Get Ready—SHIFT HAPPENS in July 2025!
A Space for Financial Capability Practitioners to Connect, Learn & Create Lasting Change.
Welcome to the 2025 Bright Minds Experience & Training Conference, a powerful two-day gathering for changemakers at the intersection of financial capability, youth empowerment, and community resilience, with a Totally Tubular 80s theme!
Now proudly partnering with Jump$tart Florida and FSU Federal Credit Union!
This isn’t your average conference. It’s a hands-on, heart-forward experience where real voices, practical tools, and bold ideas come together to move the needle for LMI and ALICE families across the country.
DAY 1 – JULY 8
Bright Minds Symposium
Empowering Youth. Elevating Voices. Inspiring Action.
Open to all attendees at no cost. Public programming begins at 10:00 AM.
The Bright Minds Symposium kicks off at 10:00 AM with opening remarks by Claudia Navarro, followed by dynamic presentations from four student-led teams beginning at 10:20 AM and wrapping at 11:16 AM.
This free pre-conference session is a chance to hear directly from rising young leaders as they present bold solutions and real-world insights. A short break will follow.
By 11:30 AM, the official conference registration opens, leading into a high-energy afternoon of keynotes and panels.
Opening Sessions:
- 12:30 PM: Opening by Bill Mills – “Shift Happens”
- 12:50 PM: Lunchtime Keynote by Nathalie Liriano, SouthState Bank – “Stepping Into Independence”
- 1:25 PM: Networking Break
- 1:40 PM: Youth-Led Panels:
- 'What Works for Us' – How Gen Z actually learns money habits
- 'Beyond Budgeting' – Teaching behavior, not just math
- 'What NOT to Say to Youth' – Language that motivates vs. lectures
- 'What Works for Us' – How Gen Z actually learns money habits
- 3:40 PM: “FinCap Assist" Bill Mills and Sameer Shehrawat
- 3:55 PM: Reflection by Bill Daniel, OCPS Teacher
- 4:30 PM: Closing Remarks from Claudia Navarro
DAY 2 – JULY 9
Begin with light breakfast and networking at 8:30 AM, then dive into a full day of professional growth and peer learning.
Morning Sessions:
- 9:00 AM: Welcome from Bill Mills
- 9:05 AM: Amanda Paolicelli, Dare To Be Iconic – “When Bright Minds Are Given the Space to Soar”
- 9:25 AM: Banking Panel – “Money for Something: Banks, Families, and Youth Financial Success”
- Featuring: Joyce Odongo, Bank OZK; Marilyn Drayton, Retired Banker; Terrell R. DeJarnett, Self-Help Credit Union
- Moderated by Claudia Navarro
- Featuring: Joyce Odongo, Bank OZK; Marilyn Drayton, Retired Banker; Terrell R. DeJarnett, Self-Help Credit Union
- 10:15 AM: Michelle Collie, City National Bank – “Igniting Your Potential and Purpose!”
- 10:35 AM: Coffee Break
- 10:50 AM: Carlene Ulacia, New York Life Insurance Company – “Manage you $*it or someone will for you”
- 11:25 AM: Pamala McCoy, B5 ReAffirm; Dr. Nicole King-Smith, NK Enterprise Consulting – The Money Mindset Showdown: Practical Tools for Financial Empowerment
- 12:00 PM: Lunch
- 12:20 PM: Jump$tart Florida Spotlight
- 12:40 PM: Keynote by Mannie Canto, Canto Consulting LLC – “Failure Isn’t Final, It’s Necessary”
Afternoon Sessions:
- 1:15 PM: Networking Break
- 1:30 PM: Shari Bresin, MNM, UF/IFAS Cooperative Extension Pasco County – “Employee Wellness and Financial Capability”
- 1:50 PM: Tony Guy, Tony Guy & Associates – “Financial Literacy, Family, and a Promising Future”
- 2:10 PM: Elizabeth Rice, Goodwill Industries of Central Florida, Inc. – “Prosperity… One Size Does Not Fit All”
- 2:45 PM: Snack Break
- 3:00 PM: Dr. Regina Hightower – “Taking Control of Your Financial Future ’Cause It Just Might Be Livin’ on a Prayer!”
- 3:35 PM: Lashea C. Reaves, 8 Cents in a Jar – “Rhythm Nation of Wealth: Centering Coins, Culture, and Classroom Change”
- 4:25 PM: Final Closing Remarks from Bill Mills
REGISTRATION
Yeah, we know—financial capability is important work. But who says learning can’t be high-energy, youth-powered, and actually fun?
At the Shift Happens Conference, we’re bringing real insight and real voices together with an unapologetically bold vibe. This is two days of interactive sessions, youth-led strategy, and practitioner-to-practitioner truth bombs that will recharge your work and your why.
So ditch the dull. This summer, learn, laugh, and level up with a community that gets it.
FOR NONPROFITS, YOUTH AND TEACHERS
🎯 Only $129!
Lock in your spot for one of the most innovative events in the financial capability space—where youth lead, practitioners connect, and shift really happens.
Because progress shouldn’t be boring—and conferences shouldn't be forgettable.
Click Here For Nonprofit, Youth, and Teacher Registration
Attending from a Business or Government Agency?
We’re glad to have you! The registration fee for government and for-profit participants is $199.
Every dollar supports real-world training and financial capability development for youth and families across the country. It’s more than a seat—it’s an investment in what works.
Click Here For For Profit or Government Agency Registration