2013 Keynote Speaker

Sara Nowlin

For the past eleven years, speaker and life coach SARA NOWLIN has been on a mission to deliver a powerful message to students about authenticity and leadership.  During five years as an English and Social Studies teacher, Sara delivered presentations to middle school students that gave them life skills to lead successful and authentic lives. For the past two years, she has served as Program Director for Girls’ Leadership Worldwide at the Eleanor Roosevelt Leadership Center, an international summer program that empowers adolescent girls to become the next generation of principled leaders. Sara has been published in the best-selling book, Speaking Your Truth: Courageous Stories from Inspiring Women, Volume 2, and is a regular contributor to the Poughkeepsie Journal. As a consultant with leadership training company DKBWAVE, Sara has worked with National Urban Fellows, The Salvation Army, and the Mayor’s Office of NYC. Sara obtained her B.A. in Sociology and History, specializing in social oppression, from Lehigh University. She holds a Teaching Credential from St. Mary’s College and completed graduate work in Counseling Psychology at John F. Kennedy University. Currently living in Poughkeepsie, New York, in her free time Sara loves to travel, dance and watch ESPN.

ON A MISSION

Young people are struggling--struggling to fit in, struggling to be successful, but most of all, struggling to be comfortable in their own skin. After five years of teaching middle school and witnessing students struggle to navigate the tumultuous transition of their early teen years, Sara’s mission began -- give young people the awareness and tools to find their power and ultimately peace within themselves. Having been bullied and abused growing up, Sara is no stranger to struggle. Using her own personal struggles (past and ongoing) throughout her programs, she establishes credibility, as well as creates a safe space for others to open up and share their struggles. It is in this magical safe space that the powerful work of Breaking Free to Simply Be is accomplished. Committed to students living powerful lives, Sara’s programs provide opportunities to integrate these core principles with simple practical tools they can immediately utilize in their life. Students leave with more than mere insights. Students leave with action steps to…BREAK FREE AND SIMPLY BE!