Disney+ star Dara Reneé is the Disney Dreamers Academy celebrity ambassador for this year's event at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.
Reneé joined the 100 students today in a special cavalcade along Main Street U.S.A. in Magic Kingdom. Watch below to see video of the parade.
Reneé, best known for playing Kourtney in the Disney+ Original series' High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,' will serve as the program's "DREAMbassador" where she will be a mentor and advocate for the students. Reneé will share personal insights, drawing from her own journey of chasing her dreams of becoming a multi-faceted artist on stage and screen as an actor, singer and dancer. She has already appeared in various on-screen roles, including ABC's 'Black-ish,' and 'Grey's Anatomy,' and is set to star in the upcoming Disney Original movie 'Descendants: The Rise of Red,' streaming this summer on Disney+.
"There are few things that I'm more passionate about than nurturing the lives of young people, especially talented ones who just need a little inspiration," said Reneé. "Being the DREAMbassador for Disney Dreamers Academy this year is the perfect way for me to help engage with these young minds and hopefully offer them the guidance and spark they need to blow open the doors to their career dreams."
Other noted speakers participating in the event this year include:
- Big Tigger, a DJ, rapper, TV and radio personality, best known as the host of BET's 'Rap City' and ‘106 & Park'. He currently hosts 'The Big Tigger Morning Show' on WVEE in Atlanta
- Rickey Smiley, a comedian and radio and TV personality best known as the host of the nationally syndicated radio show 'The Rickey Smiley Morning Show'
- Dr. Johnnetta Cole, an anthropologist, educator, author, museum director and the first Black female president of Spelman College
- Nikkolas Smith, a contemporary artist, illustrator, author, activist and former Walt Disney Imagineer, who has illustrated movies, including 'Black Panther,' 'Black Panther 2' and 'Space Jam 2'
- Lyn Sisson-Talbert, an accomplished Hollywood producer on various projects, including Netflix's first original live-action musical 'Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey'
- Jérôme LaMaar, a fashion designer, whose work was part of Beyonce's 'Black is King' film on Disney+
- Samara Cyn, an emerging musical artist who is gaining popularity with her
unique sound that fuses neo-soul and hip-hop
Each year, the Disney Dreamers are selected from thousands of applicants who answer essay questions about their personal stories and dreams for the future. The students and a parent or guardian enjoy an all-expenses paid trip to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida for the event. The program is an integral part of Disney's commitment to supporting diverse communities by encouraging the next generation to think and dream big.
Since 2008, Disney Dreamers Academy has inspired more than 1,600 students from across the country by fueling their dreams and showing them a world of possibilities as they prepare for their futures. In the years following, graduates have become storytellers, artists, engineers, innovators, journalists, and more, and some have even become mentors to the Disney Dreamers who follow them.
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