There are many organizations addressing the issue of females and ethnic minority groups still being heavily underrepresented within the STEM workforce. While the disparity is less so in edtech, there are still overall disparities prevalent within the tech industry. In the new digital age, there is a high need to bridge the gap between the necessary STEM skills for underrepresented groups and the growing demand from employers for edtech talent.

In this session, participants will:

• Examine ways organizations are building, cultivating, attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce
  
• Identify the challenges that current applicants from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds face
  
• Explore pathways to close this opportunity gap
  
• Outline the skills that the edtech industry seeks in employees, and how to connect to a larger group of candidates

Confirmed Speakers: 

• Damon Cox, Director of Jobs and Economic Development for The Boston Foundation 
• David Delmar, Executive Director and Founder, of Resilient Coders 
• Melissa James, President and CEO, The Tech Connection
  
• Moderator, Walter Duncan, Co-founder and Chairman, QuickKey

More details about our speakers:  

Damon Cox joined the Boston Foundation in 2013 as Director of Economic Development, overseeing the Foundation’s portfolio of workforce and economic development investments. Damon has an extensive background in enhancing opportunities for entrepreneurs, as the Director and Program Designer for the Boston Small Business Contest, a competition designed to create and support business development opportunities for residents in Boston’s Roxbury, Dorchester and Mattapan neighborhoods. Previous to that he was Director for Capital and Evaluation for Boston Rising. In that role, Damon devised and managed Boston Rising’s entrepreneurship development initiative, which provided capital and technical assistance to a network of burgeoning business owners in Boston neighborhoods. Damon has over a decade of experience in marketing and communications in the media industry with extensive strategic consulting experience to nonprofit organizations. 

David Delmar is a professional designer and interface developer with experience working with award-winning startups, as well as established brands. Before founding Resilient Coders, he was at PayPal, leading a cross-disciplinary team of designers and coders. They designed and built first-to-market digital advertising concepts for brands like Starbucks, Coke, FedEx, and Pepsi. He helped set up PayPal's startup incubator, Start Tank, and served as its UX subject matter expert. David believes in technology as an opportunity for real meritocracy. And he believes in the resilience of Boston's youth.

Melissa James is President and CEO of The Tech Connection, the premier marketplace for purpose driven, diverse technical talent. Her mission is to help people reach their highest potential by accelerating their individual pathway to success. She believes that every individual should live by one principal to ‘Be the CEO of You”. She not only inspires people to realize their full potential she connects them to high performing companies that will accelerate their growth.  She has a strong track record of building high performing teams for elite companies such as Google, Teradata, and local Boston businesses such as RA Capital, and Sample6.

At the root of her work is a passion for community service. On top of running her business, Melissa is the founder of the Black Tech Boston Meetup, a platform created  to celebrate the impact of technology within African American communities. She previously served on the board for Youth Institute of Science and Technology and the Young Black Women’s Society. Melissa has been recognized as a “Woman on The Move” by Boston Business Journal. She has been featured in numerous news outlets such as the Improper Bostonian, Bay State Banner, Boston Herald, and Bloomberg Business. She recently received the U.S. Presidential Service Award and the 2015 Pursuer award from the African Youth Excellence organization for her relentless commitment to the community. Melissa was born and raised in Boston, MA and  graduated with honors from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Walter Duncan is Co-founder and Chairman of QuickKey, a company that gives teachers the power to grade assessments with any mobile device. From his teaching experience at South Shore Charter Schools and KIPP, DC, Walter is dedicated to empowering teachers to be creative and student-focused in a world increasingly driven by data, regardless of their school's budget. He created Quick Key, a tool to get formative and summative data in paper or paperless classrooms with just one mobile device.