2019 SUMMIT KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
FLORENCIA PAREDES '11
Florencia Paredes is the product manager heading Modular AI and Workflows at Citrine Informatics, the leading materials informatics platform. She started her career in strategy and corporate development at Accenture Digital, developing the strategy and execution for Accenture’s global IoT Practice before transitioning to product management. She has 4 years of experience in product management, consulting for Fortune 500 companies and working with startups taking products from concept to execution. She has a BS from Cornell University and an MS from Stanford University, both in Materials Science and Engineering with a focus on
research.
MICHAEL BENITEZ JR, PhD.
A highly sought out speaker at colleges and conferences nationwide, Dr. Michael Benitez is a nationally-acclaimed scholar practitioner and educator with extensive experience with diversity, equity and inclusion in higher education. He is known for his down-to-earth, insightful commentary and critical perspectives on social and cultural issues ranging social justice education, leadership and identity development, intersectionality, race and ethnic relations, anti-racism, knowledge production, and critical pedagogy and practice in higher education, authoring book chapters and articles on student identity, hip hop culture, cultural centers, cultural and ethnic studies, and campus climate assessment.
Over the last two decades, Dr. Benitez has served higher education in different capacities, including academic and student affairs, equity and inclusion, and teaching. Currently, he serves as the Dean of Diversity and Inclusion/Chief Diversity Officer and Title IX Officer, at the University of Puget Sound, providing leadership over the coordination, implementation, and assessment of operational and strategic goals related to diversity strategic planning and institutional efforts to foster and sustain an equitable and inclusive campus climate, and serves on Puget Sound’s Race and Pedagogy Institute Leadership team.
Dr. Benitez completed both his B.S. and M.Ed. at the Pennsylvania State University, where he gained interest in pursuing doctoral studies as a McNair Scholar. He holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy from Iowa State University’s School of Education and has been recognized with several leadership and scholarly awards, throughout his career.