Speaking
Research that moves people.
Talks that change them.
I bring 20 years of research, teaching, and practice into every talk — and I never deliver generic. Each presentation is grounded in the latest neuroscience, honest about complexity, and built to leave your audience with something they can actually use.
Speaker bio
Suzie White, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati and a leading voice on the neuroscience of thriving, belonging, and human connection in schools. Trained at NYU (Ph.D.) and Harvard (M.Ed.), she has spent two decades researching and practicing what it actually takes for students, parents, and educators to flourish. Before academia, she led a parent engagement program that reached more than 2,500 families across 50 schools and community organizations. She is a certified mindfulness instructor trained in MBSR by Jon Kabat-Zinn and Saki Santorelli, and teaches what may be the only university course in the country called "Happiness in Action." She is based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Signature talks
Flagship keynote
Wired for Connection: The Neuroscience Behind Belonging and What Schools Can Do About It
Loneliness is a public health crisis — and schools are on the front lines. This talk translates cutting-edge brain science into a clear, actionable framework for building belonging in classrooms, hallways, and communities. Audiences leave understanding why human connection is not a "soft" priority and exactly what to do on Monday morning to make their school feel different.
Parent engagement
We Failed, We Listened, We Changed: Relational Strategies That Reached 2,500 Families
The conventional parent engagement playbook doesn't work for low-income families — and most schools know it. Drawing on a decade of research and a program that reached over 2,500 families, this talk offers an honest reckoning with institutional failure and a concrete path forward: showing up where families already are, naming children's potential explicitly, and building trust before asking anything of parents.
Well-being & positive psychology
The Science of Thriving: Happiness, Gratitude, and What the Research Actually Says
Most people think happiness is a personality trait you either have or you don't. The science says otherwise. Drawing on her university course "Happiness in Action" — which produced statistically significant improvements across multiple well-being measures — Suzie walks audiences through the evidence on gratitude, social connection, purpose, and mindfulness, and how to make these practices stick in real institutional life.
Leadership & resilience
Resilience Tools for Women at Work: A Neuroscience-Based Framework for Thriving
Resilience is not about toughing it out. This talk offers women in leadership a neuroscience-grounded framework for building genuine capacity — not just endurance. Audiences leave with specific tools for stress regulation, social repair, and sustainable high performance, along with a clearer understanding of why the systems around them matter as much as their individual habits.
Past engagements
University of Cincinnati
Principal Leadership Institute — Keynote (ranked 1st of 15 speakers)
Quinn Emanuel
Resilience Tools for Women at Work — National Webinar
Walking on Earth
Neuroscience of Social Connection — International
Walking on Earth
The Science of Gratitude — National
Learning and the Brain Conference
Neuroscience of Belonging in Educator PD — Boston, MA
Bring this work to your organization
All talks can be customized for your audience, time slot, and goals. I also design half-day and full-day workshops. No standard packages — every engagement is built around what you actually need.
drsuziewhite@gmail.comI respond to all inquiries within 48 hours.