A Day In The Life: Blacks At The Cutting Edge Of Innovation

Digital Lifestyle Expert™ Mario Armstrong serves as the official Hashtagologist for #NPRBlacksinTech, keeping an eye on different social media channels and reporting back with all of the highlights. Armstrong is an Emmy Award-winning TV host, entrepreneur and technology contributor to NBC's Today show, CNN, HLN, Fuse News and NPR. @marioarmstrong

Freeman A. Hrabowski III is the President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His research and publications focus on science and math education, with special emphasis on minority participation and performance. Time magazine named him one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World" in 2012.

Ayori Selassie is product manager of Salesforce.com and founder of Pitch Mixer Entrepreneur Forum. Selassie's passion for technology and entrepreneurship led her to co-found Pitch Mixer, a nonprofit that encourages entrepreneurs in undeveloped communities to share their business ideas and receive feedback and advice. @iayori

Mike Street is the head of BITNY: Blacks in Tech New York, an organization dedicated to advancing minorities in technology. @mrmikestreet

Known as the hip-hop president, Dillard University President Walter Kimbrough has been recognized for his research on historically black colleges and universities, and for his use of social media to engage students. @HipHopPrez

Christine Johnson is the founder of DiversiTech, a national organization dedicated to ensuring that underrepresented communities have the necessary tools for technology entrepreneurship success. @christinecelise

Brian Clark is the CEO of Silith.IO, a mobile-first technology company that creates platforms to simplify and improve users' lives. Previously, he was a part of GE's Information Technology Leadership Program, driving excellence in technology across all of GE. @blaurenceclark

Dupe O. Ajayi is digital strategist for NYC Housing Authority. She believes in the power of marketing for good. Known for her simplified approach to launching innovative marketing campaigns, she raises the visibility of nonprofit and corporate pro-social initiatives. She's a proud Brooklynite and loves to bake. @theajayieffect

Michael Bennett leads the development and implementation of information technology strategy in his role as senior vice president of information management and chief information officer at the global company BAE Systems Inc. @BAESystemsinc

Roxann Stafford is a design strategist and social entrepreneur enabler at SecondMuse, a firm that focuses on innovation and collaboration to enable businesses, nonprofits, communities and governments to create positive social change. @jroxann

Lola Bakare is a strategist in Dell's Commercial Sales and Enterprise Solutions organization and founder of Gen Y early career advice blog "Winning While Y". She previously led the development and implementation of Dell's first consumer focused social media strategy and holds an MBA from the New York University Stern School of Business with a specialization in EMT (entertainment/media/technology). @LolaatDell

James Oliver is the founder and CEO of WeMontage, a website that allows anyone to transform personal photos into professional, custom wallpaper collages. @jamesoliverjr

Natalie Madeira Cofield is the president and CEO for the Capital City African-American Chamber of Commerce in Austin, Texas, which focuses on economic development and supplier diversity on behalf of the African-American community in central Texas. She is the founding president of the Black Technology Council, formed to ensure inclusion and support for minority firms in the nation's fastest-growing technology hub. @ncofield

With more than 20 years of experience as a software developer, infrastructure designer and software project manager, Anjuan Simmons offers his perspective on being an African-American working in the technology sector in his book Minority Tech: Journaling Through Blackness and Technology. @anjuan

Sian Morson is the founder of Kollective Mobile, an agency focused on helping businesses and startups with mobile development and strategy. She recently opened Kollective South in Atlanta, which provides a collaborative workspace for neighborhood entrepreneurs. @xianamoy

After working in the fashion and advertising worlds, Rachel Brooks stepped into the software industry and co-founded Citizen Made, an e-commerce platform that allows individual brands to design custom products. @RachelABrooks

Mike Green is an award-winning digital media innovator, columnist and consultant to policymakers, universities and tech entrepreneurs across the nation. @amikegreen2

Mary A. Simmons is a Program Manager at Cummins Inc. in Columbus, Indiana. She is currently leading a $2 million engineering project implementing a global technology upgrade for engine and generator set control modules. Mary has a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering from North Carolina A&T State University and is an active member of the National Society of Black Engineers. @CumminsCareers

A research professor of physics at New Jersey Institute of Technology, Reginald Farrow studies nanotechnology and biophysics in order to understand how cells communicate internally and with other cells. He and his team have fabricated the world's smallest biofuel cell, which could one day be used to power biomedical devices. @rcfarrow

Monique Woodard is an entrepreneur and creator of Speak Chic, a mobile app that helps users correctly pronounce fashion brands. She is also one of the creators of Black Founders, a professional organization that supports diversity in the tech industry. @moniquewoodard

Deena Pierott is the founder of iUrban Teen Tech, a program that exposes underserved teens to career opportunities within science and technology. The program consists of tech summits, tech tours, mentoring, job shadowing, workshops and Junior Toastmasters. @deenapierott

Doug Mitchell is a consultant to NPR on matters of diversity and is co-director of a Ford Foundation program for startups led by journalists of color. @nextgenradio

Dr. Juan E. Gilbert is the Presidential Endowed Professor and Chair of the Human-Centered Computing Division in the School of Computing at Clemson University where he leads the HCC Lab. He is creator of Prime III the world's most accessible voting system and he is the innovator of #LabDaze, a web series featuring his research team, their innovations and experiences. Clemson is the nation's largest group of African-American computing sciences PhD students and the nation's largest group of African-American faculty members in computing. @DrJuanGilbert

Mary Pryor is the founder of Urban Socialista, a social media, project management and digital marketing boutique that consults with brands and media companies. She reports on trends, tools and influential persons of color in tech and digital industries for Ebony and The Grio. @msmarypryor

Andrew B. Williams is professor and distinguished chair in electrical and computer engineering at Marquette University, where he directs the Humanoid Engineering & Intelligent Robotics Lab. Williams founded the Spelman College SpelBots international RoboCup robot soccer team and is a former senior engineering diversity manager at Apple Inc. @outofthebox1

A self-titled hip-hop maven, Danielle Lee is a biologist and outreach scientist. Her blog, "The Urban Scientist," focuses on urban ecology, environmental science and diversity within the science field. She uses social media and hip-hop to make science relevant and accessible to urban youth audiences. @DNLee5

With more than 12 years of technology experience as a systems and network engineer, Greg Greenlee is the founder of Blacks in Technology, an organization that aims to increase engagement among African-Americans in technology and engineering. @blkintechnology

Jamie Broadnax is the writer and creator of the niche blogsite for nerdy women of color called Black Girl Nerds. She currently creates content along with a team of contributors about a myriad of topics that speaks to the geek community. She is the VP of Digital for the SheThrives Network and has published content for Madame Noire, AfroPunk, and is a self-declared social media geek. @blackgirlnerds

Tony Reynolds is the founder and CEO of A KickIn Crowd, an innovative crowdfunding platform for school sports, athletes and health and fitness projects. @AKickInCrowd

Kelly Virella is a digital media entrepreneur with strong technology and content creation skills, fundraising experience, and experience building and leading teams to produce award-winning work. She founded two media startups and is now getting into developing technology platforms for other media makers. She is currently working on launching The Urban Thinker, a digital magazine of long-form journalism about black culture and politics. @kvirella

A GE veteran for more than 25 years, Michael Barber is the vice president of GE's Healthymagination, a $6 billion strategy to revolutionize the world's health by improving access, affordability and quality of care. @gemjbarber

Debbie G. Senesky is an assistant professor in the School of Engineering at Stanford University. Her research is focused on the development of micro- and nano-scale electronic sensing systems for extreme harsh environments — deep space, combustion systems and subsurface. @dsenesky

Dr. Tammara Combs, Ph.D. is the Chief Executive Office for an Austin Startup, CanWe Studios and Founder of Serendipity Interactive, specializing in delivering ecommerce, mobile, and social media solutions. Formerly with Microsoft and Lowe's Home Improvement, Dr. Combs is most known for her work in online communities. @TammaraCombs

Dr. Reneé Rodgers is currently a senior systems engineer in the Engineering Product Support Directorate of Raytheon Missile Systems. She also served as a Senior Multi-Discipline Engineer in the Materials, Processes and Producibility Department utilizing her background in composite materials research and development to perform as a team leader and project coordinator supporting materials development and technical specifications for missile programs. Dr. Rodgers serves as Campus Manager for Tuskegee University for the Raytheon University Programs initiative. @drreneerodgers

With more than 25 years of software development experience, Aaron Saunders is the creator of Clearly Innovative Inc., a company that provides cross-platform mobile solutions. @aaronksaunders

Charles Custon is the founder and CEO of Fonefill, a startup that aims to bring tabletop phone chargers to bars, restaurants, resorts and theme parks across the country. @CharlesCuston

Nnena Ukuku is a tech startup attorney, a co-founder and CEO of Black Founders, and is passionate about creating more opportunities for underrepresented communities in tech. @nukuku

Janel Martinez is a multimedia journalist. She currently serves as Technology Editor at Black Enterprise Magazine--a business, investing, and wealth-building resource for African Americans-- where she oversees the editorial strategy for technology across the company's platforms. Her work and insights have appeared on various media sites including TheGrio, Madame Noire and The Root, as well as on Arise News. Prior to Black Enterprise, Martinez contributed to Latina Magazine, Latina.com, Honeymag.com, Syracuse Record and The Post-Standard. @janelmwrites

Bill Harris' expertise lies in financial technology and security. He serves as the senior vice president and group operations manager at Bank of America. @BofA_News

Jewell Sparks is the CEO and founder of Strategic Diversity Group and BiTHouse. Strategic Diversity Group provides out-of-the-box business development solutions for startups and nonprofits. BiTHouse helps corporate entities and technology organizations find, align, innovate, fund and promote technologies created by minority entrepreneurs and technologists. @jewellsparks

Kunbi Adeyemo works on the Small and Medium Business team at Facebook in Austin, TX, where she is responsible for customer insights and operational analytics. Kunbi helps the team find data-driven solutions to enhance the customer experience and improve operational efficiency in customer sales and support. Kunbi also serves on Facebook's Black Employee Network leadership team. @KayAdey