Hakim Weatherspoon is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Cornell University. His research interests cover various aspects of fault tolerance, reliability, security, and performance of large internet-scale systems such as cloud computing and distributed systems. Professor Weatherspoon received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, in the area of secure and fault-tolerant distributed wide-area storage systems (e.g. Antiquity, OceanStore, etc.) and received his B.S. in Computer Engineering from the University of Washington. He is the CEO and co-founder of Exotanium, Inc., a company that helps enterprise companies achieve cloud optimizations and cost reductions without service interruptions.
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Black Entrepreneurship
Overcoming Adversity and Staying Focused
Tuesday, November 24, 2020, 11am
EST
Event Overview
The path from a good idea to a thriving business isn’t easy to navigate for anyone, but there can be additional roadblocks for Black entrepreneurs. Among other obstacles, Black founders often struggle to obtain funding and find customers.
So what's it really like to be a Black founder today? In this webinar, a panel of Black entrepreneurs in various stages of their startup journeys will share their experiences, the adversities they’ve overcome, and the resources and organizations that have provided them the support, connections, and opportunities they needed. Don’t miss this chance to get inspired by those who have done it and discover their individual stories as well as the common themes and challenges that face all Black-led startups.
So what's it really like to be a Black founder today? In this webinar, a panel of Black entrepreneurs in various stages of their startup journeys will share their experiences, the adversities they’ve overcome, and the resources and organizations that have provided them the support, connections, and opportunities they needed. Don’t miss this chance to get inspired by those who have done it and discover their individual stories as well as the common themes and challenges that face all Black-led startups.
What You'll Learn
- How to create a map of the key milestones Black founders should hit on their entrepreneurial journeys
- The challenges Black founders often encounter and how to mitigate them
- Resources and organizations that Black founders can go to for support
- Where Black founders can connect with mentors, colleagues, and others for ongoing advice
Speakers
Hakim Weatherspoon
Associate Professor
Cornell University
Associate Professor at Cornell University
Marquita M. Qualls, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Entrepreneurship Programs
The National GEM Consortium
Executive Director, Entrepreneurship Programs at The National GEM Consortium
Marquita M. Qualls, Ph.D., serves as Executive Director of Entrepreneurship Programs at The National GEM Consortium. In this role, she is responsible for leading GEM’s Inclusion In Innovation Initiative (i4), a cooperative partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF). This initiative seeks to develop a national diversity and inclusion infrastructure for the NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Program.
Shila Nieves Burney
Founder and Managing Partner
Zane Venture Fund
Founder and Managing Partner at Zane Venture Fund
Shila Nieves Burney is an awarding-winning project manager, investor, mentor, and advisor. Over a professional career of more than 20 years, she has worked closely with leading organizations and exceptional talents to create solutions that address disparities through investment in human capital. Ms. Burney founded Zane Venture Fund, a seed fund that would invest in underrepresented founders with the goal of closing the funding gap and generating high returns for investors, as well as Zane Access, which provides early-stage companies led by diverse teams access to cross-functional experts, resources, best practices, and customized content critical to accelerating growth.
Co-Founder of BlackLaunch LLC | Founder and CEO of ReLo
Titus Calloway is an aspiring serial entrepreneur based in Tampa, Florida. He is the co-founder of BlackLaunch LLC, a social mission-driven startup platform that’s connecting Black founders to venture capital. He is also launching his second startup, ReLo, the first social relocation app that connects people moving to the same cities.
Hakim Weatherspoon
Associate Professor
Cornell University
Associate Professor at Cornell University
Hakim Weatherspoon is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Cornell University. His research interests cover various aspects of fault tolerance, reliability, security, and performance of large internet-scale systems such as cloud computing and distributed systems. Professor Weatherspoon received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, in the area of secure and fault-tolerant distributed wide-area storage systems (e.g. Antiquity, OceanStore, etc.) and received his B.S. in Computer Engineering from the University of Washington. He is the CEO and co-founder of Exotanium, Inc., a company that helps enterprise companies achieve cloud optimizations and cost reductions without service interruptions.
Marquita M. Qualls, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Entrepreneurship Programs
The National GEM Consortium
Executive Director, Entrepreneurship Programs at The National GEM Consortium
Marquita M. Qualls, Ph.D., serves as Executive Director of Entrepreneurship Programs at The National GEM Consortium. In this role, she is responsible for leading GEM’s Inclusion In Innovation Initiative (i4), a cooperative partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF). This initiative seeks to develop a national diversity and inclusion infrastructure for the NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Program.
Shila Nieves Burney
Founder and Managing Partner
Zane Venture Fund
Founder and Managing Partner at Zane Venture Fund
Shila Nieves Burney is an awarding-winning project manager, investor, mentor, and advisor. Over a professional career of more than 20 years, she has worked closely with leading organizations and exceptional talents to create solutions that address disparities through investment in human capital. Ms. Burney founded Zane Venture Fund, a seed fund that would invest in underrepresented founders with the goal of closing the funding gap and generating high returns for investors, as well as Zane Access, which provides early-stage companies led by diverse teams access to cross-functional experts, resources, best practices, and customized content critical to accelerating growth.
Co-Founder of BlackLaunch LLC | Founder and CEO of ReLo
Titus Calloway is an aspiring serial entrepreneur based in Tampa, Florida. He is the co-founder of BlackLaunch LLC, a social mission-driven startup platform that’s connecting Black founders to venture capital. He is also launching his second startup, ReLo, the first social relocation app that connects people moving to the same cities.
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