Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in Information Technology
 
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July 2019
Volume 9, Issue 7
 
Welcome to the July 2019 issue of the CMD-IT newsletter.  This month we continue to feature our coming attractions for Tapia 2019.  We are pleased to feature an interview with plenary speaker Stephanie Lampkin, Founder and CEO of Blendoor.  Stephanie's talk, titled Hacking Human and Algorithmic Bias, is scheduled for Thursday morning, September 19th.

Be sure to check out the upcoming Tapia 2019 deadlines.  Student volunteer applications are due by July 31st at 11:59 pm PST.  The conference hotel, the  Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina Hotel, is filling up fast so be sure to make your hotel reservation today!

We look forward to seeing you in San Diego at Tapia 2019.

Best Regards,
CMD-IT Leadership   
Tapia 2019 Plenary Speaker
 Stephanie Lampkin
 

We spent a little time with Stephanie Lampkin, the Founder and CEO of Blendoor and one of our Tapia 2019 plenary speakers. We invite you to learn about this inspirational entrepreneur and programmer who is helping to increase diversity in the world of tech.

Please tell me about your childhood.
I grew up in the DC Metro area with my Mom and her sister. My aunt was studying computer science in 1984 and I was able to grow up with a role model programmer who looked like me. In those days tech was not white men in hoodies and flip flops.   My aunt connected me when I was in 8th grade with Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA) and I began coding. By my senior year I was a full stack developer and taking AP Computer Science at high school on Saturday mornings from 8 am - 12 noon, they could not fit it into the regular curriculum.

Tell us about the years following high school.
I left home at age 17 to go to Stanford. I went to their Summer Engineering Academy. There I found computer science to be very male dominated and chose to pursue a joint major in Management Science and Engineering. I got involved in SWE and NSBE, participated in Inroads and secured internships every summer with great organizations like Northrup Grumman, LockHeed Martin and Deloitte.

Was life in California different than Metro DC?
Palo Alto was a big culture shock coming from DC, which is very diverse. In Palo Alto you rarely see African Americans, so being both black and successful makes you both hyper visible and invisible at the same time. After college I moved to Charlotte North Carolina, a more racially diverse community. There I found that the job I'd taken was giving me limited opportunities to advancement, so I went to MIT for my MBA.

What led you to starting Blendoor?
I have watched many tech companies struggle to diversify. I saw that there was a real opportunity to build a solution that can scale to solve this issue. I wanted to create both a marketplace and capture the data that would enable companies to successfully hire a more diverse workforce. I began by teaching myself the programming skills I needed and built my first version of the app. As it has evolved we are doing more and more to understand what is happening in an organization's hiring process.

What is next for Blendoor?
I'll be talking, at the Tapia Conference, about our latest project - BlendScore. We'll be rating and ranking companies on their equity and inclusion. But it is not just about measuring but also advising companies on how they can make systematic change and improve.
 
You have led a fascinating life. What is the most unexpected thing people should know about you?
I am a former downhill ski racer; I am now an adventure skier. What I love to do is debunk stereotypes. No one expects a downhill racer to be a 4' 11'' black woman.
 
See Stephanie Lampkin deliver her plenary address at Tapia 2019 on Thursday September 19th. Also, talk with Stephanie and learn more about Blendoor at the Blendoor booth at the Tapia 2019 Career Fair.
Google Conference Scholarship:  Due August 2nd
Scholarships are available in North America for all traditionally underrepresented groups in technology and business (including, but not limited to: African American/Black, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American, persons with disabilities, women and veterans).

In order to apply for the North America Google Conference & Travel Scholarship, you must fulfill the following eligibility requirements:
  • Have a strong academic and/or professional background with demonstrated leadership ability
  • Be able to attend the core day(s) of one of the conferences
  • Persons who are (1) residents of North America and US Territories, (2) studying or working in North America, or (3) will be in North America at the time of the conference
  • Applicants must be 18 years of age or older
Google Conference and Travel Scholarships are available for professionals and students.  Applications must be submitted by August 2nd for those interested in attending Tapia 2019.   Submit your application Today!

In This Issue
#Tapia2019 Deadlines and Action Items
Registration: Be sure to register today!  Regular rate ends August 5.

Submit your resume to the Tapia 2019 Resume Database.  Our sponsors are scheduling interviews with conference attendees now!

Sponsorships are still available, sign up today!

Deadlines

July 31 - Student Volunteer Applications Deadline

August 2 - Google Conference Scholarship Applications For Tapia Closes

August 5 - Regular registration rate ends

August 5 -
Silver Sponsors Access Resume Database 

August 18 -  Hotel Room Block Closes
Job Postings
New Relic

Reed College


Khoury College of Computer Sciences,  Northeastern University

Lecturer
Division of Computing Instruction in the College of Computing, Georgia Tech

Assistant and Associate Professors
University of North Texas

Professor and Head of Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Texas A&M University

Tenure-Track Faculty Positions in Computer Science
Williams College

Email job postings to jerri@cmd-it.org .
Community Calendar

22 October 2019
       
30 Oct - 3 Nov 2019

4 November 2019

7 - 9 November 2019

14 - 17 November 2019


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ist your events or due dates, please email us.
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