Ethan Berman
US based Ethan Berman is the founder Chairman of i2Learning, a STEM pioneer and SME. Prior to this, he was Chief Executive Officer of RiskMetrics Group. Before spinning off RiskMetrics Group from JPMorgan in 1998, Berman was a Managing Director at JPMorgan; responsible for the firm's Risk Management Services Group. Berman joined JPMorgan in 1987 as a bond trader and worked in New York, Tokyo, and Paris. He eventually managed the Mortgage-Backed Securities business, the North American taxable salesforce, and the government option and zero-coupon trading desk. In 1997 Berman was named one of the new rising stars of global finance by Business Week.
Cynthia Bricston
Ms Bricston has donned various roles over the years in the field of Education in the US. She leads in alignment of curriculum and instruction with standards, training and evaluation. She has developed and utilized community resources/liaisons to enrich the school community. She is also an adept user of data analysis to improve student achievement. Her other proficiency include creating teacher evaluations to embed competency in diversity and technology to achieve objectives and mission of the school.
Dr. Robert Mayes
Current Director for the Institute for Interdisciplinary STEM education at Georgia Southern University; Statesboro, GA, USA, Dr. Mayes earned his Bachelors and Masters in Science followed by Ph.D. His area of expertise is in Research on quantitative reasoning in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), teaching and learning of mathematical modeling and problem solving grades 6-12 and transition to lower level undergraduate in STEM, development of virtual online graduate programs in STEM education and research on assessing impact on teacher practice and student learning, technology in teaching and learning mathematics. As a champion professing Interdisciplinary STEM Education, his aim is to establish collaborative interdisciplinary programs committed to excellence in school & college STEM teaching and learning, with a focus on rural, diverse, low SES, and under-represented populations.
Prof Jag Sheth
Internationally acclaimed Marketing guru, Prof Sheth is a renowned scholar and globally recognized thought leader. He is the Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Marketing at the Goizueta Business School of Emory University, Atlanta, USA. He was a prominent member of the core team during the formative years of the IIM Calcutta. He has published more than 300 research papers and more than 30 books on various disciplines and topics. His insights on global competition, strategic thinking, geopolitics, and emerging markets are considered revolutionary. As a thought leader, Professor Sheth has made hundreds of presentations to business leaders, academic scholars, and public policy makers from around the world. He is frequently quoted and interviewed by Fortune, Financial Times, The Economic Times, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He is also a regular guest and frequent commenter for major news networks: BBC, CNBC India, and CNN. Professor Sheth’s timely advice aids business leaders, and policymakers looking to develop long-term strategies for positioning for the future.
Suresh Sharma
Armed with B.E. (Hon) degree in Mechanical Engineering, Advanced Management & aerospace engineering (British Aerospace PLC) and M.S. in Aerospace, a former GE-executive, Mr. Sharma, over past four decades, has led a remarkable international journey of excellence to unleash full potential of people through innovation, entrepreneurship and globalization. Today, he uniquely applies his deep expertise in creating new ecosystems that foster a 21st century culture to “industrialize innovation” for inclusive economic growth. Currently, he is ‘Industry Fellow’ of GRA (Georgia Research Alliance – consortium of 8 large universities) and an ‘Entrepreneur-In-Residence’ at Georgia Tech, wherein he has been transforming innovations into commercial enterprises while enabling capital investment for growth and job creation. Suresh serves or has served on the Boards of several small or big organizations.
Ken Parker
Co-founder and CEO of NextThought, LLC. Mr. Parker is a technologist and entrepreneur with three decades of experience in aerospace, Wall St financial technology and now education technology. He has received a Math/Computer Science BS and a Computer Science MS. In the past 18 years, he co-founded two technology companies, first, Risk Metrics Group was a Wall St-based financial technology company launched in 1998 and then the current company Next Thought, an education technology firm building a connected learning platform to help change the world. It is an online learning solutions company that specializes in collaborative and community-based education, based in Norman, OK USA and it’s learning platform is differentiated by its focus on contextualization, its collaborative design, and its communities.
Mark Whitlock
Mark Whitlock is the founding CEO of Central Educational Center (CEC). CEC has been designated one of 30 “replicable model high school reform” programs in the United States by the International Center for Leadership in Education. CEC has now been replicated 39 times across Georgia in the Georgia College and Career Academy initiative. CEC, Georgia’s “model charter college and career academy,” was developed by local Chamber leaders, the Coweta County School System and West Georgia Technical College. CEC opened August 10, 2000. Mark is also the Director of Public Policy for the Coweta County School System. He chairs the State’s Charter Advisory Committee. For eighteen years prior to CEC, Mark worked with Bank of America building corporate client relationships worldwide.
Dr. Lisa Stueve
As a STEM Outreach Specialist with Georgia Southern University’s Institute for Interdisciplinary STEM Education, Dr. Stueve has her Ed.D in Educational Leadership from the University of Georgia and a Masters and Ed.S. in Math education. She has taught Math for 20+ years with 16 years teaching online. She promotes STEM education by maintaining high quality professional development that equips teachers to shift their craft to authentic and student centered interdisciplinary instruction. These practices ensure that students thrive in the complex life and work environment of the 21st Century. She is a trained School Reform Initiative (SRI) facilitator. She has created and delivered transformational teaching strategies to incorporate the 21st century skills in classrooms k-12. Additionally, Dr. Stueve is a member of ASCD, ISTE, iNACOL, NASSP and active board member of the Rotary Club.
Chandler Sharma
Attorney and CPA, Dr. Sharma is a senior immigration attorney licensed in Georgia. He has been admitted to practice before the United States Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Tax Court. He holds a J.D., a LLM in Taxation, MBA and PhD in Business Administration. Prior to becoming an attorney, Dr. Sharma practiced for many years as a CPA. He is licensed to practice as a CPA by the New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Georgia. Dr. Sharma has been a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) for over 30 years. With over three decades of experience, Dr. Sharma specializes in immigration law, domestic relations, business transactions and corporations.
Venky Raghavendra
US based social entrepreneur with nearly three decades of philanthropy and development experience, he has successfully built global partnerships and mobilized significant resources for a number of international and national organizations. Formerly the Chief Philanthropy Officer at the New York-based American India Foundation, he has worked with Open Society Foundations, New York, UK-based Common Purpose, and Washington, DC-based Ashoka: Innovators for the Public. He is an Advisor to the Government of India's National Skill Development Corporation, under the Ministry of Skill Development.