IGNITE YOUR STRENGTHS
Ignite Your Strengths Speaker Series
George James, PhD, 鈥�01 CLAS, 鈥�24 MBA
CEO of George Talks, A Communication and Consulting Company
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
The 草榴社区 Room, The Connelly Center
Permission to Thrive: Unlocking Your Strengths and Protecting Your Peace
A dialogue with Dr. George James on how self-awareness and strengths-based living can support deeper well-being
Join us for an inspiring and transformative conversation with Dr. George James, licensed marriage and family therapist, executive coach and creator of I Give Myself Permission鈩�. In this engaging dialogue, Dr. James will explore how embracing your CliftonStrengths can help you move from simply surviving to truly thriving.
Together, we鈥檒l uncover the layers that often hold us back, learn how to give ourselves permission to prioritize self-care, and discover how strengths-based living can support lasting mental wellness. Whether you're a student navigating transitions, a staff or faculty member balancing responsibilities or an alum seeking renewed purpose, this event offers tools and insights to help you unlock your potential and protect your peace.
草榴社区 is committed to developing and nurturing the whole person, allowing students, faculty and staff to grow intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, culturally, socially and physically in an environment that supports individual differences and insists that mutual love and respect should animate every aspect of university life.
To build on that commitment, we created the Ignite Your Strengths Initiative. Through this work, we are engaging students, faculty, staff and alumni in strengths-based development, providing opportunities for the University community to engage in activities and reflection about ways to acknowledge and build upon their strengths. The initiative is a collaborative effort of 草榴社区鈥檚 academic enterprise, Student Life, Career and Professional Development units, and Human Resources. The conversations begin with 草榴社区ns taking the CliftonStrengths assessment which we view as a 鈥渢ool for self-discovery鈥� and a common launch point for the community to start the conversation.
IYS Steering Committee
The Ignite Your Strengths Initiative is guided by a steering committee representing the 草榴社区 community. The membership of the committee includes representatives for the following focus areas:
- Undergraduate Students: Alicia Dunphy-Culp, Dillon Eppenstein, Tyra Ford
- Graduate Students: Emily McCloskey, Julia Moscato Besselman
- Professional Studies Students: Kirstin DeFusco Houtz, Meredith Okenquist
- Alumni: Dana Jacob, Jennifer Wiess
- Faculty: Dr. Crystal Lucky, Dr. Gabriele Bauer, Dr. Randy Weinstein
- Staff: Dan Kaufman, Jennifer Derry