June 2026
Pathways to Power
2026 West Harlem Summit
June 5 – 7, 2026
West Harlem · Governors Island · New York City
Presented by The LOHM & West Harlem Development Corporation
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About the Summit
Three days of healing, leadership, and community power.
The 2026 West Harlem Summit is a three-day gathering that brings together the West Harlem community, allies, and community leaders committed to transformation, healing, and leadership. The summit features a FOWI Rewriting Herstory Book Tour Stop, breakout workshops on financial wellness, digital literacy, entrepreneurship, public speaking, and AI. Featuring a short film screening with panel discussion, and intimate Women Over Dinner experiences.
Through storytelling, shared learning, and creative expression, attendees will walk away with tangible tools and a renewed sense of connection. Programming is designed for justice-impacted individuals and their families, with a focus on reentry resources, economic empowerment, and community healing.
This summit centers the stories, leadership, and brilliance of those most impacted by the criminal legal system.
“When people who have been through the system pick up the mic, the pen, or the camera, they don’t just tell their story. They change who gets to shape the narrative.”
WOW X WE NATION RE ENTRY SUMMIT 2024 RECAP
The Weekend
Three Days. Four Venues. One Community.
Day One
Friday, June 5
The Dwyer Cultural Center · 309 West 123rd Street, New York, New York, 10027
Networking & Lunch
A light lunch along with networking.
Rewriting Her Story Book Talk
Theatre Room - Book discussion and storytelling. Introduction to Rewriting Her Story collection finding the power in your voice.
FOWI Book TourOne Decision Workshop
Theatre Room - Khalid Barber, author of One Decision, leads a workshop for young adults ages 17 to 24 on choices, transformation, and building your path forward.
Youth WorkshopGrow with Google Workshop
Theatre Room - Nia Forrest leads an intro to digital skills, professional email, online tools, and job readiness through Grow with Google.
Digital SkillsDay Two
Saturday, June 6
The Dwyer Cultural Center · USA Entrance on West 123rd Street, 258 St Nicholas Ave, New York, NY 10027
Registration & Community Welcome
Main Lobby - Check-in, resource tables, and music by a local DJ. Community resource hallway open with reentry services, housing support, mental health providers, and workforce programs.
Opening Ceremony: Why We’re Here
Conference Room 2 - Welcome from The LOHM and West Harlem Development Corporation. Grounding exercise to set a healing tone for the day.
Keynote Introduction
Conference Room 2 - Trish Lewis introduction, speaker announcement and biography.
KeynoteMorning Keynote: From Surviving to Leading
Conference Room 2 - Aisha Babilonia-Campbell shares a personal story of reentry, healing, and community leadership. Focus on hope, agency, and collective power.
KeynoteCommunity Lunch & Resource Fair
Main Hall - Catered lunch with networking. Community resource fair continues throughout.
Breakout Workshops, Block 1
Breakout Rooms - Four sessions total, Two 30 minute sessions at a time: Mental Health & Healing, Grow with Google Digital Literacy, Financial Wellness with Frsh, and Branding & Storytelling Using AI with Starling Thomas. See breakout Block 1 below for details.
Choose Your workshopBreakout Rooms - Four sessions total, Two 30 minute sessions at a time: Public Speaking & Entrepreneurship, Advanced Digital Literacy, One Decision Workshop and AI Tools. See breakout Block 2 below for details.
Choose Your workshopKeynote Introduction
Theatre Room - Trish Lewis introduction, speaker announcement and biography.
Featured Keynote: Justice-Impacted Voices in Hollywood
Theatre Room - Carmela Zumbado on authentic storytelling, representation in Hollywood, and how media can amplify unheard voices to drive healing and systemic change.
Short Film Screening
Theatre Room - A short film screening followed by a moderated conversation on storytelling, representation, and the power of film.
FilmPanel & Reflection
Theatre Room - A moderated audience conversation with Starling Thomas, film maker, Carmela Zumbado, and Alexys Feaster on what the film stirred.
PanelClosing Plenary, Celebration & Farewell
Theatre Room - Community visioning, acknowledgments, and closing remarks to send the work forward together.
Day Two
Saturday Breakout Block 1
Dwyer Cultural Center, West Harlem. Two sessions running concurrently for 30 minutes each, with transition in between.
Public Speaking & Entrepreneurship: Owning Your Voice
Conference Room 1 for One Hour - Lucinda Cross, Confidence building for interviews, hearings, meetings, storytelling Entrepreneurship: pricing, marketing, microgrants
Choose Your workshopDigital Literacy Lab: Grow with Google for Everyday Life
Projector Room - Nia Forrest, Professional email, Google Docs résumés, Google DriveOnline safety, job searching, computer basics
Choose Your workshopMoney Matters: Fresh Start Financial Wellness
Theatre Room - LaToya Desprez / FRSH, FRSH course walkthroughBudgeting, credit, debt, bank accounts, long-term planning
Choose Your workshopThe Art of Storytelling
Projector Room - Starling Thomas, Writing, film, and public speaking as tools for advocacy and self-expression
Choose Your workshopDay Two
Saturday Breakout Block 2
Dwyer Cultural Center, West Harlem. Two sessions running concurrently for 30 minutes each, with transition in between.
Entreprenuership and Celebrity Career Markets
Conference Room 1 - Alexys Feaster, The business on how to move into higher levels of career development and where to start.
Choose Your workshopDigital Literacy II: Job Search & Online Safety
Projector Room - Nia Forrest, Job applications, Google Sheets tracking, LinkedIn basics, Cyberbullying, scams, online safety
Choose Your workshopOne Decision Workshop
Conference Room 1 - Khalid Barber, Youth workshop focused on choices, transformation, and leadership
Choose Your workshopAI Tools
Projector Room - Crystal Scott, AI tools for entrepreneurship, AI-powered productivity and workflow automation, AI strategies for small business organization, planning and growth
Choose Your workshopSunday, June 7
LOHM Filmshop House Presentation (Governors Island) + Women Over Dinner
Reclaiming Narrative: The Stories We Carry
Filmshop House - Filmmaker Starling Thomass presents transforming lived experience into storytelling that shifts culture, conversation, and policy. Special guest speaker P4E and FOWI Alumni, Marta Barreto.
Lunch
Governors Island - Lunch will be provided after Filmshop House presentation. Seats are limited.
Women Over Dinner - RSVP Required
WOD Venue - An intimate, invite-only dinner honoring the strength and brilliance of justice-impacted women. Candlelit dinner with affirmations, conversation cards, and a guest storyteller. A toast to transformation.
Sunday Evening
Women Over Dinner
An intimate, invite-only dinner honoring the strength and brilliance of justice-impacted women. A space for healing, connection, and restoration, the summit’s closing act of sisterhood.
Sunday, June 7 · 6:00 to 8:00 PM · Invite Only