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Connect. Collaborate. Contribute.™
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with Janice Omadeke The Mentor Method Meme Styles Measure Austin Eunice Chendjou OpenTeams Michael Ward Jr Austin Urban Technology Movement 6:00pm Log In 6:15pm -7:30pm Presentation 7:30-8:15pm Q&A |
Awareness of racial injustice, discrimination, and inequities has soared in the US recent months, motivated by the tragic killing of Black Americans—including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and many others. This has created a wave of social protests and calls for change, from reforming police departments to removing symbols of the Confederacy to increased investment in Black businesses and more.
There is much work to be done to achieve the goals of the United States of America—that every person is treated as equals and have access to the same opportunities. This is a societal issue, but can data and technology help us? There are notable examples of technology being used to discriminate and persecute, in the US and globally, and of data that clearly shows inequities and injustices. How do we use data and analytics to make things better? How do we ensure that technologies use to promote equality and fairness and not to enable injustice and discrimination? Join our distinguished panel of experts as we discuss how data and technologies have been used for injustice and inequality, but how they can be powerful tools for change, equity, and progress. We welcome your participation! Please email us with your questions, answers and prognostications in advance.
Admission to the Austin Forum is always free. The Austin Forum accepts donations of used smart phones, tablets, and computers at all our events. Since the events are no online, please let us know via the ‘chat’ window during the event if you have devices to donate. All devices will have a factory reset and be set up as new by the team at Austin Pathways’ nationally-recognized “Unlocking the Connection” initiative, which will connect every public housing resident with a digital device, digital literacy, and a free or very low-cost internet connection. Your donated devices can change lives and help close Austin’s digital divide, thanks to Austin Pathways. |
speaker
Janice Omadeke
The Mentor Method |
Janice Omadeke is the CEO and Founder of The Mentor Method, an enterprise platform helping companies keep and develop their diverse talent using the proven power of mentorship. Using a double-blind algorithm, The Mentor Method is closing the opportunity equity gap in the workplace. Janice is a 2020 Austin Under 40 nominee and winner of DivInc’s Champion of Change Diversity Champion of the Year for the city of Austin. Venture-backed by funds including Backstage Capital and Capital Factory, Janice's company was a finalist at the Grace Hopper annual conference in 2018, is a MassChallenge Texas Gold winner, a 50 on Fire winner for both Austin and DC Inno, and a 2017 Startup Grind Global Exhibition selection. Black Enterprise recognizes Janice as one of DC’s top 5 black women in tech. She has also been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur magazine, and she was a subject matter expert at the 2016 White House Summit on Building the Tech Workforce of Tomorrow. Janice is certified in Entrepreneurship from MIT, and is PMP certified with over 10 years of corporate leadership experience for Fortune 500 companies.
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Meme (mee-mee) Styles, is the President and Founder of the award winning nonprofit MEASURE, a public education & advocacy organization that empowers people to use data to tell their own story. Ms. Styles created MEASURE in 2015 to build trust and measurable progress between people and institutions that serve them. MEASURE is building an ecosystem whereby advocates can share social justice research and data. The organization is also responsible for mobilizing communities to address systemic disparities in health, economics, criminalization & education. She is a global thought leader for community engagement strategies and is responsible for the annual Big Data & Community Policing Conference + Workshop. This conference brings together activists, law enforcement, researchers and technology experts to explore community policing and evidence based policing. Ms. Styles holds a Bachelor's of Science in Communications, completing a Masters Of Public Administration at American Military University and is certified in Performance Measurement through George Washington University College of Professional Studies. Styles is also the creator of EarlyAware.com, a tech-solution that informs first responders about an individual communication barrier, cognitive issue or physical disability before and during an emergency.
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Eunice Chendjou
OpenTeams |
Eunice Chendjou is VP of Partners at OpenTeams, a B2B marketplace that helps connect a company's need for open source services, training, and support with a network of partners who can meet those needs.
Previously the founder of DataGig, a marketplace where enterprises hire vetted data experts and vendors for their big data and analytics projects on-demand. Prior to founding DataGig, she was a Product Consultant and Analyst at Apple. She's a SputnikATX Accelerator alumnus and a Founder Institute graduate, both programs teach all facets of start-up development and growth from concept, to fund-raising, to validation and expansion, all the way to exit. Eunice strongly believes in building the next generation of women and minorities in the tech industries. She volunteered by mentoring students at Code2College, a non-profit whose mission is to dramatically increase the number of girls, underrepresented students of color, and low-income students who enter STEM degree programs and fields. |
Michael Ward Jr
Austin Urban Technology Movement |
Michael Ward Jr. is a social entrepreneur focused on increasing the upward mobility and social capital of underserved communities, specifically people of color. Michael currently lives in Austin, TX and is the President and CEO of the Austin Urban Technology Movement (AUTM). AUTM is a nonprofit that bridges the gap between the technology industry and the Black, Brown, and Latinx communities through job placement, career development, and networking opportunities.
Michael is also the co-host of Culture Crawl ATX, a podcast that invites random guests to engage in conversations about controversial topics. Originally from Miami, FL, Michael earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science and Global Studies from the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill. Upon graduating from UNC, Michael started his career at Oracle selling both front-end and back-end enterprise software for cloud and on-premise technology. During his time at Oracle, Michael also led Oracle's Black employee resource group, African-American Business Leaders for Excellence (ABLE), across the United States, Canada, and Brazil. In his free time, Michael enjoys traveling with his wife, eating good food made with love, and anything basketball related. |
