Dr. Calvin Mackie

Keynote Speaker
President and CEO
STEM NOLA

Dr. Calvin Mackie is an award-winning mentor, inventor, author, former engineering professor, internationally renowned speaker, and successful entrepreneur. In 2013, Dr. Mackie founded STEM NOLA, a non-profit organization created to expose, inspire, and engage communities in the opportunities in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). To date, STEM NOLA has engaged over 125,000 K-12 students in hands-on project-based STEM activities. In 2021, he launched STEM Global Action to advance K-12 Stem education across the U.S. and the world.

A lifelong resident of New Orleans, Dr. Mackie graduated from high school with low test scores requiring him to take special remedial classes at Morehouse College. In 1990, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Morehouse College with a B.S. degree, as a member of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa National Honor Society. Simultaneously, he was awarded a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech, where he subsequently earned his master’s and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 1996.

While pursuing a doctorate degree, Dr. Mackie served as an instructor of mathematics at Morehouse College. Following graduation, he joined the faculty at Tulane University, where he pursued research related to heat transfer, fluid dynamics, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. In 2002, he was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure. Mackie’s eleven-year academic career ended in June 2007, when Tulane University disbanded the engineering school in response to financial hardship induced by Hurricane Katrina. During the 2004-2005 academic year, Mackie served as a visiting professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Michigan. He enjoyed a respected academic career, before pivoting his career towards entrepreneurship, consulting, and professional speaking.

Mackie is also the President and CEO of the Channel ZerO Group LLC, an educational and professional development consulting company he co-founded in 1992. He has presented to numerous civic and educational institutions, government entities, professional associations, and businesses of every size and industrial focus.

He has won numerous awards including 2019 Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Board’s Chair Phoenix Award, which recognizes individuals whose extraordinary achievements strengthen communities and improve the lives of individuals and families, nationally and globally. In 2003, he was awarded the 2003 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring in a White House ceremony.

Dr. Mackie’s is the author of two award-winning books: A View from the Roof: Lessons for Life
and Business and Grandma's Hands: Cherished Moments of Faith and Wisdom.

Dr. Mackie is a devoted husband to his wife, Tracy, and father to his two sons, Myles Ahmad and Mason Amir.

Courtney Chandler

Lightning Speaker
Co-Founder | S.U.N. Alliance

Courtney Chandler earned a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice and Social Work from UWT. She has more than ten years of experience working with vulnerable youth and young adults in various roles, including foster care, juvenile justice, trauma recovery, and supporting those with behavioral, emotional, and learning challenges. Courtney has created and taught social-emotional learning programs in schools and trained educators on implementing restorative practices. Currently, she serves as the Teen Mental Health First Aid Coordinator at the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department. Outside of work, Courtney is a mom to a toddler and a Co-Founder of SUN Alliance, a community group focused on enhancing safety and connections in the South End Tacoma Neighborhood.

From her presentation, attendees will learn how to harness and leverage their voices as community members to enact change in their neighborhoods.

Maria Tobin

Lightning Speaker
Program Coordinator | South Sound Military & Communities Partnership

Maria Tobin is an Army Veteran, a military spouse, and the Program Coordinator with the South Sound Military and Communities Partnership (SSMCP).  Her organization provides regional leadership to bridge the military and civilian communities surrounding Joint Base Lewis-McChord. 

Tobin focuses on issues at the intersection of JBLM and the South Sound Communities. She works to establish and maintain a framework of collaboration to provide actionable and impactful recommendations to the various levels of government at the local, regional, state, and federal levels.  Tobin leads several working groups within SSMCP, convening local and state-level stakeholders within mental health care, social services, education, housing, and childcare.    

At the Symposium, Tobin will present her work to reduce bureaucratic barriers to expand the capacity for quality and accessible childcare for the South Sound Region.

Lindsey Hartman is a Special Education Teacher by trade and is the current Interim Executive Director at A Step Ahead in Pierce County. She has Bachelor's in Unified Early Childhood (ECE/ECSE), a Master’s in Special Education specializing in Deaf and Hard of Hearing, a minor in Deaf Studies as well as Psychology, and a Graduate Certificate in Educational Computing and Technology. She's also fluent in American Sign Language. She has also previously been an Adjunct Professor for Assessments in Early Childhood and has a special interest in Part C Law and Compliance.

A Step Ahead in Pierce County (ASAPC) has been providing birth to three services in our community since 2000 to children with developmental delays or disabilities. ASAPC has been committed to broadening the services delivered to children in their homes or community and to continue to offer progressive and proven options beyond the classroom. ASAPC is also recognized for its collaborative and holistic approach to developmental therapies with the implementation of the coaching model. For the infants and toddlers served, ASAPC focuses on building the capacities of parents as they navigate the medical and educational systems as they advocate for their child’s care. ASAPC has been a leader in supporting and partnering with local community partners with a comprehensive understanding of what it takes to provide for children of all abilities: access, acceptance, and acknowledgement. ASAPC supports families and helps shape the future of the children we serve.

During her presentation, Lindsey will share considerations for inclusivity for children with developmental delays and disabilities.