Brianne Caplan is the Executive Director and Founder of Code Your Dreams, a Chicago-based nonprofit that empowers underserved youth to solve their community’s problems through code. Bri is also the Founder of CoderHeroes, a company that makes coding imaginative, impactful and personal for children through individual and group virtual sessions. As a former Data Scientist and Program Director for Careers in Computer Science at the University of Chicago, Bri strives to make the technology sector accessible to all.

Elle Ramel is the Chicago Director for GET Cities, a city-based initiative to advance women in the tech economy. Prior, she project managed the redevelopment of the Michael Reese Hospital site for Farpoint Development and led strategic partnerships at City Tech Collaborative, the smart city lab of Chicago, and an Economic Policy Associate in Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office at the City of Chicago. She has worked on financial issues and economic development, including infrastructure, corporate recruitment, job growth, sustainability, food business, innovation spaces and land use. She completed her bachelor’s at Yale University in Urban Studies and a master’s degree at Cambridge University in Land Economics/Town Planning.

Sofia Gross is a Public Policy Manager at Snap, Inc's where she oversees government, political and non-profit partnerships in Washington, DC. Most recently, Sofia led an initiative that helped over 1.3 Million Snapchatters register to vote and she was recognized as a Forbes 30 under 30 for her civic efforts during the 2018 Midterm Elections. Last year, Sofia was a Technology and Democracy Fellow at the Ash Center of Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard Kennedy School where she co-authored a case study on Civic Responsibility: The Power of Companies to Increase Voter Turnout. Sofia studied International Studies and Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations at The University of Chicago where she was also Captain of the Varsity Swimming & Diving Team. Sofia currently serves on The University of Chicago's Alumni Schools Committee Task Force, serves on the Board of Advisors for the Institute of Politics at UChicago and has recently been selected to serve as a Public Affairs Officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve. Sofia advises a number of civic organizations including Civic Alliance, 50x2026, Civic Responsibility Project, National Voter Registration Day, Vote Early Day and TurboVote.

Selim joined the App Inventor team in 2018 as a curriculum developer. He is a former K-12 mathematics teacher who has taught overseas and in the US for 22 years, exploring intersections of technology and playful constructionist pedagogies in the classroom. Recently he worked on the Beauty and Joy of Computing project as a curriculum designer at EDC (Education Development Center) which in collaboration with UC Berkeley and NYC Public Schools aims to make computer science accessible and enjoyable for a diverse population of students. When not working Selim enjoys playwriting and creating visual arts.

Karen spent several years as a software engineer, and then decided education was her true calling. She spent 20 years teaching Computer Science in several international schools and around New England. She was worked as Education Manager for MIT App Inventor since 2015, developing tutorials, curriculum, and doing outreach to teachers and students. She also served on board of directors for the Computer Science Teachers Association for 5 years and is passionate about Computer Science education and exposing students to the boundless opportunities CS presents.

Devshi Mehrotra is the CEO and co-founder of JusticeText, a public-interest technology company focused on ensuring fairer, more expedited criminal justice outcomes through audiovisual evidence management software. She received her BS/MS in computer science from the University of Chicago and her MS in global affairs from Tsinghua University through the post-graduate Schwarzman Scholars fellowship. During her time in college, she was recognized by the Obama Foundation as an active community leader for her contributions to advancing gender and racial equality in STEM education across Chicago. Devshi has led applied machine learning projects at Google Brain, Microsoft Research, Peking University, and Stanford Law.

Marlena Eanes joined the Microsoft TEALS team in January of 2020. A Milwaukee, WI native, she earned a dual Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Secondary Education from Marquette University and a dual Master of Arts in Administrative Leadership and Instructional leadership with principal and director of instructor licenses from Alverno College. Before coming to TEALS, she worked as a 6-12 math teacher, cross country/track coach and math curriculum developer. Her passion for CS education stems from her commitment to increasing STEM access and opportunities for the students of color in her classrooms and her desire to narrow the opportunity gap in Milwaukee. Additionally, she is a visual artist, working as an oil painter and a muralist.

WELCOME TO CODEPALOOZA

Code For Good Summit

CODEPALOOZA SCHEDULE

Virtual Kick-Off Celebration

Sunday, February 7th at 2PM CT

The Future of
Coding Education

Wednesday, February 10th at 6PM CT

Using Technology To Build A Better World

Thursday, February 11th at 6PM CT

SPEAKER SPOTLIGHTS

Brianne Caplan

Marlena Eanes

Devshi Mehrotra

Selim Tezel

Elle Ramel

Sofia Gross

Karen Lang

& more

ABOUT CODEPALOOZA & OUR NONPROFIT PARTNERS

Get Ready for the first-annual Codepalooza 2021. During this three-day event, prepare to network and learn with passionate technology and education leaders, engage in roundtable and panel discussions, attend virtual booths, and even get your bodies moving during our special kick-off celebration.

This summit is for technology and education leaders, teachers, parents, and anyone who is ready to make an impact. Prepare to network with movers and shakers

We firmly believe that all young people have potential.

OUR STUDENTS SOLVE REAL-WORLD PROBLEMS

Code Your Dreams