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A Challenge from the President: 1M STEM Innovators

#sxsw #stem

Last year, only 45 African American students took the Computer Science AP exam in California, a state known for being a hub of innovation. Hear from the White House and Level Playing Field Institute about innovative ways people are broadening the talent base in the technology industry and how you or your company can participate.

The President is committed to encouraging the entrepreneurial spirit in our country, starting with setting a goal of 1 million additional Science Technology Engineering Math (STEM) graduates over the next decade. Diversity has been one of the greatest strengths of our nation; for the U.S. to remain competitive globally we must broaden the talent base in the technology industry.

That’s why the White House has issued a call to tech innovators to work together to ensure that all youth have the opportunity to participate in the technology sector, particularly those from underserved and historically underrepresented communities including women and girls.

Presenters

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Brian Forde Senior Advisor to the U.S. CTO The White House Office of Science & Technology Policy

Brian Forde serves as the Senior Advisor to the U.S. Chief Technology Officer on Mobile and Data Innovation in The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Previously, Brian served as the President of Llamadas, S.A. where he lead the strategic efforts to bring low-cost phone service to rural Nicaragua through a series of innovative telephony projects specifically created for the developing world. Prior to founding Llamadas, Brian was a Peace Corps volunteer teaching small business classes to 11th grade high school students in the mountains of Nicaragua.

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Nicole Sanchez Chief of Staff Level Playing Field Institute

Nicole is a serial social entrepreneur, having founded several organizations focused on justice issues involving marginalized and under-represented populations.

After graduating from Stanford, Nicole spent several years at City Year, a model AmeriCorps program, and became its first National Program Director. She then returned to Stanford as Associate Director for the Program in Ethics in Society where she co-founded “Hope House Scholars,” a program in which Stanford professors teach college-level courses to recently incarcerated women. Nicole also helped launch the Stanford Center on Ethics, a multi-disciplinary institute that ensures ethics training for all students in the university’s professional schools. In addition, Nicole led two student-focused endeavors—one that aimed to close the achievement gap in Berkeley, CA and one that engaged young people in the US in global poverty alleviation.

Inspired by the private sector partnerships she developed as a leader in the social sector, Nicole returned to school to pursue her MBA from the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. She received her MBA in May 2012, focusing on organizational behavior and culture.