In this episode of the TEN Podcast, Shonna Dorsey sits down with Emily Allen, Executive Director of Tech Nebraska, for a dynamic conversation about the policy and advocacy work that is shaping the future of Nebraska’s tech ecosystem.

Emily brings a rare mix of experience to this role. She is a licensed attorney, a Nebraska native, and a global policy advocate who has spoken at the United Nations and the World Summit on the Information Society. Her background spans brand strategy, communications, partnership development, and leadership roles at Honor Technology where she expanded the brand into thirteen global markets. Now, as the leader of Tech Nebraska, she is focused on elevating the state’s policy presence, creating space for CIOs and CTOs to influence statewide conversations, and helping Nebraska position itself as a competitive and collaborative place for innovation.

Shonna and Emily reflect on the recent Tech Nebraska Summit, the growing demand for statewide advocacy, and the importance of alignment between Tech Nebraska, the Nebraska Tech Collaborative, AIM Institute, and partners across education, business, and government. They also explore how meaningful policy work, strong relationships, and a shared vision can accelerate innovation and opportunity for Nebraska tech.

This conversation is full of insight, energy, and clarity. Listen to hear where Nebraska tech is today and how policy and advocacy will influence the next chapter.

In this episode of Tech Entrepreneurs Nebraska, host Shonna Dorsey talks with Gabe Romero and Vince Vigneri from Cordova about their journey in entrepreneurship, lessons learned from years in the industry, and their shared commitment to community.

They discuss how relationships drive meaningful work, the evolving role of technology in career development, and why local collaboration remains key to Nebraska’s growing tech ecosystem.

Dr. Martha Garcia-Murillo, Dean of the College of Information Science & Technology at UNO, joins Shonna Dorsey to talk about the intersection of education, innovation, and impact.

In this conversation, Dr. Garcia-Murillo shares how her journey from political economist to tech-education leader fuels her mission to connect students, faculty, and employers across Nebraska’s growing tech ecosystem. She highlights groundbreaking initiatives like the Nebraska Cyber Matrix, AI Core, and adaptive nano-modules that bring real-world experience and AI-driven learning directly into the classroom.

From internships to industry partnerships, this episode dives into how UNO is shaping the future tech workforce and why every company benefits from investing in early talent.

In this episode of Tech Entrepreneurs Nebraska, host Shonna Dorsey talks with Keyosha Atwater, PhD Candidate, Founder of ReflectED, and Fellow with the Google Data Center Community AI Fellowship (Watson Institute).

Keyosha is redefining how literacy, learning, and workforce development intersect through the intentional use of AI. Through ReflectED’s initiatives (Roots & Reads, Mind Mirrors, and Prompt Engineering Labs), she helps learners build essential skills such as literacy, metacognitive awareness, and self-regulated learning. Her work bridges education, technology, and community empowerment to help learners adapt to and shape the future of work.

At the heart of her philosophy is a simple belief: when learners know how they think, they can change how they live, lead, and learn.

Keyosha also shares details about her upcoming AI and Community Base Camps, happening November 15 and 16 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at The Root Coworking Space in Omaha. These interactive sessions invite educators, students, and community partners to explore how AI can strengthen Nebraska’s future workforce.

Register here:

• November 15: https://luma.com/jjl2bhll

• November 16: https://luma.com/ict1kmr5

Listen now and discover how Keyosha is helping Nebraska rethink learning, reimagine opportunity, and build pathways for the next generation.

In this episode of TEN, host LaShonna Dorsey talks with Colleen Schinker and Sonja Figueroa from Women in Tech of the Heartland about leadership, community, and navigating change in today’s tech workforce.

Colleen, co-founder and president of Women in Tech of the Heartland, shares how the group has grown over the past decade hosting nearly 170 events that connect and empower women across Nebraska’s tech ecosystem. Sonja, the organization’s operations director, opens up about her own layoff experience and how it inspired their upcoming November event, The Human Side of Layoffs, which explores this topic from multiple perspectives: employees, managers, HR leaders, and families.

Together, they discuss how transparency and empathy can strengthen teams, reduce stigma, and help individuals rebuild confidence after major career transitions. They also share details about Women in Tech’s annual Jingle Mingle event, a December celebration that brings the tech community together for connection and giving back.

This episode is a thoughtful look at how Nebraska’s tech community continues to grow stronger through real conversations and shared experiences.

How do we build a more inclusive workforce? By investing in the next generation!

In this episode, Tiffany Gamble and Gael Beauboeuf from the Emerging Ladies Academy (ELA) detail their work empowering Black girls in STEM. ELA runs focused STEM programs in six schools across Omaha and Council Bluffs, training future engineers and innovators.

They share the reality: Black girls face a double barrier of sexism and racism in the tech industry. ELA is directly addressing this by providing a supportive environment, hands-on learning, and necessary mentorship.

Listen to hear about ELA's global reach (including a chapter in Ghana), Gael's unique journey from Haiti to Nebraska tech, and how you can help. ELA urgently seeks mentors—female professionals, especially those in male-dominated fields—and donations of laptops, tablets, or financial resources to support their classes in coding and cyber safety.

Nebraska has the ideas — now it has the engine to build them. Frontier Tech Lab is a student-powered prototyping hub at Nebraska Innovation Studio that helps founders, researchers, and companies bring physical products to life with advanced tools and real project teams. Director John Strope explains how the lab closes three gaps for innovators — tools, talent, and time — using more than $3M of equipment and a bench of trained students who learn by doing. We dig into what work the lab takes on (product development, additive manufacturing, electronics integration, rendering), what it doesn’t (high-volume production or app builds), how to start a project, price ranges they’re seeing, and why partnership with Nebraska employers is the key to long-term sustainability. We also cover the student learning model, early demand since the soft launch, and the official launch on October 6.

Guest bio: John Strope is Director of the Frontier Tech Lab and Program Coordinator for the Heartland Robotics Cluster at Nebraska Innovation Studio. His background spans rollercoaster engineering, industrial automation, and global projects — turning bold ideas into practical impact.

Call to action: Start a project at frontiertechlab.unl.edu (shortcut go.unl.edu/FTL).

How one tech leader — and a team of dedicated women — turned connection into a statewide movement

This is the episode you don’t want to miss.

Hosts Brian Poppe (Mutual of Omaha) and Shonna Dorsey (Aksarben Foundation) sit down with Colleen Visty Schinker, the founding president of Women in Tech of the Heartland.

Colleen shares how she was invited by longtime community builder Julie Minton to join the group’s very first planning dinner in 2012 and how choosing to say yes helped spark a nonprofit that has since hosted 165+ events and built a statewide presence.

In this episode, Colleen highlights:
✨ Lessons from her 30+ year career in IT leadership
✨ How she and her team built Women in Tech of the Heartland into a trusted community
✨ Why representation and inclusion transform not just careers, but entire industries
✨ How connections create opportunities that change lives

This is a conversation about leadership, teamwork, and the power of choosing to build something bigger than yourself.

In this episode of the TEN Podcast, hosts Shonna Dorsey and Brian Poppe sit down with Dala Alphonso, President & CEO of AIM Institute, a nonprofit in Omaha dedicated to building the region’s technology talent pipeline for more than three decades.

Since taking the helm in December 2024, Dala has launched a bold five-year strategic plan to modernize AIM’s vision, programs, and brand. With over 25 years of experience in technology leadership—including roles as CIO and Executive Vice President at Greysoft Technologies, Vice President of IT and interim CTO at Prodigy, and Director of IT at Omaha Public Power District—he brings deep expertise in organizational transformation, digital literacy, and technology education.

Dala shares his remarkable journey from Nigeria to Nebraska, his start in technology through a 14-week programming course, and the pivotal personal experiences that shaped his leadership philosophy—including surviving a plane crash in 1996 and overcoming cancer. These challenges fuel his mission to inspire resilience and champion technology as a path to opportunity and success.

The conversation also highlights AIM’s role in:

• Delivering high-quality, practical training programs

• Expanding access to technology careers across all ages

• Building Nebraska’s talent pipeline through intentional partnerships

We also spotlight the upcoming Heartland Developers Conference (September 30–October 1), where 700–1,000+ developers and technologists will gather for two days of hands-on learning in areas like AI, cloud infrastructure, data modeling, security, and the software development lifecycle.

Tune in to hear Dala’s inspiring story, his vision for AIM, and how Nebraska is shaping the future of tech talent.

In this episode of Tech Entrepreneurs Nebraska, you’ll hear from Parul Aggarwal, Software Engineer at Mutual of Omaha, on navigating internships, finding confidence as a new grad, and building community as a remote worker. Her advice is practical, inspiring, and relevant for anyone early in their career or ready to reignite their path in tech.