March 24th marked the final event in the 2016 Desert Town Hall Speaker Series. For the third consecutive year, DATA DS students were charged with the responsibility of archiving the Youth Town Hall portion of the program at the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort in Indian Wells. The four speaking engagements took place on separate evenings from January through March.

Prior to the main event each night, speakers attend a Youth Town Hall forum with more than 100 total students from all high schools in the Coachella Valley. Students in attendance are given the chance to ask questions directly to the speakers and gain insight into the unique experiences and knowledge of each speaker.

DATA Junior Jennifer Reynoso operates the main camera for David Petraeus' Youth Town Hall.

In addition to attending each event, DATA DS students film and edit the Youth Town Hall series for archival and promotional purposes. DATA students must then spend 10-12 hours editing together a final cut for distribution. This year's speakers included Bill O'Reilly, Nando Parrado, Felipe Calderon, and David Petraeus.

We'd like to thank Desert Town Hall for providing our students with this awesome experience, and we look forward to a terrific 2017 Speaker Series!