Nancy Fallon

Director of Business Operations @AdaMarie

My name is Nancy Fallon, and I serve as the Director of Business Operations at AdaMarie, where I focus on the intersection of business operations, marketing, and community building.

Njairé M

Biomedical Engineer and Entrepreneur

Njairé is a biomedical engineer and entrepreneur. As Co-Founder and COO of a pre-launch health & wellness start-up, she leads the company's strategy and operational backbone, AI-automated workflows, and omnichannel infrastructure. She holds a BS/MS in Biological Sciences and Biomedical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon and an MBA from Columbia University, with prior experience in new product development and global acquisitions in robotic-assisted surgery and AI at Medtronic. She brings specialized training in Generative AI for Healthcare (Google) and Agentic AI/RAG systems (IBM), and is an emerging speaker in healthtech AI, offering a unique perspective on how engineering, AI, and entrepreneurship intersect for STEM professionals navigating their own career paths.

Aisha Bowe

Engineer | Entrepreneur | Citizen Astronaut

Aisha Bowe is a former NASA rocket scientist, award-winning founder, and citizen astronaut who is redefining what it means to lead in science, education, and innovation. In 2025, she flew aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket as part of a historic all-female crew, conducting NASA-backed research and flight-qualified experiments in microgravity. She is the founder of STEMBoard, a tech company, and the creator of LINGO, an edtech startup bringing hands-on STEM education to students around the world. Aisha’s inspiring journey from community college to space has captivated global audiences. She reminds us that the world “impossible” is only a suggestion.

Victoria Hill

Global Vice President of People & Culture, Advanced Group

Victoria is a passionate people leader with over 15 years of experience in the human resources space, specializing in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), Leadership Development, and Human Resources Management. Her work is grounded in one core principle: centering the human experience to foster authentic, inclusive relationships. As Vice President of Global People & Culture at Advanced Group, Victoria leads a dynamic global team overseeing Benefits, Payroll, HR, DE&I, Social Impact, and Learning & Development across North America and beyond. She plays a strategic role in shaping a culture where people thrive, and purpose drives performance. Advanced Group delivers a broad range of services—including staffing, talent management, consulting, outsourcing, and clinical research—across multiple industries. Within this mission, Victoria and her team champion inclusive practices and develop programs that empower employees and support equitable, values-based decision-making.

Joané Booth

People and Culture Manager, Women Donors Network

Joané has spent over a decade asking a simple but powerful question: What does it look like when systems actually work for everyone? That question has roots in the Minnesota State Capitol, where she began her career as a Legislative Assistant to State Senator Bobby Joe Champion and later as a Policy Advisor to Governor Mark Dayton, developing a sharp understanding of how policy is made and whom it too often leaves behind. From there, she brought that lens to the U.S. Senate, serving as Diversity & Inclusion Outreach Director for Senator Tina Smith, and to the frontlines of conservation advocacy as Partnerships Manager at the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. Along the way, she worked on local and national campaigns learning the nuances of getting someone elected to office. In partnership with other friends and colleagues, Joané also founded POWERMoves, a community that united over 1,200 women of color across Minnesota, leaving behind a lasting network of relationships and a blueprint for what sisterhood in organizing can look like. Now, as People & Culture Manager at Women Donors Network, Joané channels that same energy inward, shaping an organizational culture and building a team that reflects the values she's championed her whole career. A Humphrey Public Policy Fellow, 40 Under 40 honoree, and proud Atlantan, she brings warmth, strategy, and a deep belief that the right people in the right rooms can change everything.

Marie Libres

Owner and Product Designer, Daughters Studio

Marie Libres is a product designer and founder of Daughters Studio, where she works with early-stage teams to take ambiguous ideas and shape them into thoughtful, viable products. Her path into tech wasn’t linear - she began in advertising, realized it wasn’t aligned long-term, and taught herself product design before pivoting into the field. That experience of redefining her own value and navigating change makes today’s topic especially relevant.

Victoria Farris

Equity & Inclusion Expert

Dr. Victoria Farris is a transformational leadership coach, facilitator, and culture consultant who believes that the way we lead shapes the way people experience their lives at work. She helps leaders develop the skills to lead human-first, creating teams that are not only high-performing, but deeply engaged and inclusive. She works with individuals and organizations to build high-trust cultures that drive innovation, retention, and long-term success.

Aneesa Valentine

Founder & Senior Engineer

Aneesa is a computational scientist and engineer with PhD training in computational genomics and extensive professional experience across data science, data engineering and applied machine learning in the life sciences. She is the founder of ImpaktBio: an educational services company focused on hands-on training in bioinformatics, data science and AI for the life sciences. Aneesa has partnered with several non-profits and enterprise biopharma organizations across the US, developing and implementing bioinformatics curriculum for effective user enablement. Additionally, she recently co-founded The Black Life Sciences Collective to expand access to technical training and community in computational biology. She is deeply committed to democratizing computational genomics, data science and engineering by making these skills accessible, practical and career-relevant for scientists and learners from diverse backgrounds.

Brooke Grindlinger

STEM Nonprofit Executive & Chief Scientific Officer

Dr. Brooke Grindlinger is a microbiologist and Chief Scientific Officer at The New York Academy of Sciences, where she helps to drive science-based solutions for the benefit of humanity. Her work spans scientific conferences, awards, research fellowships, professional learning, and public-facing programs across disciplines from the life sciences and AI to sustainability and science and society. Brooke has moved from bench science into executive leadership, with a focus on helping scientists and STEM professionals apply their technical expertise in ways that expand their leadership, influence, and societal impact.

Boomie Odumade

Founder & Senior Engineering Leader

Boomie is a software engineering leader, founder, and fractional VP of Engineering and CTO at TechBees. She brings a unique perspective shaped by both deep technical expertise and leadership experience across the tech industry. Her path into technology began with a degree in mechanical engineering, followed by a master’s in computer science and an MBA from Wharton — and since then she’s worked across engineering and leadership roles while helping teams and individuals navigate growth in the tech space. Alongside her work in industry, Boomie is deeply committed to mentorship and supporting the next generation of STEM professionals through speaking, writing, and youth-focused organizations.

Carmen Banks

Senior Scientist, Root Applied Sciences & CEO, MelanInScience

Dr. Carmen Banks is a Senior Scientist at Root Applied Sciences and Founder & CEO of MelanInScience, a platform dedicated to increasing visibility, representation, and opportunity for Black scientists. With expertise spanning scientific research, career development, and community leadership, she works at the intersection of science, advocacy, and professional growth, helping early-career professionals navigate visibility, advancement, and impact in STEM.

Scyatta Wallace

STEM Pipeline Expert, Founder at Janisaw Company

Dr. Scyatta Wallace is an award-winning Psychologist, accomplished scientist and social entrepreneur. Her mission is to support the career readiness and leadership development of girls/young women, particularly under-represented groups in STEM. Her company provides career readiness and workforce development related strategic planning, programs/trainings and outcomes measurement services to schools and STEM based organizations. Signature programs include ‘Success in STEM’ and ‘Future Ready AI’. Dr. Wallace is the author of the Success in STEM Journal which is available on Amazon and has been featured as an expert in Time magazine, CNN.com, U.S. News and World Reports, Romper.com, thegrio.com, Essence Magazine and ABCnews.com among others.

Denise Bronner

Founder, Empactful Ventures

Denise N. Bronner, Ph.D. is a scientist-turned-strategist whose career path has been anything but linear and she's made that her superpower. From PhD microbiologist to pharma director at Johnson & Johnson, VC ecosystem builder, and founder of Empactful Ventures, she has navigated every stage of a complex career with intention and a few hard-won lessons along the way. Since starting her consultancy, Denise has secured $20M+ in capital and contracts for her 15 clients. She has delivered 70+ speaking engagements, mentored founders through TechStars, Village Capital, and Charles R. Drew University's BIP Accelerator, and serves as Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Duke's I-Cubed Innovation Center. She is also a board member at We Are ILL, a chronic illness patient advocacy organization. She doesn't give advice she hasn't lived and she's ready for whatever you bring to the table.

Kristy McCann

CEO & Founder, 127 Ventures, HR Evangelist

Kristy McCann Flynn has spent over two decades doing one thing: helping people grow. As a Strategic HR Leader, Change Manager, and Organizational Development Expert, she held senior roles at Pearson Education, and Constant Contact before becoming an accidental entrepreneur with a very deliberate mission. Frustrated by the way companies were treating people and throwing talent away instead of developing it, Kristy co-founded SkillCycle and now leads Relate, building tools and platforms that replace broken performance systems with real, human-centered development. A Forbes Coaching Council member, sought-after speaker, and self-described evangelist for people enablement, Kristy believes that skill development is never a one-time event. It is evergreen. Her goal, in every room she walks into, is simple: educate everyone.

Susan Childs

Founder and Principal Managing Partner @ LCA Consulting & Business Services, LLC

Susan Childs is an entrepreneur, business and executive coach, global human resource expert, post doctorate lecturer and internationally requested public speaker with an emphasis on people, culture, business growth, leadership and career strategies inside of workplaces, C-Suites and communities. As a multiple decade part of the biopharma industry, she has had a varied client portfolio of multi-national corporations, life science start-ups, CEOs and professional association leaders and their affiliates. She is also a guest lecturer for the Texas Medical Center and an academic professor's coach for Ethics, Entrepreneurship, Engagement and Emotional-Social intelligence. Her unique focus on business performance excellence underscores the fact that people and culture power the right results, especially profitability. She views the essential "how-to" conversations of leadership excellence, business delivery and workplace inclusions (vs. exclusions) to be a matter of humanity; not a political one. Susan’s expertise spans various domains, including human resources management and strategy, workforce and business dynamics, executive development, sales, advertising, marketing, promotions, and internal communications. Throughout her career, she has worked at prominent companies such as Takeda, Shire, AstraZeneca, HSBC, ESPN, Disney, NBC Universal, Starz-Liberty Media, and WL Gore, enriching her understanding of different industries and organizational challenges.

Archana Vaidheeswaran

Program Director, Algoverse | AI Safety

I oversee several programs for AI Safety including Algoverse and PRISM, I oversee AI Research programs and help grow global AI safety initiatives through fellowships and community-building. PRISM (Peer-vetted Research Initiative for Safety Methodologies) under Women Who Do Data, a 16-week AI safety research program that uses peer selection to scale mentorship and turn the senior-researcher bottleneck into a multiplier. Our EleutherAI SOAR pilot produced two accepted papers (NeurIPS 2025, ICASSP 2025) at a 25:1 researcher-to-mentor ratio. When I'm not thinking about AI, you'll probably find me cheering on indie game creators as a Community Director at International Game Developers Association (IGDA).

Renesha L. Davis, CPA

Managing Partner at The Money Council®️

Renesha L. Davis, CPA, is an entrepreneur, author, and financial strategist who helps business owners make better financial decisions. She is the Managing Partner at The Money Council®, a boutique accounting and advisory firm that has served more than 500 small businesses. Before joining The Money Council®, Renesha spent nearly a decade in corporate finance, helping Fortune 50 companies improve their bottom lines by $1.6 billion. She later used that experience to create opportunities for other professionals, families, and business owners. Renesha’s journey began long before she became a CPA. As a fourth grader, she volunteered as a student teller through a school banking program and discovered that she enjoyed helping people understand money. She went on to become a first-generation college graduate and built a career that combines accounting, leadership, education, and service. Known professionally as The Legacy CPA®, Renesha teaches that a career is not only about earning an income. It is also about discovering your strengths, solving meaningful problems, and creating something that benefits others. Her story reminds students that their early interests can become clues to their future, and that careers rarely move in a perfectly straight line. Sometimes the experiences that interrupt the plan help reveal the work a person was always meant to do.

Kimberly Marsh

Senior Director of Talent Acquisition at Pebl

Kimberly Marsh is a talent executive with more than 14 years of experience helping high-growth organizations build and scale world-class teams. As Senior Director of Talent Acquisition at Pebl, she partners with executive leaders to develop workforce strategies, modernize recruiting operations, and hire the leadership talent that drives business growth. Throughout her career, Kimberly has led global talent organizations across SaaS, fintech, logistics, and healthcare technology, building recruiting functions from the ground up, implementing AI-enabled hiring practices, and guiding organizations through periods of rapid growth and transformation. Her work spans executive hiring, workforce planning, talent analytics, and organizational design, with a focus on creating scalable systems that balance business performance with an exceptional candidate experience. A recognized thought leader on the future of work, Kimberly frequently shares insights on AI, workforce strategy, and leadership. She is passionate about helping organizations rethink how talent can become a competitive advantage in an increasingly dynamic business landscape.

Priya Abiram

AdaMarie Fellow, Aerospace Engineer & Astronaut-in-Training

Priya Abiram is an aerospace engineer, pilot, and astronaut-in-training whose work spans human systems engineering, spacecraft design, bioastronautics research, and women’s health innovation. A 2026 AdaMarie Fellow, she holds both a B.S. and M.Eng. in Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University and has contributed to projects and research with organizations including NASA, Blue Origin, Boeing, VAST, and Inversion Space. Priya is passionate about designing systems that improve human performance in extreme environments while expanding access, representation, and possibility within STEM.

Kristina Gatto

Astrophysicist & Founder and CEO of NOVA

Kristina Gatto is an astrophysicist and the founder and CEO of the Network for Outreach and Vocation in Astronomy (NOVA), an organization dedicated to expanding access to the cosmos. At 24, she combines her scientific expertise with a passion for making astronomy accessible through her outreach and science communication work, sharing pathways for aspiring scientists and fostering a global community around the wonders of the universe.

Farnaz Abdollahi

Vice Chair IEEE Chicago, Chair IEEE Women in Engineering Region4, Senior Data Scientist @ Intel

Research Scientist with a passion for user-centered technology developments and excellent research, experiment design, programming, statistical analysis, interdisciplinary communication and problem solving skills.

Alessandra Garber

Founder and Principal of Garber Philanthropic Strategy Partners

Alessandra Garber is a senior development leader and a seasoned strategist with more than 25 years of experience in fundraising for world-class institutions. As the Founder and Principal of Garber Philanthropic Strategy Partners, she provides results-driven counsel to nonprofit organizations seeking to elevate their major gift fundraising efforts. This includes evaluating donor potential, creating compelling investment-ready initiatives, and building philanthropic partnerships and practices that propel their missions in new and powerful ways. She offers 1-1 coaching for nonprofit executives and fundraising professionals, helping them strengthen their fundraising skills through proven approaches, thoughtful strategies, and mastery of relationship-building with high-net-worth philanthropists. Alessandra is also an Adjunct Instructor at New York University’s George H. Heyman Program for Philanthropy and Fundraising, where she teaches the Major Gifts for Nonprofit Organizations course.

Robin Burges

Associate Director of Project Delivery, Advanced Clinical

Robin Burges is an Associate Director of Project Management at Advanced Clinical with more than 20 years of experience across clinical research, biotechnology, global health, and biopharmaceutical development. Her career began in laboratory science and international health, where she spent several years in Mali, West Africa, helping establish research laboratories, train local scientists, and support malaria, HIV, and tuberculosis research programs. Through a willingness to embrace new challenges and step beyond traditional career paths, she expanded her expertise from research and operations into clinical project leadership, sponsor-side development, and senior management roles. Today, she leads project management teams, mentors emerging leaders, and oversees complex global clinical programs across multiple therapeutic areas and phases of development. Robin is passionate about professional growth, mentorship, and lifelong learning, believing that some of the most impactful career opportunities arise when individuals remain open to unexpected experiences. Her diverse career journey reflects the value of curiosity, adaptability, resilience, and a commitment to continuous growth

Andrea Uribe

IT Director of Digital Manufacturing at The Campbell's Company

Andrea Uribe is a technology leader with more than 15 years of experience turning cutting-edge tools into real-world impact. As IT Director of Digital Manufacturing at The Campbell's Company, she leads the enterprise's Connected Factory strategy, applying AI and digital transformation to modernize manufacturing at scale. Throughout her career, she has built and led high-performing global teams delivering complex digital initiatives -- the kind of hands-on, cross-functional leadership that rarely makes headlines but changes how entire organizations work. Andrea holds a degree in Management of Technology from NYU, and her path into tech leadership has always run alongside a commitment to bringing others with her. Since 2015, she has mentored through America On Tech, an organization creating pathways into technology for young people from historically underrepresented communities, and she now serves on its NYC Advisory Board. As the daughter of immigrants raised in New York City, Andrea knows firsthand what it means to navigate a path without a map — and has spent her career making sure the next generation doesn't have to do it alone. Whether she's leading digital transformation on the factory floor or mentoring the next wave of women in tech, Andrea brings the same mix of technical rigor and generosity of spirit.

Camille Smith

Founder + CEO at STEM So(ul)cial | Social Entrepreneur | Engineer

Camille Smith is a scientist, community builder, and founder of STEM So(ul)cial, a global third-space community reimagining what it means to build a career, and a life, in STEM. A chemical engineer by training, Camille has built her career at the intersection of science, culture, community, and access, creating safe spaces for the next generation of innovators to thrive. Through STEM So(ul)cial, Camille is challenging the traditional pathways into STEM by creating experiences that bring together professional development, social connection, mentorship, and financial support. Her work has led to partnerships with leading organizations including Yale, Apple, Black Girl Ventures, Solidcore, AdaMarie, and Cetaphil. A true multi-hyphenate with a passion for travel and discovery, Camille brings curiosity and cultural fluency to everything she does. Whether she’s talking about careers, community, innovation, or the future of STEM, she has a unique ability to make complex ideas feel accessible, relevant, and deeply connected to everyday life.

Dr. Shy Brown

Founder, President, Executive Director, Building Bridges, Inc.

Dr. Shy Brown is a STEM leader, nonprofit executive, entrepreneur, and biochemist with 8+ years of experience advancing mission-driven initiatives across nonprofit, corporate, education, and community sectors. She is the Founder, President, and Executive Director of Building Bridges, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing STEM exposure and building confidence among Black and Brown girls. She is also the owner of The Brown Way, a consulting agency focused on advancing strategic initiatives for business owners, nonprofits, corporations, and academic institutions.

Catharine Montgomery

Founder and CEO of Better Together Agency

Catharine Montgomery is the Founder and CEO of Better Together Agency, an AI-forward communications firm built on the belief that equity belongs at the center of every campaign. With nearly 20 years of strategic experience, she guides organizations and major brands through high-stakes conversations around technology and social change. As the creator of TogetherAI, a private platform with built-in bias detection, she brings a research-backed perspective on how systemic biases shape artificial intelligence and consumer trust. A founding member of Black Women Leading in AI and a Researcher with the Center for AI and Digital Policy, Catharine actively advises executive leaders on creating responsible technology that empowers diverse communities.

Elaria Meshreky

Director, Business Development at Advanced Clinical

Elaria Meshreky is a Director of Business Development at Advanced Clinical. She has10 years of experience spanning scientific research, clinical operations, biotech consulting, FSP, and CRO solutions. With an academic background in neuroscience, her career began in research and has evolved across nearly every side of clinical development—from the site level to supporting emerging biotech companies and, today, partnering with sponsors to advance their clinical programs. Throughout each chapter, science has remained the common thread, Elaria is passionate about showing young women that there is no single way to look, act, or build a career in STEM. As a woman of a mixed background, and a self-proclaimed “neuro nerd”, she believes women can be intelligent, ambitious, funny, multifaceted, and entirely themselves while succeeding in science. Her career is a testament to embracing evolution: you don't need to have everything figured out to be moving toward your purpose.

Amber Beimer

Associate Director, Program Delivery at Advanced Clinical

Amber Beimer is an experienced clinical operations and program delivery leader with nearly 20 years of experience in clinical research and pharmaceutical development. As Associate Director of Program Delivery at Advanced Clinical, she leads teams and provides strategic oversight across programs, with a focus on operational excellence, resource strategy, quality, client partnerships, and team development. Her career has spanned roles from Clinical Research Associate and Clinical Project Manager through clinical operations and program leadership, giving her a broad perspective on both the execution and strategic side of clinical research. Amber holds an MBA in Healthcare Administration and a BS in Business Management and serves as Director of Marketing for the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association.

Janavi Thyagraj

Research Technologist, Laronda Lab

I am a Research Technologist specializing in translational stem cell and reproductive biology, with expertise in developing and optimising hiPSC-derived endocrine models. My work focuses on bridging the gap between bench science and clinical application through the establishment of high-fidelity experimental benchmarks and reproducible differentiation protocols. In my current role in the Laronda Lab, I am optimising ligand-based differentiation for hiPSC-derived granulosa-like cells (GLCs), fine-tuning culture parameters to enhance FOXL2 expression and analysing functional outputs. This research contributed to a co-authored publication in Stem Cell Research (2026). Beyond the bench, I lead the processing of patient samples for the Fertility Health & Preservation Registry (FHPR) in a CLIA-adjacent environment and collaborate on metabolomics profiling to analyse metabolites in cryopreserved ovarian cortex. Previously, I completed my master's thesis at Northwestern on hiPSC-derived adrenal cortex-like cells (hACLCs), where I optimised 3D culture systems to significantly double hormone production, validating zonation-specific markers against human tissue benchmarks. With a dual-MS background and a published patent in medical biotechnology, I am dedicated to advancing assisted reproductive technologies (ART) through standardised, quality-controlled research workflows.

Nadera Rahman

Product Manager, Mobile Platform & Personalization @ Vanguard

Nadera Rahman is a Product Manager at Vanguard, where she leads the digital messaging and personalization strategy for the mobile app. With nearly 11 years at Vanguard and a background spanning delivery governance to full-stack product leadership, she is firmly rooted at the intersection of technology and customer experience. She is a native New Yorker, now based in Philadelphia, and a proud graduate of Bryn Mawr College, where she studied urban planning.

Jennifer Vogele

Associate Director, Program Delivery at Advanced Clinical

Associate Director, Program Delivery at Advanced Clinical