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Daphne Valerius

Daphne Valerius

Meet Daphne Valerius, one to watch as the era of women of color redefining the landscape of media

Meet Daphne Valerius, one to watch as the era of women of color redefining the landscape of media images

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Bio

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Meet Daphne Valerius, one to watch as the era of women of color redefining the landscape of media images –in front and behind the camera—begins to unfold.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Valerius had dreams of becoming a Flyy Girl on In Living Color or a back-up dancer for Janet Jackson. But the sudden relocation of her family placed her on a journey to blaze her own trail into the performing arts. The daughter of Haitian immigrants and the eldest of three graduated from high school knowing that pursuing an education at any cost was the only way to redefine life as she knew it for herself and future generations.

Daphne Valerius Daphne S. Valerius For more, visit daphnevalerius.com The recipient of several academic scholarships, Valerius went onto St. John’s University in New York majoring in Mass Communications and beginning her production career, as the Director and Producer of a play entitled, The Revolution Continues: Changing Times Call for Changing Minds. Graduating magna cum laude and a Ronald McNair Scholar, under the mentorship of Dr. Lez Edmond, Valerius studied media images in her research entitled, Self-Esteem and Self-Confidence: The Effects of Mass Media on Women of Color…Forgotten. This research marked the beginning of Valerius’ critical examination of her own personal self-image issues and how they had been influenced by media images. Upon graduation, Valerius enrolled into the Broadcast Journalism Master’s Program at Emerson College. While enrolled at Emerson, Valerius was awarded an Associated Press Award for Public Affairs for the production of a news program entitled, The Film Life while she also continued to pursue her acting endeavors. This also marked a time when Valerius’ critical and socially relevant undergraduate research came to life as the foundation of her award-winning Master’s project, the documentary The Souls of Black Girls. For Valerius the production of The Souls of Black Girls, which she also wrote, narrated, edited and produced, marks the beginning for “my sisters, my aunts, my nieces, my cousins and my daughters who stand beside me to have a better understanding of why and how media images affect our self-image and self-esteem.” Valerius is the recipient of the Mira Nair Award for Rising Female Filmmaker from the Harlem International Film Festival and named among the Best Black Documentary Directors for 2008. Most recently, Valerius has been invited to join the notable list of National Ambassadors to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s Circle of Promise campaign.

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An Evening With Daphne Valerius.

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Sirius XM Radio Interview with Producer Daphne Valerius
Her Faith TV Presents... A Personal Journey to Restoration + Recovery

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CLIENT TESTIMONIALS

The American Psychological Association was thrilled to have Dr. Antonia Novello as our speaker for the 2024 APA Convention. Dr. Novello was fantastic, and her presentation was a tremendous success. Thank you, Peter, for all your hard work in making this event such a resounding success.

American Psychological Association

For our annual Native American Heritage Month celebration, PDA Group arranged for John Echohawk to join us for a virtual moderated discussion. The program was thoughtful, engaging, and highly impactful for our audience of lawyers and professional staff. We are grateful for their partnership and look forward to working with them again.

Debevoise & Plimpton LLP

We have partnered with PDA Group on multiple successful events, including our charity luncheon with Lisa Edelstein and our Women’s Philanthropy Kickoff Event featuring Allegra Goodman. Their professionalism, expertise, and commitment to excellence make them an outstanding partner. Thank you for your exceptional work and continued support.

UJA-Federation

We have received so much fantastic feedback following our virtual event. It was an absolute success, and Sylvia Fowles was excellent. Thank you again to Sylvia and the entire team for your partnership!”

U.S. Bank

Kurt Warner was spectacular—he completely wowed the audience and solidified major leadership points. He was an amazing partner, and we will be talking about this experience for years to come. We will definitely leverage the PDA team for all of our speaking needs!”

Sysco Corporation

The events over the past two years went very well — everyone had a great time with Dr. Mark Esper in 2025, and Sam Hinkie led a very engaging Q&A with our Principal, Jean Reynolds, in 2024. Thank you for working with us these last two years; your support has been instrumental to the success of our programs!

Investcorp Strategic Capital Group

It was an absolute privilege to have Dr. Sanjay Gupta as our keynote speaker for the 2026 GME Leadership Conference. He delivered an outstanding address that resonated deeply and left a lasting impression on everyone in the room. The entire planning process was seamless and collaborative. It was a pleasure working together, brainstorming suggestions, and ultimately selecting the perfect fit for our event. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience.

HCA Healthcare

We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!

Salt Lake Community College

It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).

Western Michigan University

On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can’t wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.

Ferris State University

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