By Alexandra Brewer | Arts & Life Intern, Jacob Stowers | Broadcast Reporter
Baylor hosted its first TEDxBaylor event this weekend, bringing together professors, students and community members for a day focused on sharing stories and ideas that inspire change at the Hurd Welcome Center.
LTVN’s Jacob Stowers has details from the event
“I think what’s really cool about something like this is it brings in people from the community,” attendee Rajesh Solanki said. “You have people that aren’t related to Baylor, people who are related to Baylor and I think a lot of times people live in their own little bubbles, and this kind of brings everyone together, hopefully for something inspirational.”
While many Baylor events are centered on the campus community, TEDxBaylor opened the doors wider, drawing people from all around Waco. The event created space for conversations that reached beyond academics — about overcoming challenges, rethinking purpose and finding connection in unexpected places.
Baylor’s Senior Director of External Affairs Krista Brinser said she hopes TEDxBaylor will continue to grow and eventually become a lasting tradition every fall semester.
Dr. Leigh Greathouse, an associate professor of biology and nutrition sciences, was among the lineup of speakers. She shared her story about surviving stage-four uterine cancer and how that shaped her career and outlook on life.
“My talk was mainly inspired through my life history in surviving cancer, and just during that time learning from what I could understand during that time of suffering to figure out what it was I was supposed to learn,” Greathouse said. “I think my personality is just such that I’m very task-oriented and I want to know what I’m going to do next.”
During her talk, Greathouse explained how her diagnosis pushed her to apply what she knew best to her recovery: science. She used her background in nutrition to guide her approach during treatment, which later led her to study the connection between diet, cancer and the gut microbiome.
Her message, though rooted in research, centered on something deeper — the idea that struggle can lead to purpose.
“Happiness is not the absence of suffering,” she told the audience. “Happiness is what you find when you stop running from it and you start asking it what it came to teach you, because everyone in this audience has superpowers.”
For Greathouse and the other presenters, the event offered a chance to connect meaningful lessons with personal experience — something that set TEDxBaylor apart from a typical lecture or panel.
TEDxBaylor was more than just a showcase of ideas; it was a reminder of how storytelling can bridge the gap between Baylor and the wider Waco community, bringing people together through moments of inspiration.
Brinser also notes that these videos will be available for viewing on the TEDx YouTube account in the following weeks.
