Jesus Soriano is Program Director of the NSF Partnerships for Innovation program. Previously, Jesus served as SBIR/STTR Program Director for Biomedical and Smart Health Technologies since 2012, when he joined NSF after 20 years of leadership experience across industry, non-profit and academic sectors. Prior to NSF, he was the Senior Advisor to the Puerto Rico Trust for Science, Technology and Research. Previously, he was Executive Vice President at QRxPharma, Ltd, Senior Director of Business Development at Osiris Therapeutics, Inc., held several executive leadership positions at ATCC, and was Associate Director for R&D Operations and Business Development at Entremed, Inc. Jesus began his career as a family doctor in Spain; then worked at the University of Geneva Medical School as a Research Scientist and Assistant Professor. He came to the US as a visiting scientist to the National Cancer Institute (NIH). He holds a MBA from the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School; a Ph.D. in Medical Sciences from the University of Geneva; and a M.D. from the University of Alicante, Spain.
Janeya Griffin
Janeya Griffin is The Commercializer® - a strategy consultant, serial and social entrepreneur, advocate for technology, entrepreneurship, inclusive innovation, social justice, and generational wealth, specifically within underserved communities. A HBCU STEM graduate, member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and the daughter of two formerly incarcerated individuals; at the young age of 16 she and her younger brother of 6 were introduced into the world of what it meant to experience hardship. Not knowing it would be a catalyst in helping her to fulfill her purpose.
14 years later, two degrees, a certificate and a contracting job with the National Aeronautics Space Agency (NASA), Janeya’s passion for problem solving and establishing connections would turn her into a lead Technology Transfer Specialist Contractor and an Executive Board Member for Federal Labs all over the country. She recently founded a consulting startup called The Commercializer®, LLC a strategic firm that actualizes independent Inventors intellectual assets, monetizes entrepreneurs ideas, and bridges the gaps between resources and historically excluded communities.
In addition, she is Co-founder and the Chief Strategy Officer of a creative agency called ConCreates, focused on serving the men, women, and children both behind and beyond bars, including changing the narrative and stigma behind how society views people with criminal histories and how people with criminal histories view themselves. In this role, alongside her team, she is able to provide positioning strategies for authentic insights and creative campaigns. In 2020 she became the policy chair and board member of 600 & Rising where she's tackling systemic oppression and racism within the ad industry. Lastly and most recently she began conducting a study which focuses on increasing diversity in space for historically excluded communities. Learn more about it at diversityinspace.tech
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.
Faruq Hammed
Faruq Hammed is a graduating senior at Philander Smith College studying Computer Science and Mathematics. Very interested in the UN SDGs, he is dedicated to using his skills to providing solutions to major world problems. Last year, he participated in the HBCU Innovation Showcase and came second place with the Thyfz team. When he isn't doing tech related things, you can find him reading, writing, speaking, and cooking.
Darren Butler
Darren Butler is a Computer Science student at Philander Smith College. He aims to pursue a PhD in Computer Science and follow a career in research and development with a focus on Human-Computer Interaction, Educational Technology, and Artificial Intelligence. His previous research includes a study of the usability and efficacy of autograders in Computer Science courses and modeling of instructor feedback in introductory Computer Science courses. He is also an HBCUvc Fellow Alumni and works with education outreach programs in the United States and Caribbean.
Utkarsh Goyal
Utkarsh Goyal, a Computer Science student at Philander Smith College. Co-founder of Mathematical and Sciences club on campus. Peer tutor in computer science and an RA on campus. Aims to be an entrepreneur in a tech-related field. Worked with academic advisors to develop Hotel Management System, Mobile Prototype Application, UX/UI research, and Imitate Jackson Pollock paintings using python. Have represented Philander Smith College at various events: AAAS HBCU Making and Innovation Showcase, ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference, Citi HBCU Innovation and Leadership Symposium, HBCU C2, Little Rock Tech Fest, etc. Recipient of Thomas Mason Scholarship (Tuition Ride), 4.0 Scholar Award, President's List, Ray Greenly Scholarship, Tapia Lyft Scholar, Citi CUPID Scholar.
Sam Davis Omekara
My name is Sam Davis Omekara Jr. I am a sophomore majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics at Philander Smith College. In my freshman year, I represented my college in the AAAS HBCU Making and Innovation Showcase, and we placed Second among all participating schools. This Summer, I am an Explore Intern at Microsoft where I am rotating between SWE and PM roles. Aside from coding, I enjoy playing soccer and helping people.