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Jeremiah Williams �鶹��ý�23 has always been a talker. Born in New Orleans and raised in the suburbs of Houston, Jeremiah has honed his skills as a public speaker right here in New York City, where he�鶹��ý�s studying political science and communication studies. �鶹��ý�I realized at a young age that I was speaking up about things, challenging teachers when something didn�鶹��ý�t make sense,�鶹��ý� he recalls. �鶹��ý�And that a lot of people weren�鶹��ý�t comfortable or able to do that.�鶹��ý�

While in high school, Jeremiah traveled the country as part of the speech and debate teams, but eventually his public speaking journey brought him to Pace�鶹��ý�s New York City Campus. His decision to come to Pace opened a door to a truly incredible opportunity: taking the podium to address one of the largest international groups in the world.

This fall, Jeremiah was selected as a youth speaker on behalf of Pace and the University�鶹��ý�s Peace and Justice Studies Department to give a life-altering statement to the United Nations First Committee. He seized the moment to discuss youth engagement and peace, disarmament, and non-proliferation education. It takes courage to find yourself speaking in front of so many countries and non-political organizations, and Jeremiah had no lack of courage when his moment came. A voice for his peers, Jeremiah recognizes the power of speaking up when it counts.

�鶹��ý�Sometimes we�鶹��ý�re afraid to recognize the power of our voice, but I know the power of mine,�鶹��ý� says Jeremiah. �鶹��ý�And when it�鶹��ý�s on behalf of a cause that�鶹��ý�s important to me or a group of people that need to feel heard, I am more than comfortable using my voice for them. My voice isn�鶹��ý�t just mine.�鶹��ý�

Today, Jeremiah is trying to keep up with the opportunities in his path following his speech to the UN. He was recently invited to speak in a room filled with ambassadors and Heads of State, a place he wouldn�鶹��ý�t have dreamed of being at such a young age: �鶹��ý�I had never thought I�鶹��ý�d be speaking to ambassadors at twenty�鶹��ý�I�鶹��ý�m still trying to figure out what subway line to take,�鶹��ý� he laughs.

�鶹��ý�Sometimes we�鶹��ý�re afraid to recognize the power of our voice, but I know the power of mine,�鶹��ý� says Jeremiah.

Along with pursuing these new experiences, Jeremiah is also the founding president of . His goal is to give people the tools to speak confidently and passionately about matters that they care about. �鶹��ý�You see a problem or an issue and you�鶹��ý�re surrounded by all of this noise, all of this news, but can you do anything about it? For me, I�鶹��ý�ve always innately thought �鶹��ý�yes�鶹��ý�. A lot of people need to be shown that they�鶹��ý�re voices are powerful or given the tools to make them feel powerful,�鶹��ý� he says.

Jeremiah hopes to help prepare young public speakers for the moments when the spotlight is suddenly on; the moments in which they will need to use their voice when they might not be expecting to do so. This is a challenge Jeremiah is quite excited to take head-on.

�鶹��ý�Life�鶹��ý�s crazy, and the moments come when you�鶹��ý�re not expecting them. Yet, here they are. People need to feel confident and powerful enough to know that their voice matters.�鶹��ý�