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SLI Events

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How do issues of race and racism, gender and sexism, and social justice show up in the tech world? What do diversity and tech have to do with each other? Where is there room for growth, change, and different possibilities?

Join us in this workshop series as we invite guests from outside Foothill to engage with us in discussion about these and related issues. Diversity in Tech is a program of TechCore.

Fall 2020 + Winter 2021

Careers and Pathways in Computer Science

November 13, 2020

What does it look like to have a job in tech or computer science? Panelists share their roles in different sectors in the tech industry and their paths to getting into those roles.

Panelists:

Chidinma Kalu, independent UX researcher and designer

Dennis Domingo, technical architect at Slack

Anthony Hernandez, senior technical product manager at Amazon

Using Tech for Social Justice

January 29, 2021

Technology can be used to address social issues. Jonathan Garcia, from Hack the Hood, speaks about how technology can be used specifically to address problems in Black, Latinx, and indigenous communities.

Slides from presentation

Women of Color in Tech and Storytelling

March 5, 2021

Storytelling is power. Hearing from women of color who have been historically underrepresented and marginalized in STEM and especially the tech world is important for recognition and empowerment. Panelists share their experiences and paths to where they are.

Charlene Chambliss, Primer.ai

Sylmarie Dávila-Montero, ECE Michigan State Univ

Carolina Huaranca Mendoza, Lightspeed Venture Partners

Recording link

Spring 2021

My First Tech Internship

April 30, 2021

2pm - 3:30pm

What was your first tech internship like? What went well? What were the challenges? How did your marginalized identities impact your experience? Panelists share their "first tech experience" and engage participants in discussion about the fears and worries of going into an internship as a newbie.

Link for Recording

Panelists:

Ebonne CabarrusEbonne Cabarrus, a Customer Success Intern at athenahealth who spent the last three years cultivating a passion for using technology to solve real-world problems. After studying Applied Computer Science at Make School, she worked as an intern for companies such as Planet Labs and Major League Hacking. Ebonne's goal is to become a leader in the technology industry to create opportunities for diverse talent.

Melisa ImMelisa Im, software development engineer at Adobe. Melisa Im had an unconventional path to software engineering. She is a child of Korean immigrants who moved to Argentina in the 70s and her family moved to the US in 2003. In 2014 she graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in Political Economy and worked in content moderation before deciding to learn how to code. After attending a coding bootcamp sponsored by the Adobe Digital Academy she started her career in software engineering at Adobe in 2018. Today she mentors, speaks, and advocates for diversity, equity and inclusion in all spaces.

Anthony WilliamsAnthony Williams, co-founder at Clap. Anthony got his B.S. in Computer Science from the Cal State Long Beach and spent 4 years as an iOS Engineer at Slack before recently starting his own software company.

Tech for Social Good

May 28, 2021

11am - 12:30pm

Getting a job in a tech company isn't just about sitting in front of a computer, another cog in the wheel. There are opportunities to make an impact, both in the job as well as outside the workplace. Panelists will speak about the opportunities they have had to use tech for social good.

Link for Recording

Panelists:

Jason SeraficaJason Serafica, instructional associate at General Assembly. Jason Serafica (they/them) is a full-stack software engineer, a community organizer, and an unapologetic advocate for under-represented communities in Tech. They have helped thousands of Bay Area residents learn web development and coding fundamentals at weekly meet-ups and on online study groups as a co-organizer for freeCodeCamp San Francisco. Jason has also volunteered as a mentor and is currently on the leadership team member for Out In Tech's youth mentorship program and has spoken on topics relating to diversity, equity, and inclusion in tech.

Marilenis LeeMarilenis Lee, was born and raised in Venezuela, Marilenis moved to the US in 1999 to pursue graduate studies at Cal State East Bay. After graduating, she joined Leapfrog Enterprises as a software engineer, where she programmed interactive books for the LeapPad, which sold millions of copies worldwide. Marilenis has also worked in higher education as an Academic Technologies Specialist at Stanford University and as a Computer Science Professor at different universities in the Bay Area. She is currently working at Google as a Data Analytics and Metrics Lead. When she is not coding or learning a new technology, Marilenis enjoys spending time outdoors with her family.

Frances CoronelFrances Coronel is a software engineer specializing in UI development on the Customer Acquisition Team at Slack where her mission is to make your working life simpler, more pleasant, and more productive. She has been working professionally as a developer since 2015 and holds a Bachelors in Computer Science from Hampton University and a Masters in Computer Science from Cornell Tech. Outside of Slack, Frances is an Executive Director of Techqueria, a nonprofit that serves the largest global community of Latinx professionals in tech. She also supports Coro Northern California as a board member, Code Nation as a member of their Bay Area Leadership Council and the Latino Community Foundation as a member of their Latinos in Tech Giving Circle.

 

 

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Questions?
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Sophia Kim, SLI Director

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kimsophia@fhda.edu


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