Saturday December 4th, 9am-1pm
Welcome to the second 2021 #CCCCon Class of 2022 young professionals! This event is a chance to hear from numerous experts and professionals as you progress on your plan to SUCCESS.
Thank you to Travelers for sponsoring this CCC Conference.
Kyla Guru, Founder/CEO, Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education
Kyla is 19 years old and the Founder/CEO of Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education, a 501(c)(3) dedicated to educating and equipping all vulnerable populations with the cybersecurity education and awareness needed to face our future of advanced cyberthreats. For the past five years, Kyla has led her organization in distributing curriculum to 500+ schools and fostered partnerships with school districts, corporations like Facebook, Verizon Media, & IBM, and educational organizations like ISACA’s One in Tech in order to spark international dialogue about security. Kyla has championed this message of cybersecurity resilience across national and international stages including TEDxChicago, NIST’s NICE Conference, RSAC-USA, and RSAC Singapore. Additionally, noticing the gender imbalance in cybersecurity, she also became the cofounder of GirlCon Conference, Chicago’s premiere tech conference that unites 700+ industry professionals and students annually to discuss bridging the gender gap in tech. For her groundbreaking work in security and technology, Kyla has been honored as a JFK Medal of Honor Winner, Crain Chicago’s Top 50 in Tech, an ISACA Inspirational Leader, a Global Teen Leader, and a Harvard Book Prize Award winner. Kyla is also a sophomore at Stanford University, studying Computer Science and International Security, and while she’s not coding, she can be found golfing, reading poetry, and sipping bubble tea.
Ayo Idowu, Financial Advisor, Ameriprise Financial
Ayo has been through many different places in life. From growing up in St. Paul to attending a private catholic university to playing professionally then finally joining the professional world as a financial advisor, he provides a lot of perspective on money and how individuals that have not historically had access to it can now gain access. Today he will be speaking on the basics of money and what every person NEEDS to do before they start working
Faiza Mah, Transformational Thinking Immersion Intern at Optum, GW Alumni
My name is Faiza Mah, and I’m a current junior at the University of Minnesota majoring in Information Technology Infrastructure with an emphasis on cybersecurity.
Umayma Dahir, Engineer Intern at Target, GW Alumni
Currently, a sophomore at the UMN studying IT Infrastructure with a focus in CyberSecurity. She is the first-person to finish high school and pursue a 4-year degree in her family.
Jamie Patel, Physician Assistant Student, St Catherine University
Jamie Patel is a first year PA student at St. Catherine University. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee in 2021 with a degree in Cell and Molecular Biology. After completing the MPAS program, she hopes to practice in Emergency Medicine or Urgent Care.
Sumaya Noor, Physician Assistant Student, St Catherine University
Sumaya Noor is a first-year PA student at St. Catherine University in Saint Paul, MN. In undergrad, she studied Human Physiology and Leadership at the University of Minnesota -Twin Cities and now is on the pathway to obtaining her Master’s in Physician Assistant Studies. After graduating in 2 years, she hopes to practice in family or internal medicine.
Celina Her, Development Associate, Wallin Educational Partners
Celina is a former Wallin Education Partners Scholar. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (GO BADGERS!) where she earned her B.S. in Community & Nonprofit Leadership and Legal Studies. At Wallin, Celina helps individuals, families, and corporations see how impactful and meaningful philanthropy can be by helping to facilitate joy, passion, and meaning in their lives by making college graduation possible for Minnesota students and their families.
Jamil Stamschror-Lott, LICSW, Co-founder & CEO, Creative Kuponya
Jamil and his wife Sara founded Creative Kuponya, a mental health organization that works at the intersection of Diversity and Inclusion, focusing on out of the box and creative methodologies to bring about healing for individuals, communities and businesses. Jamil teaches Diversity & Inequality coursework in Augsburg University’s Clinical Graduate Social Work program. Jamil is deeply committed to his family and his community. Jamil has been featured in Rolling Stone Magazine, The New York Times and USA Today. When he is not diligently working in community, he loves reading books to his 3yr old daughter and walking around Lake Nokomis.
Nathan Yancy, Dean of Academics and Career Counseling, Marantha Christian Academy
Nathan graduated with a BA and MA from Concordia University-Saint Paul. Nathan had the privilege of serving 11 years in education as an admission counselor, academic advisor in higher education, and for the past 7 years, in secondary education as a school administrator. Nathan has a passion for education and equipping students for post-secondary success and beyond.
Nate Reinhart, Content Creator, Self Employed
Nate went into college wanting to be a doctor, graduated with an economics degree, and then proceeded to take an unpaid creative internship at an advertising agency where he worked for 5 years. In October 2021, Nate left his job to pursue content creation on YouTube and Twitch full time after a stroke of luck earlier in the year, getting a shoutout from MrBeast in his YouTube Rewind 2020 video and accumulating over 100,000 subscribers in 24 hours. Nate, or Nalter as he goes by online, creates positive entertainment content on his main channel Nalter Deeds, and another channel called Nalter Cards where he focuses on trading card games like Pokemon and Metazoo.
Henock Mwanasomwe , Genesys Works Alum, University of Minnesota
Henock Mwanasomwe is a senior student at the University of Minnesota Twin-Cities. He is currently studying Management Information Systems. Once he graduates, he will be working at Accenture in their cybersecurity division. A fun fact about Henock is he likes to work out, play sports, and travel.
Kim Bigelow, Manager, Employee Branding, Travelers
Kim graduated from the University of Hartford with a BA in Communication (2015) and an MBA in Marketing (2018). She began working at Travelers in early 2019 and now manages the company’s employer brand. Her work consists of delivering on all recruitment marketing efforts, both traditional (branded collateral, career events, traditional media, etc.) and digital (social media, careers website, email marketing, etc.). With 5+ years of experience, she is excited to share her expertise with future talent.
Anthony Herr, Graduate Assistant/Designated School Official, Concordia University St Paul
I am currently a graduate student pursuing my masters in educational leadership. I work at Concordia University-Saint Paul as a graduate assistant for the International Student Services. I have led a service trip to Puerto Rico to help with hurricane relief back in 2019, studied abroad for a semester in South Korea back in spring 2017, did a short term abroad program to China to learn about the Hmong/Miao people back in 2016. I hope to keep growing in my career in higher education and travel the world.
Natalie Rustad, Biology Major, Concordia University St Paul
Senior Biology major at Concordia University Saint Paul with plans of going to dental school following graduation
John Gardiner II, John P. Gardiner II, Communities Sales Specialist, Xfinity
John has Bachelor of Science in Marketing and minor in International Business from Concordia University St Paul where here graduated in 2020. He studied abroad in Zhuhai in China’s Guangdong province.
Cassidy Lee
TBD
Taras Hutsal, Computer Science Major, University of MN Twin Cities
Taras Hutsal is a Junior student at the University of Minnesota pursuing a degree in Computer Science, as well as a minor in Management. Taras is also the founder and president of an organization called TechSprouts, devoted to providing students in underserved communities access to digital literacy curriculum. In his free time, Taras enjoys volleyball, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and cooking.
Faiza Mah, Transformational Thinking Immersion Intern at Optum, GW Alumni
My name is Faiza Mah, and I’m a current junior at the University of Minnesota majoring in Information Technology Infrastructure with an emphasis on cybersecurity.
John Rose, School Counselor, Shakopee High School
John Rose is an educator and mental health professional who works in the Shakopee High School as a school counselor. Before that, he previously worked in Burnsville, Hopkins, Saint Paul and Chattanooga (TN) school districts. He began his career in education as a music teacher in his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee. He then moved to Saint Paul, Minnesota to complete graduate studies in school counseling while also working as a Youth Worker in the Saint Paul school district Harding Senior High School from 2016-2018. As a counselor, John integrates counseling and mental health work with high school who are looking for the right pathway for them.
Jamilka Leon, Higher Education Professional
Jamilka is a multi-passionate Latina working in higher education who believes in the power of confidence, self-awareness, and motivation to help others elevate themselves to create a life they’re not only satisfied with, but one that brings happiness and pride.
James Farrow, Account Executive, Arctic Wolf
Born and raised in Minnesota. Former Division-I athlete, touring musician, small business owner, and current Account Executive. By my senior year in high school (2011), I had 43 Division-I offers to play football. I selected Virginia Tech, a top-5 program in the country at the time. Three years later, I was in Los Angeles and I’d recently inked a record deal with Sony Music that moved me to New York City. From there, I toured the country as a solo artist and landed a guest spot on Fox Network television show, “The Four”. After performing in 48 cities across the US, I wanted to try something new. I landed an entry-level job at a Tech Startup called Arctic Wolf. In the last 18-months, I’ve been promoted twice and have won several performance-based awards. More importantly, I’ve made an impact in my community. In 2021, I started a scholarship for low-income high school students to help pay for books, computers, and other associated costs. The key to my success? Effective communication skills.