Greg Maryniak
Greg Maryniak who is the Director of the James S. McDonnell Planetarium, the Vice President for Energy and Aerospace of the Saint Louis Science Center and the Corporate Secretary and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Board of XPRIZE Foundation. Maryniak is a member of the faculty of the International Space University. The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics named him a Distinguished Lecturer for his presentation, "The Harvest of Space." He was awarded Russia’s Tsiolkovsky Medal for his work on the use of the resources of free space. He received the Space Frontier Foundation’s Vision to Reality Award for his role in creating the Lunar Prospector Mission launched in 1998. www.xprize.org
Will Pomerantz
Will Pomerantz, the Vice President for Special Projects at Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic. In that role, Will helps extend Virgin Galactic’s efforts beyond space tourism, developing efforts such as the LauncherOne orbital launch vehicle for small satellites as well as suborbital research campaigns on board SpaceShipTwo. Will also serves as a Trustee and the Chair of the Board of Advisers for the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS), the world's largest student space organization. He is a graduate of Harvard University, the NASA Academy, and the International Space University. Prior to joining Virgin Galactic, he worked at the XPRIZE Foundation, where he served as the primary author and manager of the $30 million Google Lunar XPRIZE and the $2 million Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander XCHALLENGE. http://www.virgingalactic.com
Sarah Jesse
Sarah Jesse, Associate Vice President of Education, at Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Prior to joining the museum, she served as the Bernsen Director of Education and Public Programs at the Philbrook Museum of Art and the Assistant Director of Public Programs at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. She received her BA in Art History from Oberlin College and MA from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is also currently Chair of the education board of the American Association of Museums through May 2016. http://www.lacma.org
Leroy Tripette
Leroy Tripette serves as the External Relations Manager for Intel’s Employee Communications and External Relations Group. In this role, he provides strategic program oversight and partners with Museum of Science, Boston and MIT Media Lab, to develop and implement programs, events and new technology initiatives for the global Intel Computer Clubhouse community. Active in the community, Mr. Tripette was the Board President for the Greater Sacramento Urban League, CA STEM Learning Network, National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce and Board Chair for NextEd. Mr. Tripette received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from Morehouse College in 1995. http://www.computerclubhouse.org
Elise Lemle
Elise Lemle, from Two bit Circus, is an artist, educator, and theater nerd who can usually be found in a tangle of fabric, circuits, and wire. Drawing on her experience as a classroom teacher, at Two Bit Circus Elise develops interdisciplinary curricula that challenge and immerse students in real-world problem solving. Passionate about engaging young people in STEM and STEAM, Elise has shared the STEAM Carnival vision with groups from 15 to 1,500. Her writing has been published in STEAM Journal and her technological creations were featured on KTLA. She holds a B.A. in Theatre and Performance Studies from Georgetown University and Masters of Education in Arts in Education from Harvard University. www.steamcarnival.com
Kevin Boie
Kevin Boie is Director of Digital Content for
ABC7 in Los Angeles. Kevin is an experienced manager who led the digital news
team at KDFW-TV in Dallas and also held a similar position at KXAS-TV in
Dallas. He began his career in digital journalism as the Chief Cyber-journalist
at WBBH-TV in Fort Myers, FL., where he reported about technology and the Internet
both on air and online. Kevin was also an interactive producer at WTVJ in
Miami, where he produced syndicated content both for broadcast and the Web.
Kevin holds a degree in Journalism from the University of Rhode Island. www.abc7.com
Ben Robles
Ben Robles from Iridescendent Learning- which is a global organization that teaches state of the art education on STEM. Benjamin has a passion for education, and a dedication to working within undeserved communities. In 2012, he graduated from The University Of California, Los Angeles with a bachelor’s degree in History. Benjamin's role at Iridescent includes training partners, community outreach, and program delivery using an online science portal that connects children to scientists and engineering mentors. http://iridescentlearning.org/
Michael Peyser
Michael Peyser is an accomplished producer of both major studio movies as well as cutting-edge independent films. Most recently he was executive producer of Woody Allen: A Documentary, which PBS/American Masters released to great acclaim in November 2011. Peyser’s extensive credits encompass a wide range of commercially and critically successful films, including: Ruthless People, Hackers, Desperately Seeking Susan, and the children’s classic Matilda (directed by Danny DeVito). In addition to his producing credits, Peyser was the founding Senior Vice-President of Hollywood Pictures at The Walt Disney Studios, where he supervised creative development and production. Peyser is also a tenured professor at the University of Southern California, School of Cinematic Arts, where he teaches all aspects of producing and the film making enterprise.
Deena Periott
Deena Periott. In 2011, Deena Periott created a program to expose “non-traditional STEM learners” to STEM careers and opportunities. Based in Portland, Oregon, iUrban Teen Tech introduced middle schoolers and high school-aged black and Latino males to tech tours, mentorship and job shadowing opportunities. A true believer in the proverb “it takes a village to raise a child,” Pierott engages with participants’ parents, so the learning continues even after activities end. More than 1400 young people have experienced iUrban’s innovative programming and Pierott, who also allows young women to participate, is expanding the program beyond the Portland Metro area to Washington and Texas. Periott was honored as a White House Champion of Change for Technology Inclusion and recognized as one of Ebony Magazine’s 2013 Top 100. BlackEnterprise.com honors Pierott as Innovator of the Week for her dedication to bridging the achievement gap and introducing teens to opportunities involving science, technology, engineering and mathematics. http://www.iubanteen.org
Russ Billings
Russ Billings is a nationally recognized Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) expert. With over two decades of high school physics and chemistry teaching experience, Russ went on to work as a k-12 Education Specialist for NASA’s Armstrong's Flight Research Center from 2009 to 2013 through the AERO Institute where he also served Deputy Executive Director. Known for creating dynamic, interactive experiences for students of all ages, Russ uses a holistic educational approach, focusing on relationships, relevancy, and rigor. Russ was a 2004 NASA Astronaut Class candidate finalist, which afforded him the opportunity to experience the direct application of STEM at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Inspired by this experience, he created an underwater, zero-gravity classroom for his physics class. He has received recognition for this program and his work with NASA, including awards from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Daimler Chrysler, NASA, and the Civil Air Patrol. Russ currently works as an educational programs consultant through Evaluation, Research and Cyber-Solutions (ERC) firm in Fresno, CA. www.ercdata.com
Loretta Whitesides
Having been to the bottom of the ocean five times with Titanic and Avatar director James Cameron to film the 3D IMAX "Aliens of the Deep," and having spent 4 hours (in 30 second bursts) floating weightless as crew on Zero Gravity's 727 aircraft, Loretta Whitesides feels ready for her next adventure– taking a suborbital space flight with Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic. With a master’s degree in biology from Caltech, a bachelor’s degree in biology from Stanford and a passion for space that predates kindergarten, Loretta wants to use her space flight to inspire people with what is possible. Loretta and her husband George (who is the CEO of Virgin Galactic) are also the Co-Creators of Yuri's Night, the annual worldwide space party celebrated every April 12th that uses space to bring the world together. She has written and spoke about space for Wired.com, TEDxNASA, and AllThingsAero.com and loves to make science cool. http://allthingsaero.com/hangar/loretta_whitesides
Noam Dromi
Noam Dromi is a writer/producer, marketing executive and digital strategist specializing in transmedia content development for corporations, brands & entertainment companies. He co-wrote the Warner Bros/Alcon Entertainment film Dolphin Tale starring Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr & Ashley Judd. The film grossed $100 million at the worldwide box office. Noam currently serves as the President & CEO of Driveby Entertainment Group where he and his team develop programming for a wide range of media, technology and consumer brand clients. He concurrently serves as digital media strategist for Alcon Entertainment (The Blind Side, Book of Eli, Dolphin Tale) and K/O Entertainment (Star Trek, Amazing Spiderman, Sleepy Hollow). http://jrceos.org/
Marcus Moore
Marcus is a serial entrepreneur and international Award-Winning Creative Director, having built innovative and highly compelling campaigns for some of the world’s top brands. Always pushing to make the world a better place through brand connections and innovation, Marcus founded jrCEOs Inc to prepare our nation's youth for the challenges of the global economy. jrCEOs Inc is the first social network for 11-17 year olds, geared around business, leadership, financial literacy and entrepreneurship. This student population is not being adequately served through their schools or communities. Marcus studied at The Berlin/Cannes School of Creative Leadership and honed his business and creative chops at some of the world’s most extraordinary shops, including DDB World Wide, BBDO and TBWA/Chiat Day/True. In the last 15-plus years, he’s built great work for HBO, Disney, Miller, Heineken, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, P&G, GM, American Honda, Nissan, Infinity, Lexus, Volvo, General Mills, Kraft, HP, Wells Fargo, US Army, Farmers Insurance, Hasbro and Atari.
Recognized for making great things happen, he’s got shelves full of hardware including CLIOs, EFFIEs, NY Festivals, YoungGuns, Beldings, and the DDB Pinnacle award. http://jrceos.org/
Recognized for making great things happen, he’s got shelves full of hardware including CLIOs, EFFIEs, NY Festivals, YoungGuns, Beldings, and the DDB Pinnacle award. http://jrceos.org/