Marissa Levy Lerer


Title: Where My Ladies At: The Radical Topic of Women in Tech

Description:

There’s no disputing that the future has arrived for pocket computers, autonomous cars and croissants that are also, somehow, donuts. Innovation is moving at light-speed but women are being left behind when it comes to tech. We still having the same, tired conversation about (say it with me) “women in tech.” We are inundated with jargon about leaning in, opting out, work-life balance, which can be discouraging for women, especially for those beginning their careers. This presenter is a CTO, mom, and proud chick coder understands what it’s like to survive the “woman in tech” scene. Join her for an empowering journey of where we’ve been, where we’re heading and some unsolicited advice about making the most of your career.

Speaker

Marissa Levy Lerer

Marissa Levy Lerer

@marissalevy

Marissa Levy Lerer is a technologist, musician, cake decorator and mom. She grew up in Bethesda, Maryland and then moved to New York City where she received a BS in Music Education and an MA in Graphic Communications, Management and Technology. During her time at NYU she began writing music and has since released three albums.

Marissa started her career in technology as a graphic designer for MTV before transitioning into management. Eventually she began coding as a senior developer at The Chopping Block and then at BBDO. She is currently managing a team of developers, as Vice President of Technology at COMPOSE[D], a digital creative and development agency in New York.

Marissa prides herself on being a “cool nerd” who likes to get her hands in everything. When she decided she wanted to learn to decorate cakes, instead of taking classes she let the internet be her guide. She made one cake a week for an entire year chronicling the experience on 52cakes.com. She is also an accomplished singer/songwriter who has released three albums and shared the stage with talented musicians such as Matt Nathanson, Lisa Loeb and Gavin DeGraw. She has also participated in the 2012 StartupBus and was on the winning team of the 2012 International Space Apps Challenge. She is passionate about mentorship, especially for women in tech. In addition to teaching programing at the School of Visual Arts she is also a regular panelist at Pace Path Live and recently mentored Girl Scouts at a SXSW event sponsored by Twitter and Dove.