Charles Troy, America’s most acclaimed dramatic musical theatre historian, is a retired graphic designer and former theatre lyricist who has developed sixty multimedia presentations on musical theatre subjects. These visually seamless presentations combine his own original graphics with historic photos, edited audio tracks with the lyrics displayed onscreen, and illustrative video clips — all coordinated with a scripted narrative, evolved from his extensive research, that weaves the pertinent events into a dramatic tale. Charles is based in the Chicago area and is very active there. He has also appeared multiple times at the York Theatre Company in New York City, at the Cole Porter Festival in Porter’s hometown of Peru, Indiana, and has made annual winter tours of Florida.

Dr. Joshua Voss is an Associate Research Professor at Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute  and serves as Chair of the Harbor Branch Faculty Assembly. His primary areas of research interest include coral reef ecology, coral health and disease, molecular ecology, and marine conservation and management. Through Harbor Branch’s Robertson Coral Reef Program he works to discover, characterize, and protect coral reefs ecosystems. Voss is a certified technical rebreather diver who has completed >1500 scientific dives and led >40 scientific expeditions. He teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses in FAU's biology and marine science programs. Voss was previously the director of NOAA’s Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration, Research, and Technology, and has served on several advisory committees and panels, including most recently for the South Atlantic Fisheries Management Council and the Southeast Florida Coral Reef Initiative. After completing his bachelors degree at Elon University in North Carolina, Voss earned his Ph.D. at Florida International University in Miami.

Kevin Wagner, Ph.D., is the chair of the political science department at FAU and was awarded the LLS distinguished professorship in current affairs twice. His research area is technology and politics, both in the United States and abroad. He has co-authored two books and many research articles in this area. His latest book, “Tweeting to Power: The Social Media Revolution in American Politics”, was published by Oxford University Press. Wagner has lectured extensively on technology and politics. He has completed a TEDx talk on the topic and has been cited in many leading newspapers, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, New York Newsday, Dallas Morning News, and Miami Herald. He has been featured on national television shows, including MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” and NBC’s “The Today Show”. Currently, he writes the weekly syndicated “Civics Project” column for Gannet Newspapers.

Dr. Robert P. Watson is a professor of American Studies at Lynn University and Senior Fellow at the Florida Joint Center for Citizenship. He has published 36 books and hundreds of articles, chapters, and essays on topics in politics and history, co-convened a half-dozen national conferences on the presidency, and serves on the boards of several scholarly journals, presidential foundations, and community and professional associations. A frequent media commentator, he has given media interviews to local, national, and international print, radio, and television outlets, including CNN, BBC, USA Today, and others. He was for many years a Sunday columnist for the Sun-Sentinel newspaper and is the political analyst for WPTV 5 (NBC).

Raised in Florida during the Space Shuttle era, Zachary Weil feels a deep connection to spaceflight and its history. As founder and operator of Contact Light Films, his mission is to share stories that inspire and motivate younger generations toward positions of public service and leadership. His resume includes hundreds of short-form programs highlighting the philanthropic efforts of Fortune 500 companies like Toyota and Target, to campaigns for nationally recognized non-profits like the 20MM Foundation and the Hispanic Scholarship Fund. In 2019, Weil’s first feature-length documentary, “When We Were Apollo,” premiered at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama before receiving a national broadcast on PBS member stations. In December 2020, the film won an Emmy in the historical documentary category from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Suncoast chapter. Weil lives with his wife, Mary, and their dog, Hobbes, in Bangor, Maine.

Dr. Wiese‘s work concerns empowering rural older adults to age in place through increased awareness of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Dr. Wiese’s journey is an example of “it’s never too late to learn.” Dr. Wiese earned her MSN from the University of Virginia in 1985, and in 2013, received her doctoral degree at Florida Atlantic University’s C.E. Lynn College of Nursing, followed by a post-graduate certificate in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from Drexel University. She is board certified in gerontological and public health nursing. She is the recipient of funding from the National Institute on Aging/National Institutes of Health, and Florida Department of Health. She is currently testing wearable technology to detect patterns of cognitive risk in rural settings with funding from Washington State University, and conducting an FAU I-Health Pillar-funded online chair yoga study with FAU’s Dr. JuYoung Park. Dr Wiese serves on several state and national Alzheimer’s Association committees.