actor
An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
,
entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones.
An entreprene ...
and
teacher
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. In 2014, he founded The High School Counselor Challenge, a national social-media campaign with the goal of getting more public-school counselors from underserved communities to one of the admission profession's premier gatherings: The annual NACAC conference.
As an educator, Quinn is a 2009 Recipient of the US Presidential Scholars Program's Teacher Recognition Award. In 2013, Quinn was honored by Northwestern University as one of the Distinguished Secondary Teachers in America. In 2013, he was selected as a Claes Nobel Educator of the Year and named one of the top ten educators in America.
Quinn began acting at the age of four, starting out as a regular on the enduring children's program
Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...
. Between 1986–1988, he was the host of
3-2-1 Contact
''3-2-1 Contact'' is an American science educational television show produced by the Children's Television Workshop (CTW, now known as Sesame Workshop). It aired on PBS from 1980 to 1988 and later ran on Noggin (a joint venture between the C ...
, the educational science series produced for The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). In 1988, he hosted the TV series "I Have AIDS, A Teenager's Story" with noted
AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...
,
Ryan White
Ryan Wayne White (December 6, 1971 – April 8, 1990) was an American teenager from Kokomo, Indiana, who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States after his school barred him from attending classes following a diagn ...
. The program won the
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Foster Peabody, George Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and in ...
. As a teen, Quinn went to noted performing arts training center
Stagedoor Manor
Stagedoor Manor is a performing arts training center located in Loch Sheldrake, New York. Since its opening, it has trained thousands of young actors, many of whom have gone on to success in film, television, and theater.
Stagedoor Manor is ...
in New York for many summers, and roomed with friend
Jon Cryer
Jonathan Niven Cryer (born April 16, 1965) is an American actor. Born into a show business family, he made his film debut with a lead role in ''No Small Affair'' (1984); his breakout role was as Duckie in the John Hughes (filmmaker), John Hughe ...
. In 1985, Quinn performed in the original
Live Aid
Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
concert in Philadelphia, singing in the show's finale with the group "Children to Children". During his television career, Quinn appeared in numerous commercials and television programs before embarking on simultaneous careers in business and education.
In 1993, Quinn left acting for the field of secondary education. He earned a B.A. (English/Anthropology-Archaeology) and an M.Ed. from the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
. While at the University of Washington, Quinn co-founded
Allrecipes.com
Allrecipes.com, Inc. is a food-focused online social networking service headquartered in Seattle, Washington. The company was founded by University of Washington archaeology students Tim Hunt, Carl Lipo, Mark Madsen, Michael Pfeffer, David Quinn ...
and became a founding partner of the Pinpoint Venture Group, which invests in
startup companies
A startup or start-up is a company or project undertaken by an Entrepreneurship, entrepreneur to seek, develop, and validate a scalable business model. While entrepreneurship includes all new businesses including self-employment and businesses tha ...
in the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...
. In 2003, he was a recipient of the Puget Sound Business Journal's 40 Under 40 Award, honoring young leaders in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
's business and
philanthropic
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
community. In April 2006, Quinn sold Allrecipes to
Reader's Digest
''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...
. Quinn also founded ZC Entertainment in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, which creates
celebrity
Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...
-based
charity
Charity may refer to:
Common meanings
* Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons
* Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...
events for major corporations. In August 2007, Quinn sold ZC Entertainment to SportsQuest, Inc. In 2010, Quinn returned to filmmaking, serving as Associate Producer of Order of Chaos, starring
Milo Ventimiglia
Milo Anthony Ventimiglia ( ; born July 8, 1977) is an American actor. Making his screen acting debut on '' The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' in 1995, he portrayed the lead role on the short-lived series '' Opposite Sex'' in 2000 before landing his br ...
.
Currently, Quinn serves as an Artistic Advisor to the American Playwriting Foundation and sits on the advisory board of SeriesFest, a showcase for new pilots from established and emerging content creators. While in Seattle, Quinn served on the board of trustees of the
5th Avenue Theatre
The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in the Skinner Building, in the downtown core of Seattle, Washington, United States. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building ...