The popular online children's educator, whose real name is Rachel Griffin Accurso, began her speech by saying how "incredibly honored" she was to be on the stage and thanking the faculty, staff and senior leadership at NYU.
She continued, "I used to wait for someone powerful to give me permission to use their power. Other people were the gatekeepers, the change makers. But the truth is, you don't need to wait for anyone else; find your role to play and show up. You are the one."began when she was looking on YouTube and streaming sites for a show that would help her son, who had a severe speech delay, with speech development.
With support from her husband, she launched her channel, which now has over 6 billion views on YouTube. Ms. Rachel said she continues to be inspired and motivated by what she hears from families about the challenges they are facing and their needs, noting that the families "have blessed me with a platform that I can now use to advocate."