NYSDEN 2026 Speakers
Learn more about our distinguished keynote speaker, panelists, workshop leaders, and moderators. They bring an extraordinary breadth of lived, professional, academic, and practical experience to this year’s lineup.
Army Armstead
Executive Director,
Emergent Works
Presenter
Joan Arrow
Founder & CEO,
Quantum Ethics Project
Presenter
Michael Baldino
Director and General Counsel,
Massachusetts Broadband Institute
Presenter
Virginia Benzan
Chair, Massachusetts Digital Equity Coalition
Presenter
Kathy Bisbee
Director,
Alliance for Digital Equity
Presenter
Eliot Cresswell
Director of Strategic Initiatives,
Workforce Development Institute (WDI)
Presenter
Dennis Cronin
Digital Navigator,
Fifth Avenue Committee
Presenter
Therese Daly
President & CEO, United Way of New York State & 211 New York Inc.
Presenter
Makeda N. Davis
Checkr
Presenter
LaiQuan Dubose
Program Manager, Emergent Works
Presenter
Nell Eckersley
Literacy Assistance Center
Presenter
Evelyn Fernández-Ketcham, Ph.D, LCSW
Vice President, Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development
Hostos Community College of CUNY/Continuin
Presenter
David Fischer
Principal,
Altior Policy Solutions
Presenter
David Jones
Founder and Executive Director,
Ikhodi – NYC Computer Lab Initiative
Presenter
Margaret Käufer
President & Chief Visionary Officer,
The STEM Alliance
Presenter
Katie LaBonte
President,
New York Association for Continuing and Community Education (NYACCE)
Presenter
Annmarie Lanesey
Founder & CEO;
Can Code Communities
Presenter
Sherazade Langlade
Chief Executive Officer,
Workforce Professionals Training Institute
Presenter
Bryan Lozano
Chief Strategy Officer,
Welcome to Chinatown
Presenter
Kate Machet
Vice President of Systems Initiatives and Government Relations,
Essex County Community Foundation
Presenter
Don Matteson
Facilitator,
Western NY Digital Equity Coalition
Presenter
Catharine Morgan
Technical Advisor,
World Education, JSI
Presenter
Chris Neale
Chief Executive Officer,
New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals
Presenter
Francella Ochillo
Attorney & Broadband Policy Expert
Presenter
Dr. Meisha Porter
Visiting Senior Fellow,
Center for Educational Innovation
Presenter
Balakrishnan Prabhakaran
Director,
AI Plus Institute, University at Albany
Presenter
Andres Ramirez
Director of Partnerships,
AI Safety Awareness Project
Presenter
Jacob Schwartz
Digital Equity Program Manager, The Fortune Society
Presenter
Priyanka Sharma
Director,
World Education, JSI
Presenter
Jason Tomlinson
Founder,
Crowned Grooming LLC
Presenter
Anna Topol
CEO,
Qlithic Technologies Inc.
Presenter
Chantelle Williams
Assistant Director of Racial Justice Center,
New York Civil Liberties Union
Presenter
Judith Wines
Manager, Adult and Outreach Services,
Upper Hudson Library System
Presenter