strategically hopscotch all over the tech sector in cutting edge user experiences. 

In her keynote to kick off the week, Isa will share her personal narrative with scholars, and offer advice (or, at least, the questions we ask ourselves) to strategically share our own narratives and achieve goals.

Daisy Saldana

Associate Director, Career Services St. Francis College

Highly experienced in shepherding first-gen students through their early career journeys, Daisy is perfectly positioned to help SPlus scholars tackle their resumes and cover letters to stand out in a recruitment world dominated by AI and staid templates.

Janae Graves with Eliane Abou-Assi

Job Placement Manager and Program Manager  CareerSpring

Longtime SPlus partner CareerSpring is showing up with two of its finest ambassadors to lead scholars through key interview preparation strategies. Did you know people are pulling interview responses from AI in real-time and reading off the screen? Janae and Eliane will tackle current trends in interviewing, including some classic tips that never fail.

Daphne Lundi

Consultant  Urban Planning & Climate Policy

Daphne is reprising her closing masterclass keynote on advocacy — how do advocate for others, and how do we advocate for ourselves?

With work experiences at FEMA, the NYC Department of City Planning, the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, City College (CUNY) AND Columbia University, Daphne will take us through advocating on major City levels, and in everyday, smaller ways that can still be big wins.