Chinonye Nnakwe Whitley

Chinonye "Chi-Chi" Nnakwe Whitley, Ph.D. is a molecular biologist and her studies of DNA repair and DNA damage signaling pathways offer insights toward the molecular biology of neuroscience, immunology and cancer biology.  Dr. Whitley obtained her B.Sc. in Biochemistry with Departmental Distinction from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and her Ph. D. in Pathology from the University of Chicago.

Dr. Whitley joined the Office of Integrative Activities in September 2017 and serves as a Program Officer for the NSF Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).   She currently manages a $107M portfolio of 26 standard grants and cooperative agreements, and focuses on building basic science research infrastructure, promoting economic development and broadening participation in STEM. 

Prior to her current role, Dr. Whitley was an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the NSF in the Computer Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Directorate where she worked on innovation policy programs such as I-Corps™ and SBIR / STTR.After obtaining her doctoral degree, Dr. Whitley was a management consultant for the health-care consulting company Campbell Alliance (now inVentiv), where she facilitated product launches and conducted pricing studies of pharmaceutical products. Later, she was appointed the inaugural Director of Graduate Diversity Initiatives in the Office of the Provost at the University of Chicago.In this role she led in-reach and outreach programs to promote diversity and inclusion in higher education and the research workforce. She fostered multi-institutional partnerships that led to initiatives like the SPINES Neuroscience Symposium with the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and the National Research Mentoring Network-CIC Academic Network (NRMN-CAN) with the Big Ten Academic Alliance.

Dr. Whitley participates in her personal capacity.  Her participation does not constitute an endorsement by the National Science Foundation or the United States Government.

Bibi Hidalgo

Ms. Hidalgo has been selected to serve as the Associate Administrator for the Office of Government Contracting and Business Development (GCBD), of the U.S. Small Business Administration. In this role, Ms. Hidalgo will be responsible for providing expert advice, guidance, and assistance to the Administrator and other key agency officials in oversight of the Office of Government Contracting, Office of HUBZone Empowerment Contracting, Office of Business Development, and Office of Policy, Planning and Liaison programs of the Agency.

In her prior role, she was a Policy Lead for the Biden-Harris Transition Team developing proposals on government contracting with an emphasis on underserved communities that President Biden could execute in the first 100 days, including the general thrust of which was cited in his Executive Order on January 26. Ms. Hidalgo was the Co-Founder of Future Partners, LLC, advising Fortune 50 corporate executives on procurement and minority business strategy, generating $1.3 million in gross receipts and creating jobs; advising the CEO of a group purchasing organization on strategy for partnering with underrepresented minority businesses and engaging NY State government and labor organizations on the issue, facilitating over $2 million in contract opportunities for four Black and Latino-owned businesses in NYC; conducting data analysis and formulated minority business strategy for the Walt Disney Company and AARP, resulting in a new approach for mobilizing around procurement in both organizations.

In addition to her experience, Ms. Hidalgo has a B.A. in Spanish for International Services, Cum Laude, Catholic University of America, School of Arts and Sciences and a Master’s in Public Policy, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.

She is dedicating her work to the memory of her brother Patrick who passed away suddenly at the age of 41 in March of 2020.

Chike Aguh

On January 20, 2021, Chike Aguh (Chee-kay Ah-Goo) was sworn in as Chief Innovation Officer (CInO) at the United States Department of Labor, appointed by President Joe Biden. Reporting to the Deputy Secretary and also serving as the Senior Advisor for Delivery, he leads efforts to use innovative technologies, partnerships and practices to accelerate the Department’s mission of delivering a future of work that includes and dignifies every American.

Previously, Chike was the inaugural Head of Economic Mobility Pathways at the Education Design Lab where he launched the Community College Growth Engine Fund, an innovative multimillion dollar effort turning community colleges into bridges to careers in high growth fields for thousands. He has been a Technology and Human Rights Fellow at the Harvard Carr Center for Human Rights Policy where he focused on the future of work and racial equity, Venture Partner at Maryland-based New Markets Venture Partners where he focused on workforce technologies, member of the Council on Foreign Relations’ Future of Work Taskforce, Lecturer at Columbia University and guest speaker at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy.

Additionally, Chike has worked as an education policy official in America’s largest school system, 2nd grade teacher and Teach For America corps member, Fulbright Scholar in Thailand researching education and skills, director of corporate strategy and performance technologies at Education Advisory Board (EAB), CEO of a national social enterprise which helped connect 500,000 low-income Americans to affordable internet and digital skills, and Senior Principal and Future of Work Lead at the McChrystal Group, a business advisory firm founded by Gen. (ret.) Stanley McChrystal.

Chike holds degrees from Tufts University (B.A.), Harvard Graduate School of Education (Ed.M), Harvard Kennedy School of Government (MPA), and University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School (MBA). He is a Presidential Leadership Scholar; past Council on Foreign Relations term member; 40 under 40 honoree from Wharton and the Washington Business Journal; and former board member of the Harvard Kennedy School Alumni Board.

Beth Ruedi

Beth Ruedi, PhD, serves as the director of operations for SEA Change, an initiative promoting systemic transformation in higher education to support true equity and inclusion. She previously served as the director for AAAS Science in the Classroom, a collection of annotated research papers. Ruedi received her PhD in behavior genetics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2007. She has been involved in the STEM professional society sector for a decade, first serving as the founding Director of Education and Professional Development at the Genetics Society of America. There, Dr. Ruedi helped cultivate an educational mission for GSA, resulting in a complex portfolio of over 20 activities, initiatives, partnerships, and awards, many of which worked to address systemic issues underlying the lack of diversity in STEM. In 2016 she joined the Education and Human Resources Directorate, now ISEED, working with Shirley Malcom to direct multiple projects related to STEM literacy, education reform, and diversity & inclusion.

LaKisha Greenwade

LaKisha Greenwade (better known as coach L), is an international brand strategist, and wearable tech eco system founder. She promotes and develops wearable innovations with Wearable Tech Ventures. She believes life is enjoyable when it’s lived on our own terms and given everything we’ve got. As a result, she focuses on establishing personal and business brands through innovation while implementing strategies to support tech startups with female and underrepresented founders. Her business and leadership tips have been featured in the U.S., China, UAE, UK, and Brazil. Her honors include Baltimore City Innovator of the Year, two-time 40 under 40 Honoree, a three-time SXSW presenter, featured Forbes.com contributor, Black Enterprise Tech Connext Fellow, and best-selling author of 40 Days to Unshakable Self- Confidence. Greenwade resides in Maryland, and is a graduate of The Ohio State University (BS), University of Maryland (MBA), and Johns Hopkins University. @luckifit

Neela White

Neela White is a Project Director in the ISEED department at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Her portfolio of work at AAAS include managing the AAAS HBCU Making & Innovation initiatives, and working on the AAAS-Lemelson Invention Ambassador Program, and the AAAS Marion Milligan-Mason Awards for Women. She has served as an external evaluator for multiple projects including the NSF INCLUDES Early STEM Engagement for Minority Males (eSEM) project and the Verizon Innovative Learning Summer Program for Minority Males at Morgan State University. She has also served as a Program Associate for the AAAS District of Columbia program. Her areas of focus have been within the sectors of invention; innovation; entrepreneurship; HBCUs, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education; Maker movement; international research collaboration; and diversity, equity and inclusion in science.

Iris Wagstaff

Dr. Iris R. Wagstaff is a scientist, educator, mentor, researcher and STEM advocate. She currently serves as a STEM Program Director in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Department of AAAS where she manages programs a ~$20 Million Dollar portfolio focused on broadening participation in STEM, workforce development and inclusive innovation at the undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral levels. She served as a 2015-2017 AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the DOJ National Institute of Justice Office where she led an agency-wide diversity and inclusion initiative. She is a native of Goldsboro, NC with a BS and MS in Chemistry from UNC-Greensboro and NC A&T State Universities respectively; and a PhD in Science Education from North Carolina State University. She worked as a research chemist at the Dow Chemical Company for 15 years where she led analytical project teams and company-wide diversity initiatives. She has over 20 years of STEM outreach and advocacy developing strategic partnerships between industry, academia, and community organizations.

Iris is also a social scientist with a research focus on examining factors that predict science self-efficacy, science identity, and STEM career intent in students. She serves on the Boards of several organizations that include the National Organization of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), the Chemical Society of Washington (CSW), and Science, Engineering, and Math Links (SEM). She also serves as an adjunct chemistry professor at UNC-Greensboro. She is the Founder and Executive Director of Wagstaff STEM Solutions, an education and diversity consulting company. She has received several honors that include the 2020 DC Metro HBCU Alumni Alliance Education Award, the 2019 BEYA Science Trailblazer Award, and the 2018 NOBCChE Presidential Award for Mentoring.

Travis York

Travis T. York, Ph.D., is the Director of Inclusive STEM Ecosystems for Equity & Diversity (ISEED) at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).  Dr. York’s research and work focus on catalyzing and sustaining systemic change and transformation to achieve inclusive and equitable access and progress through STEM pathways into the STEM workforce.  Within AAAS, Dr. York provides leadership to a talented team who collaborate to create change in over 20 grant-funded projects and initiatives spanning all STEMM fields and the entire educational pathway including AAAS’s SEA Change Initiative, Science in the Classroom, ARISE Network, S-STEM Initiative, L’Oreal USA Women in Science Fellowships, and HBCU Making & Innovation Showcase.       

Currently, Dr. York is a Co-PI on NSF INCLUDES Aspire Alliance - an effort to develop a more inclusive and diversified STEM faculty; and serves as a Co-PI on a U.S. Department of Education IES Assessment Grant titled, Affording Degree Completion: A Study of Completion Grants at Accessible Public Universities in collaboration with the Coalition of Urban Serving Universities and Temple University’s Hope Center for College, Community, & Justice. Dr. York has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, and his most recent article, Completion Grants: A multi-method examination of institutional practice, is available in the Journal of Student Financial Aid. Dr. York is active within several professional associations and serves on the editorial review board of the Journal of Diversity in Higher Education.   

Dr. York, a native of Charleston, South Carolina, received his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from The Pennsylvania State University, masters in Higher Education and bachelors with distinction from Geneva College. Dr. York also studied at Oxford University’s Center for Medieval & Renaissance Studies through Keble College in 2003-04. Dr. York also supports AAAS’s Committee on Opportunities in Science, which advises the association on matters related to increasing the representation of women and minorities in science, engineering, and related fields.

Ron Williams

Dr. Williams has served in higher education for 35 years, spending 25 years as faculty at Coppin State University (CSU) College of Business where he served as interim dean from 2013 until 2017. Recent activity includes roles as PI on studies examining the value of makerspaces, academic consultant on the TCF-UMA Industry & Inclusion project and founding director of the Center for Strategic Entrepreneurship. Dr. Williams’s work in West Baltimore led to his introduction of ingepreneurship (inge- as in ingenuity) and a trust profile inventory for improving transcultural collaboration and relationships. He holds a Ph.D. in management and organization from George Washington University with concentrations in organization behavior and the management of science, technology, and innovation. Dr. Williams serves on the boards of Open Works Baltimore, the Urban Manufacturing Alliance where he is also the president-elect and incoming board chair, and the AAAS HBCU Making and Innovation Showcase advisory board. 

Sudip Parikh

Sudip Parikh, PhD, AAAS became executive publisher of the Science family of journals in January 2020.  The son of Indian immigrants, Parikh completed undergraduate studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Early in his career Parikh was a Presidential Management Intern at the NIH and was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship while earning his Ph.D. in macromolecular structure and chemistry from the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, CA.  He has spent two decades at the nexus of science, policy, and business and is an active member of the scientific advocacy community. 

Laura Collins

Laura is the Director of Intellectual Property Development and Commercialization at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and is responsible for A&T’s IP portfolio and technology transfer operations. In her eleven years as the university’s patent agent, the number of patents from campus research has grown from 11 to over 45. In the four years she has been responsible for licensing, the university’s cumulative licensing revenue has increased by over 50%. Before coming to A&T, Laura spent ten  years with an Intellectual Property law group in San Diego, supporting patent prosecution and patent litigation. She has a Ph.D. in Chemistry from UNC Chapel Hill and undergraduate degrees in Chemistry with Honors and History from Bryn Mawr College in Philadelphia.

Ellie Fini

Dr. Ellie Fini is an Associate Professor at Arizona State University, an Invention Ambassador at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Fulbright Scholar of Aalborg University of Denmark, a Senior Sustainability Scientist at the Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation and Director of the Innovation Network for Materials, Methods and Management. Her research focuses on developing sustainable novel materials for use in the built environment.

 In addition to more than 200 scholarly publications and numerous invited talks, her research has been featured by BBC Women in STEM, Science Nation, Wired Magazine, and CNBC. She is editor of the ASCE Journal of Materials and Journal of Resources, Conservation & Recycling. She has served as the president of ASCE’s North Carolina Northern Branch and a program director of the National Science Foundation. Her achievements have been recognized via multiple awards including an NSF CAREER award, ASEE Gerald Seeley award, BEYA Emerald STEM Innovation award, NC BioTech Research Excellence award and WTS Innovative Transportation Solution award to name a few.

Dorothy Jones-Davis

Dorothy Jones-Davis is the Executive Director of Nation of Makers, a nonprofit whose mission is to support America’s maker organizations through advocacy, resource sharing, and the building of community within the maker movement and beyond. In this role, she is deeply interested in creating connections between a diversity of makers, enabling them to use their collective skills to harness solutions for the world’s challenges – grand and small. 

With a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, Dorothy has previously held roles at the National Science Foundation, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, and the University of California, San Francisco. 

Dorothy's interest and passion for making began when she was a child (see her Medium post on Why She Makes), tinkering with broken electronics with her dad.  In her spare time, she now enjoys carrying on the tradition of building and making, with her eleven-year-old daughter.

Brandon Andrews

Brandon Andrews is co-founder of Gauge; an AI-driven mobile market research platform connecting brands to consumers and influencers to identify opportunities and avoid mistakes. As Senior Consultant at Values Partnerships he leads the company’s work on technology and entrepreneurship, including leading a nationwide casting tour focused on bringing more diverse ideas and voices to ABC’s, Shark Tank and building inclusive ecosystems. Named a Global Innovation Fellow by the U.S. Department of State, he has traveled the world speaking and hosting events on entrepreneurship and innovation.

Committed to bringing resources to diverse entrepreneurs, he started The Investment event series to educate entrepreneurs and investors of color.

Baindu L. Bayon

Baindu L. Bayon, Ph.D. is a biomedical scientist from Indianapolis. Dr. Bayon earned her B.S. in Biology from Indiana University Bloomington and her Ph.D. in Medical & Molecular Genetics from Indiana University School of Medicine. She is currently a Principal Consultant with BBC Entrepreneurial Training & Consulting. She was previously a Health Program Specialist at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Dr. Bayon was a 2018-2020 AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the Small business Education and Entrepreneurial Development (SEED) office at NIH and at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences where she explored entrepreneurship at CTSA (Clinical Translational Science Award) hubs. She's earned a myriad of awards throughout her career, including the coveted Indianapolis Business Journal's Forty Under 40. She is an active member of the Rotary Club of Downtown Silver Spring and of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.