bdpatoday® | Black Tech

ATLANTA—One of the nation’s leading technology inclusion conferences, BDPACON22, powered by BDPA adjourned Saturday, August 20, 2022, in Atlanta, Georgia, with BDPA Atlanta, the association’s Host Chapter, capturing Chapter of the Year honors and top awards for 2022.

This year’s 44^th annual BDPA Technology Conference (BDPACON22) and Career Expo theme was “Honoring our Legacy, Accelerating the Pace.” For BDPA, 2022 is a great year for community action refocusing on technological barriers, tech-inclusion challenges, and failed workforce policies facing underserved communities. BDPA continues to raise community awareness as the association explores better solutions with new opportunities from diverse and innovative STEM perspectives.

BDPA Tech and Policy — **National** **BDPA’s Atlanta Chapter President, Ms. Sheneeka Ward (center), receives a House Resolution from Georgia’s House of** Representatives commending BDPA during Opening Ceremonies of **BDPACON22****. The association’s resolution was signed by Pedro Marin, Ranking Member** **of Georgia’s House Science and Technology Committee. His committee in Georgia’s** General Assembly is responsible for legislation that promotes the appropriate and safe development and use of science and technological advances across the state. (L-R) Jose A. Marquez-Leon, National President and CEO of TechLatino: Latinos in Information Sciences and Technology Association (LISTA) and proclamation presenter; Sheneeka Ward, President, BDPA Atlanta; and Stephanie Gloster, BDPA Vice President, South Region. **Photo ©** **2022 BDPA**

Increasing STEM and cybersecurity engagements with local non-profits, small businesses, HBCUs, JROTC units, and media remain very high priorities for the association as planning for their 50^th anniversary in 2025 and supporting sponsored events begin to unfold in FY23.

To review events or an agenda item from BDPACON22 or to plan for BDPACON23 next year in Atlanta, registrants and BDPA Members may visit https://conference.bdpa.org.

For media inquiries, requests may be made by emailing: info@bdpa.org or info@bdpatoday.org .

About BDPA

2016 HSCC World Coding Champions | ***BDPA Atlanta***

Established in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1975 as Black Data Processing Associates, BDPA is an international organization with a diverse membership of professionals and students in the fields of information technology, computer science, data science, and related science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. BDPA Members and mission partners engage in serving local communities through professional outreach events, technology conferences, research and development (R&D) summits with youth STEM competitions, while advocating and charting the future direction of information and communications technology (ICT) industries. For corporate, professional, or student engagements, visit BDPA.org.

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*Review* **BDPACON22** *events* —*plan to embrace* BDPACON23 *next year in Atlanta!*

CINCINNATI, OH—Black Tech Week, the inclusion focused tech ecosystem-building festival, announced the events schedule for its 2022 conference in Cincinnati, Ohio. The annual five-day event will run from July 18-22 and hold 60+ sessions—presenting 50+ tech influencers and minority innovation ecosystem builders as featured speakers.

Black Tech Week’s featured speakers include Kimberly Bryant, Founder of Black Girls Code, Arlan Hamilton, Founder of Hire Runner and Backstage Capital, Felecia Hatcher, CEO of Black Ambition, and Detavio Samuels, CEO of Revolt.

Black Tech Week’s events are presented with support from its committed sponsors including Amazon Web Services, The City of Cincinnati, Fifth Third Bank, Delta Dental of Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana, Ohio Third Frontier, Lincoln and Gilbert.

The completely re-branded, enhanced event creates meaningful opportunities for founders to connect with other founders, tech talent, educational programming and investors.
Lightship Foundation

Black Tech Week’s keynotes, panels and sessions tap into the most relevant topics such as exits, IPOs and the current startup lifecycle, fundraising and navigating the venture landscape, and hiring for innovation amid the Great Resignation. Registrants can sign up for VC office hours with firms in attendance or participate in the pop-up Career Fair; through these offerings, Black Tech Week aims to serve as a real-time resource for organizations seeking to diversify their teams and for investors interested in cultivating more inclusive portfolios. Part of Black Tech Week’s programming will take place in the conference’s Activation Spaces—where Inc. Founder’s House, AWS, and Black@Genesis will run programming.

This year’s conference calendar is timed to coincide with the Cincinnati Music Festival, one of the oldest and largest in the country; the festival hosts 70,000+ visitors and generates 107 million dollars in economic impact.

Lightship Foundation, the Cincinnati-based economic development organization, acquired Black Tech Week with the vision of positioning Ohio as the most supportive state in the Midwest for minority innovation. Lightship Foundation, with Founder and CEO Candice Matthews Brackeen at its helm, is executing on its mission to leverage local corporate partners and community networks including the Cincinnati Innovation District (CID) to bring remarkable technology and venture leaders from all over the world to Ohio.

“For the last seven years, Black Tech Week has been hard at work, ecosystem-building for Black tech communities across the U.S.. Relocating to Cincinnati means expanding our national network of founders, talent, and investors.” said Candice Matthews Brackeen, Lightship Foundation Founder and CEO. “We’re so proud of our 2022 conference calendar—and the opportunity to bring this innovative session lineup to our community.”

“The city of Cincinnati is committed to becoming a place where Black entrepreneurs feel supported and seen,” says Aftab Pureval, Mayor of Cincinnati. “We are excited to host Black Tech Week and support Lightship in creating a hub for tech collaboration in the Midwest.”

To register for this year’s Black Tech Week in Cincinnati, to view the schedule and learn more about this year’s speakers, please click here.

About Lightship Foundation

Lightship Foundation is an impact-driven organization serving remarkable entrepreneurs & ecosystems. We leverage corporate partnerships, specialized programming, and capital investments to drive growth within the minority innovation economy. Since 2017, Lightship Foundation has guided over 200 companies led by women, FOC (Founders of Color), and those representing the LGBTIQ and disabled communities to more than $120M in venture funding across the US. Connect with Lightship Foundation via Linkedin or visit the Lightship Foundation website to learn more.

About Black Tech Week

Black Tech Week is an inclusion focused ecosystem-building festival that partners with founders, corporations and the community to create a valuable experience for investors, entrepreneurs, and techies of every kind. Connect with Black Tech Week on Facebook and Instagram, and visit the Black Tech Week website for more information.

^{— Source and photos: Lightship Foundation}

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