Michael is “the happiest person he knows!” That said – Michael has a unique take on life given his experiences growing up in The Bronx, New York City. The son of a brave New York City Policeman and fabulous Italian-American mother, Michael finds being direct and honest easier than most – allowing him to mix humor and passion in a way that makes him memorable and motivational!

Expect no soft soaking – rather, Michael gets you motivated in this arena by telling it like it is and by insisting that you consider new ways to “get it done.” Done humorously, his employers and clients repeatedly claim that his manner really gets people to listen and motivates to make positive changes.

Michael has been working at hundreds of college campuses across the US for 10+ years.  He brings a positive attitude, a multitude of experience and humor to all of his programs.  As a former Student Affairs professional, he is in touch with the needs of college campuses today.

After reading this, you might like to meet Michael – consider this session as your first introduction.

Mark E. Fowler is Tanenbaum’s Director of Programs and oversees all of our program areas. He is responsible for program development, project management, and the expansion of Tanenbaum programs nationally and internationally. As Director of Programs, he leads the design and implementation of all Ta-nenbaum trainings.

He is also an in-demand trainer and speaker in all of Tanenbaum’s core areas. Most recently he led workshops at the National Association for Multicultural Education, Out and Equal’s Annual Conference, the 6th National Conference on Quality Care for Diverse Populations, the National MultiCultural Institute and the Multicultural Forum.

Mr. Fowler has been involved in New York City’s education community for over 20 years. Immediately prior to joining Tanenbaum, Mr. Fowler served as a Health Educator, developing and delivering programs on HIV/AIDS prevention and health risk reduction. He has also been a New York City Department of Education Coordinator of Student Affairs and a teacher working with at-risk youth in danger of not com-pleting their high school education.

He is also a skilled facilitator/trainer and has worked with the Anti-Defamation League in its "A World of Difference" Institute. There, he worked with teachers, counselors and administrators as well as students from K-12 on prejudice reduction, conflict resolution, as well as identifying and reducing bias and bullying.

In addition to his work at Tanenbaum, Mr. Fowler is a sought-after keynote speaker and facilitator who has addressed private and public entities throughout New York City on issues of equality in regard to race, gender, sexual orientation and religion.

Mr. Fowler earned a B.A. in English and Education at Duke University. He was also trained as a Mediation and Conflict Resolution Specialist with the New York City Department of Education.

Mark J. Schmit, Ph.D., SHRM-SCP, is the Executive Director for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Foundation. In this capacity he leads the Foundation’s efforts to advance the strategic direction and impact of the HR profession. Dr. Schmit was previously the Vice President of Research for SHRM. Dr. Schmit has more than 25 years of experience in the field of human resources including work as an HR generalist, academic, applied researcher, and internal and external consultant to both public and private organizations. Dr. Schmit earned a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Bowling Green State University in 1994. Dr. Schmit is a Fellow in both the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology and the American Psychological Association. He is also certified as a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).

Monica Diaz is the vice president of Diversity, Inclusion and Wellness at ESPN (part of The Walt Disney Company). She joined the company in 2012, with extensive experience in the Human Resources field, in the areas of Global Diversity and Inclusion, Talent Management and Organizational Development. Her areas of expertise include corporate culture transformation, development of high performing teams and leadership in multi-cultural and matrix environments.   

In her role at ESPN, Monica is the chief architect of the company’s Diversity, Inclusion and Wellness strategy. She leads ESPN’s strategy to fully leverage the contributions of diverse constituencies in alignment with business priorities. She is also responsible for driving the continuous evolution of a healthy and vibrant work environment that enables employees to contribute to their fullest potential.

Before joining ESPN and The Walt Disney Company, Monica developed a solid career within globally recognized companies, such as Microsoft, Merck & Co and Sara Lee Corporation.  

Monica’s breadth of knowledge is frequently sought after by practitioners from different industries and professional organizations. She engages in public speaking forums, such as the Tri-State Diversity Council; Advertising Women of New York (AWNY); Harvard University – Latinas Development Conference; Executive Development Institute; The Conference Board and the State Farm D&I Conference. She has been recognized as one of Hispanic Business Magazine’s 50 Influentials (2013) and 100 Influentials (2011), as well as the Worldwide Who’s Who among Executives and Professionals in 2007, 2008 and 2012.

Her work with professional and non-profit organizations involves roles as Advisory Board Member of Madrinas, role model and mentoring for minority students with HISPA and member of the Corporate Executive Council of the Hispanic Association of Corporate Responsibility.

Monica’s qualifications include specialized certifications and training in Change Execution, Six-Sigma, Personal Styles and Preferences, and Employee Benefits Law. She has a multi-cultural background, is bilingual-biliterate in English and Spanish, with proficiency in Portuguese.   She holds a MA in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, BA in Psychology (Magna Cum Laude) from the University of Puerto Rico and recently completed the WISE Executive Leadership Institute from Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.