Keynote Speaker: Henry Doss

“I’m interested in how we learn about ourselves and the world, and how that learning translates into innovative business and educational leadership.”~ Henry Doss

This year’s keynote speaker is Henry Doss, writer,  former banker turned venture capitalist, and musician. As managing partner of his firm Rainforest Technologies, he is interested in cultivating untapped innovations in cultures, strategies, and leaders.  Viewing English language instruction in the context of an ecosystem, rather than focusing upon a single teacher or class, he says, encourages those involved to work towards innovation within that ecosystem.

Henry will talk about the difference between leaders and role models, and what his research has found to be the striking difference in the effectiveness of each and the possible implications those distinctions mean for writing instruction.  In that same vein, he will touch on the three components that allow ecosystems to transcend boundaries: fear, trust, and love.

In addition to the many hats he wears,  Henry Doss is the Executive-in-Residence for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at UNC Charlotte. His interest in Literature and language learning began as an undergraduate here, and throughout his years of experience in the business world he has found that, “Language is the single most important tool students have.”