QCYC INFO

When: February 24th & 25th, 2025

Where: Davenport River Center

Registration: Registration information will be sent to schools in the Fall of 2024, or to get on our contact list, please email us at quadcitiesyc@gmail.com.

We are looking forward to another FANTASTIC Conference in 2025

2025 Keynote Presenter

Landon Ballard knows what it’s like to face obstacles—and overcome them. Landon, a Rockford native, joined the MWAH! (Messages Which Are Hopeful!) Performing Arts Troupe at age 12 in 2011 after the troupe delivered a live performance at a high school in Champaign, Illinois. As a teenager in MWAH!, he performed in live skits and songs focused on such topics as depression, mental health, bullying, racism, and substance abuse at schools across Illinois.

As he reached high school, though, Landon’s pleasant, audience-pleasing façade concealed a truth known only to him and a few of his peers—he was using illegal drugs— including alcohol, marijuana, opioids, and harder drugs—and his drug use was becoming more significant with each passing year. Like many young people, Landon hid the addiction well. He earned decent grades in school and continued to perform with the troupe as if nothing were wrong.

In the years after high school, though, his substance abuse became worse, and he ultimately checked into a rehab program in the spring of 2020 through which he—with the help of substance abuse counselors and other professionals concerned about his well-being—extricated himself from the grip of drugs. He landed a job in a factory and was on the way to putting his life back together until he was involved in a motorcycle crash on May 7, 2021. After undergoing surgery for a fractured left wrist, among other injuries, Landon took on the challenge of physical recovery head-on. Recognizing the need to avoid a relapse, Landon avoided any opioid-based painkiller following his wrist surgery, a decision which has served him well.

Landon wants to share his story with students to give them the courage to make good decisions, recognize their self-worth, avoid addictive drugs, and seek help when they need it in order to reach their full potential as productive, lifelong learners.

Landon’s “Bouncing Back: A Personal Reflection on Addiction, Recovery, and Resilience” takes listeners through his journey of substance use, recovery, and mental wellness during the past 10 years. Through his presentation, Landon uses humor and audience participation to share his story of drug addiction as a teenager, his path through recovery as a young adult, and his successful management of bipolar disorder.

Landon also shared his story of addiction and recovery through his appearance at “This Is My Brave,” a presentation at the Egyptian Theatre in DeKalb, Illinois on October 13, 2022. Landon’s powerful combination of spoken-word narration, vocal music, and instrumental music is displayed via a YouTube link on the MWAH! Performing Arts Troupe’s Web site at www.mwah.net/landonballard

2025 Workshop Sessions

1. What can laughing do for us? – Landon Ballard, MWAH!
2. Traffic Stop Behavior: The Do’s and Absolutely Do NOTs - Trooper Jason Wilson, Illinois State Police
3. The Truth About Vaping and E-Cigs – Jason Otten & Kennon Neal, Center for Alcohol & Drug Services, Inc.
4. How Therapy Dogs can be Useful in a Stressful World – Angie Hall, Legacy Therapy Dogs
5. Breaking the Silence, Love Doesn’t Hurt – LueKinna Hodges, Kinna’s House of Love
6. Overview of Electronic Services/Money Fraud – Karen Tegeler & Jason Bauer, DuTrac Community Credit Union
7. Overview of Credit Cards & Auto Loans – Karen Tegeler & Jason Bauer, DuTrac Community Credit Union
8. Becoming BodyKind and Social Media – Stephanie Burrough, QC Eating Disorders Consortium
9. Decisions, Decisions – Jessica Byczynski, Bethany for Children & Families
10. Social Media & the Teenage Brain – Nicole Zook, Youth Service Bureau
11. We Connect-Global Youth Citizenship – Elaine Kaple, University of Illinois Extension-4H
12. DO Better, BE Better: Showing Tolerance & Kindness – Rock Island High School Drama Club
13. Gratitude is the Best Attitude – Melissa Secker & Riverdale Middle School Gray Matters Collective Student Leaders
14. Brains!!! – Wendy Walljasper, Bethany for Children & Families
15. PATHWAYS – Lt. Zach Soliz, Davenport Fire Department
16. Next Men Gen – Carlos H. Jimenez, M.Ed., Prevention Services Manager, Martin Luther King Center
17. Let’s Talk About Mental Health – Haley DeGreve, Gray Matters Collective
18. Growing Through Grief – Julie Derrer, AdFarmQC/TravelFarmQC
19. Fighting Fake Freedom - Malcom Walker, Vera French Clinic & Rodney Tatum, Central High School-Davenport Community Schools
20. Overcoming Chaos – Master Douglas Fuechsel
21. Adulting 101: Skills for Success – Kimberly Kim, Bethany for Children & Families
22. No Inglish:My Journey from an Immigrant Child to a Professional and Civic Leader – Alvaro Macias, Ascentra Credit Union/City of Moline Ward 2 Alderman
23. #MyStoryMyFuture: Making Safe & Smart Online Choices – Karilyn Orr, Illinois Attorney General’s Office in Chicago
24. Torrian Ball, Vibe Tribe  (Feature entertainment workshop) - 
    
    From being nearly killed in a car accident that left him paralyzed for almost a year; to collaborating with Wiz Khalifa, garnering millions of views, and touring across the country independently; Torrian Ball shows us that you can truly do anything you put your mind to, no matter what cards you’re dealt. Torrian Ball is fearless in his pursuit to push the limits of creative expression. His honest lyricism combined with intoxicating delivery creates songs that hit with razor sharp precision, empowering and embracing positivity, discussing relationships, and various other subjects.