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STEM Forward with Women 2021 - A virtual conference

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Empowering women to succeed in STEM.

Despite global discussion about gender diversity in STEM, women are still underrepresented, underpaid and often discriminated against in these industries. Udacity is here to change that by giving #WomenWhoFuture the opportunity to learn in-demand tech skills, while providing a platform to connect with female leaders in the industry.

Closing the gender gap at your company isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s also been proven to be better for your business outcomes. Forbes cited a Bloomberg report that found corporations with gender-balanced teams have a higher return on equity. Adding more women to your team means more innovation when it comes to shaping new products, technologies and initiatives.

25%

of computing jobs are held by women even though 47% of the U.S. workforce is made up of women.1

78%

of women in tech feel they have to work harder than their coworkers to prove their worth.2

5%

of startup founders are women.3

Keynote Speakers

Kimberly Bryant

CEO and Founder, Black Girls CODE

Kimberly Bryant has dedicated her life to changing the face of technology. Since 2011 she has helped Black Girls CODE grow from a local grassroots initiative, to an international organization that has reached over 10,000 students and continues to grow and thrive. Kimberly has been recognized as a thought leader for her work and has received numerous awards and recognition including being named a Business Insider top 25 “Most Influential African-American in Technology” and a White House "Champion of Change".

Ellen Pao

CEO, Project Include

Tech investor and activist Ellen Pao is the former CEO of Reddit and the co-founder and CEO of the award-winning diversity and inclusion nonprofit Project Include. A long-time entrepreneur and investor, she is the former Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at the Kapor Center and a former venture capitalist for Kleiner Perkins and Kapor Capital. Her 2017 memoir, Reset: My Fight for Inclusion and Lasting Change, was shortlisted for the Financial Times and Mckinsey Business Book of the Year.

Our Speakers

  • Lauren Barrett Knausenberger

    CIO, United States Air Force

  • Hallie Bregman

    Global Head of People Analytics, PTC

  • Sandra McLeod

    Head of Security Assurance, Zoom

  • Tracy Chou

    CEO and Founder, Block Party

  • Sidney Madison Prescott

    Global Head of Intelligent Automation, Spotify

  • Lucinda Sanders

    CEO, National Center for Women & Information Technology

Our Moderators

  • Kari Paul

    Reporter, The Guardian

  • Robin Hauser

    Filmaker, Code: Debugging the Gender Gap

Video Highlights

  1. kimberly-bryant-keynote-speaker

    Kimberly Bryant, CEO and Founder, Black Girls CODE

    OPENING KEYNOTE

    In our opening keynote, Black Girls CODE CEO Kimberly Bryant will address how companies can attract and retain talented in women in this space, and why it’s more important than ever to have a more inclusive industry.

    Watch Video
  2. Ellen Pao Closing Keynote

    Ellen Pao, CEO, Project Include

    CLOSING KEYNOTE

    In our closing keynote, tech investor and activist Ellen Pao will offer her thoughts on how companies can create a clear path forward for women and other underrepresented groups to get access to careers in STEM.

    Watch Video

  3. How to Build an Inclusive Culture in Tech

    Panel Discussion

    In this panel, our line-up of senior leaders from Spotify, PTC, and the National Center for Women & Information Technology, address how companies can increase representation and truly build an inclusive culture in the workforce today.

    Watch video

  4. Clearing the hurdles to success in your STEM career

    Panel Discussion

    In this panel, senior leaders from top companies will address how they moved past microaggressions, bias, and sexism to stay in their roles and advance to leadership positions in STEM.

    Watch video
  5. Women Who Future - Shifat Nazmee

    Women Who Future | Shifat Nazmee

    Student Spotlight

    Shifat Nazmee speaks about her role in tech and her experiences with Udacity's Women in STEM scholarship program.

    Watch Video
  6. Women Who Future - Sonja Galkin

    Women Who Future | Sonja Galkin

    Student Spotlight

    Sonja Galkin speaks about her role as a DevOps Manager and her experiences with Udacity's Women in STEM scholarship program.

    Watch Video
  7. Women Who Future - Nermine Ghaz

    Women Who Future | Nermine Ghazy

    Student Spotlight

    Nermine Ghazy speaks about her role as an AI Product Manager and her experiences with Udacity's Women in STEM scholarship program.

    Watch Video
kimberly-bryant-keynote-speaker

Kimberly Bryant, CEO and Founder, Black Girls CODE

OPENING KEYNOTE

In our opening keynote, Black Girls CODE CEO Kimberly Bryant will address how companies can attract and retain talented in women in this space, and why it’s more important than ever to have a more inclusive industry.

Watch Video
Ellen Pao Closing Keynote

Ellen Pao, CEO, Project Include

CLOSING KEYNOTE

In our closing keynote, tech investor and activist Ellen Pao will offer her thoughts on how companies can create a clear path forward for women and other underrepresented groups to get access to careers in STEM.

Watch Video

How to Build an Inclusive Culture in Tech

Panel Discussion

In this panel, our line-up of senior leaders from Spotify, PTC, and the National Center for Women & Information Technology, address how companies can increase representation and truly build an inclusive culture in the workforce today.

Watch video

Clearing the hurdles to success in your STEM career

Panel Discussion

In this panel, senior leaders from top companies will address how they moved past microaggressions, bias, and sexism to stay in their roles and advance to leadership positions in STEM.

Watch video
Women Who Future - Shifat Nazmee

Women Who Future | Shifat Nazmee

Student Spotlight

Shifat Nazmee speaks about her role in tech and her experiences with Udacity's Women in STEM scholarship program.

Watch Video
Women Who Future - Sonja Galkin

Women Who Future | Sonja Galkin

Student Spotlight

Sonja Galkin speaks about her role as a DevOps Manager and her experiences with Udacity's Women in STEM scholarship program.

Watch Video
Women Who Future - Nermine Ghaz

Women Who Future | Nermine Ghazy

Student Spotlight

Nermine Ghazy speaks about her role as an AI Product Manager and her experiences with Udacity's Women in STEM scholarship program.

Watch Video

Schedule

  1. How the pandemic upended the working woman's career path

    Opening Keynote

    How the pandemic upended the working woman's career path
    COVID-19 forced nearly 3 million women to leave the workforce, couple that with the fact that women leave STEM careers at disproportionately higher rates than men — due to bias and sexism — and it becomes clear that STEM is in danger of become an insular, non-innovative space. Kimberly Bryant will address how companies can attract and retain talented in women in this space, and why it’s more important than ever to have a more inclusive industry.

    Kimberly Bryant

    CEO and Founder, Black Girls CODE

  2. #WomenWhoFuture

    Student Spotlight Video

    #WomenWhoFuture
    Hear from Women in STEM scholarship participants that have upskilled or reskilled in a technical field through Udacity. Get a closer look into the lives of women in the industry who have overcome challenges and ultimately found success despite underrepresentation, bias and more.

  3. How to build an inclusive culture in tech

    Panel Discussion

    How to build an inclusive culture in tech
    In 2020, several tech companies entered into conversations and promises about increasing representation in the workplace for underrepresented groups. But, these promises went unfulfilled. In fact, women still remain underrepresented in job clusters like computing and engineering, according to a Pew Research report. In this panel, our line-up of senior leaders from Spotify, PTC, and the National Center for Women & Information Technology, address how companies can increase representation and truly build an inclusive culture in the workforce today.

    Moderator

    • Kari Paul

      Reporter, The Guardian

    Panelists

    • Hallie Bregman

      Global Head of People Analytics, PTC

    • Sidney Madison Prescott

      Global Head of Intelligent Automation, Spotify

    • Lucinda Sanders

      CEO, National Center for Women & Information Technology

  4. #WomenWhoFuture

    Student Spotlight Video

    #WomenWhoFuture
    Hear from Women in STEM scholarship participants that have upskilled or reskilled in a technical field through Udacity. Get a closer look into the lives of women in the industry who have overcome challenges and ultimately found success despite underrepresentation, bias and more.

  5. Clearing the hurdles to success in your STEM career

    Panel Discussion

    Clearing the hurdles to success in your STEM career
    Women in STEM fields spend years and countless amount of hours acquiring skills to enter and thrive in the tech industry. Despite those accomplishments, women leave the industry twice as often as men do, according to research from the Association of Women in Science. In our panel, senior leaders from top companies will address how they moved past microaggressions, bias, and sexism to stay in their roles and advance to leadership positions in STEM.

    Moderator

    • Robin Hauser

      Filmaker, Code: Debugging the Gender Gap

    Panelists

    • Lauren Barrett Knausenberger

      CIO, United States Air Force

    • Tracy Chou

      CEO and Founder, Block Party

    • Sandra McLeod

      Head of Security Assurance, Zoom

  6. #WomenWhoFuture

    Student Spotlight Video

    #WomenWhoFuture
    Hear from Women in STEM scholarship participants that have upskilled or reskilled in a technical field through Udacity. Get a closer look into the lives of women in the industry who have overcome challenges and ultimately found success despite underrepresentation, bias and more.

  7. How companies can help women in STEM reach success in their careers

    Closing Keynote

    How companies can help women in STEM reach success in their careers
    In this session, tech investor and activist Ellen Pao will offer her thoughts on how companies can create a clear path forward for women and other underrepresented groups to get access to careers in STEM.

    Ellen Pao

    CEO, Project Include

Join us in closing the gender gap in STEM.

  1. 1 National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT)
  2. 2 TrustRadius
  3. 3 Observer