Jenni Light is a seasoned design researcher, strategist, and educator with over 20 years of experience across commercial design, retail, children’s media, and education. She brings a human-centered approach to her work, always striving to infuse humor, joy, and lasting impact into every client collaboration and team effort. Jenni currently teaches within the School of Design at the Savannah College of Art and Design, where she mentors the next generation of creative thinkers. When she’s not working or teaching, she’s making things, hugging animals, and spending time outside with her friends and family.

Jimmie Harris is a senior product manager focused on creating innovative and easy-to-use tools for teachers and students. His experience in Hawaii and special education shaped his understanding of the need for solutions that support diverse learners. With a Master’s in Design Impact from Stanford and a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from MIT, he combines design thinking with technical know-how. Whether managing product development or conducting user research, Jimmie’s goal is to use technology to improve outcomes for all learners.

Professor Caitlin Mills, Co-Founder, Chief of Research and Impact for AugmentED, is also currently an Associate Professor at the Educational Psychology Department at the University of Minnesota. She received her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from the University of Notre Dame, then completed her postdoctoral training in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of British Columbia. She spent four years in the Psychology Department at the University of New Hampshire before moving her lab to UMN. Dr. Mills’ research program has been centered on engagement, mind-wandering, and affect during complex learning and everyday life. She has published over 100 peer reviewed papers and was recently awarded the Tom Trabasso Young Investigator Award from the Society for Text and Discourse. She serves on multiple editorial boards and has co-chaired several conferences including Educational Data Mining and Learning Analytics and Knowledge.

Alicia Caraballo is the Director of Development at AERDF, where she leads fundraising efforts to advance the organization’s ambitious R&D programs that improve teaching and learning outcomes across the country. In this role, she works to identify and cultivate strategic funding partnerships, secure philanthropic investments, and develop the infrastructure and workflows needed to bolster AERDF’s long-term fundraising success. Alicia’s efforts support AERDF’s work in stewarding funder relationships, diversifying revenue streams, and aligning financial resources with the organization’s mission.

A seasoned fundraising professional, Alicia has over a decade of experience securing philanthropic support for social impact organizations. Prior to joining AERDF, she was the Associate Vice President of Institutional Funding at Covenant House, where she raised critical funds for programs serving youth experiencing homelessness and human trafficking across the U.S and Latin America. Her efforts secured six- and seven-figure grants from public and private funders, as well as government funding, most recently from the U.S. Department of State.

Alicia’s fundraising career has also included roles at Jumpstart for Young Children, Inc. and Selfhelp Community Services, where she worked to mobilize resources for early childhood education and senior care. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English with a specialization in Professional Writing from Barry University and a master’s degree in Fundraising and Grantmaking from New York University. Now based in Washington, DC, Alicia is passionate about leveraging philanthropy to strengthen communities and create lasting impact for vulnerable and marginalized populations.

Sherry has dedicated her career to improving government systems for underserved communities as a senior policymaker in two presidential administrations, social entrepreneur, and public interest attorney. She is the founder and executive director of AugmentED.

Previously, she served as the head of social impact at OpenAI. In the Biden Administration, she led the division of the White House Office of Management and Budget charged with overseeing the development of policies and budgets across the federal government’s education, labor, and social services agencies. Before joining the Biden Administration, Sherry founded and led Foster America, a nonprofit dedicated to reforming the U.S. child welfare system. In the Obama Administration, she served as a domestic policy advisor to then-Vice President Biden and a senior policy advisor at the U.S. Department of Education.

Earlier in her career, she was a senior education counsel in the U.S. Senate and a children’s civil rights attorney at the Juvenile Law Center. Sherry serves on the boards of Playlab and Accelerate. She received a master’s in philosophy from the University of Cambridge, a master’s in public policy from Harvard, and a J.D. from Columbia.

Oscar is a San Francisco Bay Area native with over 25 years of experience promoting evaluation research, educational equity, youth capacity building and community inclusion. At the core of his academic and professional career is a commitment to practicing culturally responsive research and evaluation.