On the latest episode of Spark Chat, I am joined by Francisco Cervantes who is the Director of Computer Science Academics at the NYC DOE. We chat about his upbringing, best practices of Computer Science curriculum integration, and so much more!

On this episode, we are joined by David Wells, Director of Maker Programming at The New York Hall of Science. We chat about his upbringing and early experiences with making. We also dive deep into maker education, programming at NYSCI, and his pedagogical approach!

On this episode, we are joined by Dr. Elizabeth Bishop, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Youth Studies Program at the City University of New York and Director of Curriculum and Outcomes Evaluation at Global Kids. We chat about her childhood passion for soccer, her Drop Knowledge Project, her book Becoming Activist: Critical Literacy and Youth Organizing, and so much more!!

Dr. Jessica Forsythe is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Harold Hunter Foundation and her dedication to her work is so inspiring. On this episode, we chat with her about growing up in New York, how she met Harold Hunter, mentorship, programs available for youth at the Harold Hunter Foundation and so much more!

Phi Pham is the Founder and Executive Director at Building Beats and has tremendous experience in non-profit and smalls business as well as youth development, community work, and over 15 years experience in freelance music. We get the opportunity to discuss his passion for neural science, music and all of the amazing work being done at Building Beats.

Ariam Mogos is a learning technologist, a designer, an educator, and a social activist working at the intersection of education, human rights, and global development. Currently an Education Innovation Specialist with UNICEF Innovation, she was previously the Director of Digital Learning and Leadership for Global Kids and an active member of the Hive NYC Learning Network. Ariam is also the founder of the Nairobi Play Project, a game design and computer programming initiative that equips urban refugee youth with 21st-century skills while supporting their integration into Kenyan society. We chat about her upbringing and all of this amazing work she has been doing!

On this episode, we are joined by Steve Ausbury, the Executive Director of The Brooklyn College Community Partnership (BCCP). Steve has been a great friend for several years and we get to discuss the amazing maker programming taking place at BCCP as well as leadership advice and so much more!

Jessica and Evin are the co-founders and Executive Directors of New York on Tech and during this episode of the podcast, we are so lucky to be join be these amazing guests. We chat about the role technology played in their upbringing, New York on Tech programs, lessons learned from starting your own organization and so much more!

On this episode we chat with Spazecraft, an amazing digital artist, musician, educator, and all around great person. We discuss his rich history and passion with music, his experience with arts and media education with young people, and so much more!

In the very first episode of Spark Chat, I have my guest Chris Lawrence, a long time friend and mentor. We chat about his upbringing, educating youth on web literacy and internet health, as well as many other topics!