ETBD Speaker Series
2020-21 Season
Maria Sipka
"The G.I.V.E. Code"
Wednesday, April 14, 5pm
The G.I.V.E. Code was designed to inspire people to act upon their dreams. G.I.V.E. stands for
- G – Start with generosity by rewarding unconventional emotion.
- I – Think infinitely, without boundaries, inspiring positivity and happiness.
- V – Come from a place of vulnerability by thinking about the individual. It’s about them, not you.
- E – Infuse your goals with energy and ignite a positive mindset
Maria Sipka is a co-founder of Linqia, the leading influencer marketing technology company that delivers results to over 500 brands.
She was a pioneer of influencer marketing in the early 2000s. Forbes has recognized her as one of the leading women in technology, and she is a contributor to the Forbes Agency Council, an invitation-only community for senior agency executives. Maria is passionate about social impact storytelling, and she believes that all ideas start with two things, emotional connection and inspired action.
Myra LalDin
Tuesday, March 21, 6pm
Myra LalDin believes in the power of stories to create empathy,
shape values, change behaviors, and share experiences. She grew
up in Pakistan as a religious minority, and attended an
international boarding school and in high school moved to
Thailand. As one of the few Pakistanis in a very westernized
school culture, she learned to be acutely aware of social and
cultural dynamics. This catalyzed her drive to understand the
science behind human behaviors across different backgrounds. In
college, she studied cross-cultural business management, and
later, cognitive science and behavioral theory in grad school at
Harvard University.
Myra co-founded VECTRE, a virtual reality development company
that leverages the power of immersive technology and works with
Fortune 500 companies. Inspired by her desire to cultivate a
society that is more socially intelligent, globally competent,
and consciously inclusive. Leveraging her knowledge of learning
sciences and technology, she then founded VRperspectives, which
focuses on using VR storytelling to shine a light on the hidden
dynamics of the social world through immersive experiences.
Myra serves on the boards of Designed by Us (Amazon), the
National Small Business Association Leadership Council, and as an
XR subject matter expert at MIT.
Cynthia Marcinek
Monday, February 22, 5pm
Cynthia Marcinek (Miami '15) is social activation manager at Essence, a global advertising firm whose clients include Google, NBCUniversal, and L’Oreal. Cynthia will talk about her work at Essence, where she’s now on the NBCUniversal team (promoting their streaming movies), and we will also have time for you to ask questions.
Connor McGarry
POSTPONED
Connor McGarry's presentation has been postponed.
A new date will be announced.
Monday, November 9, 6pm
Connor McGarry is a global operations manager within the Risk and Response organization at Facebook, where he oversees election integrity and crisis management protocols.
Dan Docherty
"The Neuroscience of Decision-making"
Tuesday, October 27, 6pm
Dan Docherty is the President of BrainTrust, a digital marketing, sales, and leadership consulting firm. Using neuroscience and visual storytelling, Braintrust is committed to positively impact the world by helping people communicate with more purpose and power. Braintrust translates the complexities of neuroscience into a practical communication method that drives change and increases performance.
Dan Docherty earned a BA degree from Miami University. an MBA from Xavier University, and a PhD in Management from Case Western Reserve University.
Renee Seward
"Can a Font Eradicate Illiteracy?: The Journey of Designing Tools to Support Educators and Struggling Readers"
Thursday, Septemb er 24, 5pm 
Reneé Seward is Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Communication Design program in the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning at the University of Cincinnati. Her teaching portfolio includes typography, exhibition design, and graphic design. Her research focuses on the development of digital and physical tools to address literacy problems.
She is co-founder of See Word Design, a company that distributes her See Words suite of apps. The software was developed first to aid a friend’s child, who attributed his reading struggle to the layout of the letters on a page. She and research partner Beth O’Brien were awarded a grant from the National Institute of Education for a two-year test of the tool on bi-lingual children. Additionally, she is part of a research team that was awarded a grant from the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders to develop a tool to help correct childhood speech problems.
She was a Cincinnati Innovates winner and acknowledged as a Rising Tech star by ComSpark; received the Cincinnati Business Courier Best Software of the Year award; and was named the University of Cincinnati Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year.
She and research partner Beth O’Brien were awarded a grant from the National Institute of Education for a two-year test of the tool on bi-lingual children. Additionally, she is part of a research team that was awarded a grant from the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders to develop a tool to help correct childhood speech problems.
She holds a bachelor's degree in Graphic Design from the University of Cincinnati, and a master's degree in Graphic Design from North Carolina State University.