2018 ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference Announces Plenary Speakers

Registration Now Open!


CHICAGO, June 05, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, CMD-IT announced the plenary speakers for the ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference.   Themed “Diversity: Roots of Innovation,” the Tapia Conference will be held September 19-22, 2018 in Orlando, Florida.  The Tapia Conference is the premier venue to bring together students, faculty, researchers and professionals from all backgrounds and ethnicities in computing to promote and celebrate diversity in computing.  The Tapia Conference is sponsored by the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) and presented by the Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in IT (CMD-IT).  Registration for the Tapia Conference is now open at www.tapiaconference.org/registration/.

Keynote speakers at the Tapia Conference are a highly diverse group and provide both learning and role models that inspire the attendees.  The 2018 Tapia Conference features the following keynote speakers:

  • Shiri Azenkot, Assistant Professor of Information Science, Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute at Cornell Tech, Cornell University
  • Shirley Malcolm, Head of Education and Human Resources Program at AAAS
  • Ronald Perez, Intel Fellow and Technical Lead, Data Center Group, Intel Corporation
  • Moshe Y. Vardi, George Distinguished Service Professor in Computational Engineering and Director, Ken Kennedy Institute for Information Technology, Rice University.

The Tapia Conference will feature panels and workshops, birds of a feather sessions, a career fair and a Poster Reception featuring graduate and undergraduate student posters. 

The Tapia conference sponsors include Platinum Sponsors Caltech, Carnegie Mellon University, Cornell Computing and Information Science, Cornell Tech, Georgia Tech, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, Mozilla, NC State University, Rice University, Stanford University, TWO SIGMA, University of California Berkeley and University of Michigan. Platinum Government Supporters include the National Science Foundation. Gold Sponsors include Google, IBM, Kennesaw State University, MIT EECS,  National Institute of Standards and Technology, Texas A&M, University of California San Diego, University of Illinois, USC Viterbi School of Engineering, and Virginia Tech.

For more information and to register for the 2018 Tapia Conference, visit www.tapiaconference.org.  

About CMD-IT

The vision of CMD-IT is to contribute to the national need for an effective workforce in computing and IT through inclusive programs and initiatives focused on minorities and people with disabilities. CMD-IT’s vision is accomplished through its mission to insure that underrepresented groups are fully engaged in computing and IT, and promotes innovation that enriches, enhances and enables underrepresented communities. For more information, please visit www.cmd-it.org.

Media Contact:  Jerri Barrett, jerri@cmd-it.org, 408-204-7229