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 Our Team 

Dr. Patricia A. Ackerman, Founder

A retired Ohio public school administrator, university trustee emerita, and past member of the Ohio Board of Regents. During 35 years of service in K-12 education, she championed the unique needs of underachievers by creating alternative programs, co-authoring a textbook series and leading professional education organizations at the local, state and national levels. Dr. Ackerman is the national coordinator of BLACK Lemonade for All and serves both Chalkdust Education Foundation and IndeedWeCode as executive director.

Michelle D. Walton, Co-Founder

An educator who retired in 2019 after a  27 year career empowering young minds and advocating for students and families.   She was one of the first African American National Board Certified Teachers in the State of Ohio. Miss Walton also earned the distinction of Ohio Master Teacher. She taught all subjects in grades 5-8 primarily focusing on writing, math, science, inclusion and culturally responsive teaching. Miss Walton has presented workshops at the district, local, state, national and international levels.  She has traveled abroad studying the educational systems in Europe and Asia, as well as touring schools in several African nations. During the global health crisis,the IWC leadership team re-positioned its programming to a virtual experience for the girls providing coding skills, mentorship seminars, and graduation celebrations. Miss Walton is  president of Chalkdust Education Foundation.

Michelle Wilson, Co-Founder

A highly accomplished Senior IT Consultant with 20+ years of diverse experience as a programmer, business analyst, project manager and application developer. Her experience with the full life cycle of application/project development, creating application specifications, and developing and performing test plans/scenarios is significant. Furthermore, her successful integrating of applications is essential to young women in STEM fields. Particular areas of her expertise include developing and implementing proprietary applications using various technologies, and creating technical and training documents. As a cyber security expert, she is skilled in data loss prevention (DLP) technology and methodologies, complex issue identification and resolution, and Agile/Scrum project management and software development. Her proven success in taking initiative, establishing solid rapport with customers, and driving solutions that meet and exceed customer requirements has enabled her to provide exemplary service to an array of Fortune 500 companies, federal government entities, local and state governments.

Dr. Mia Simmons, Instructor 

Software Engineer and a current Sr. Program Manager for Crisis Management & Business Continuity. Dr. Mia has been a college professor for over 10+ years.  She enjoys mentoring and teaching young girls. She is the founder for "Excellence of a Pearl" young girls mentorship program. 

Lillian Hunter, Ombudsman

A phenomenal volunteer who serves IWC in a variety of logistical support roles including recruitment, data collection, and interface with partners, service providers and parents.

Cynthia Calhoun, Head Cheerleader

Aerospace Engineer
NASA Glenn Research Center
Cleveland, OH

 Cheerleaders for IndeedWeCode 
 Cynthia Calhoun (Cheerleader) Aerospace Engineer, NASA Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, OH
 Carmen Bryson (Cheerleader) East Cleveland City Schools, East Cleveland, Ohio
 Ayonna Donald (Cheerleader) Mechanical Engineer/Attorney,  Demolition Compliance Officer - City of Cleveland Cleveland, OH
 Yokia Fuller (Cheerleader) Educator (Former Apple Employee) Western International School of Shanghai, Shanghai, China
 Eloise Henry (Cheerleader) Software Engineer, Rockwell Automation
 Joyce Holbert (Cheerleader) Principal Consultant/Viewpoint Consulting Services, Inc., Cleveland, OH
 Nicole Isaac (Cheeerleader) Director of U.S. Public Policy and Government Affairs, Washington, DC
 Dr. Brandi P. Jones (Cheerleader) Professor of Research, Chief of Staff and Chief Operating Officer, USC Race and Equity Center, University of Southern California
 Kimberly King (Cheerleader) Manager, Solution Consulting, Salesforce, Inc., Seven Hills, OH
 Marvette Likier, IT Lead, Business Enablement Team/Johnson & Johnson, Raritan, New Jersey
 Rochelle May (Cheerleader) Software Engineering Lead,NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH
 Dawn Mayes (Cheerleader) Architect,Account Executive, Benefits Innovation Group Cleveland, OH
 Michelle Norvell (Cheerleader) Patient Navigator University Hospitals Cleveland, OH
 Staci Okine (Cheerleader) Senior Director-Systems Engineering, US Commercial at Palo Alto Networks
 Dr. Fay Cob-Payton(Cheerleader) Program Director/Division of Computer and Network Systems, National Science Foundation, Washington, DC
 Lt. Colonel Tiffany Riviera (Cheerleader) Patient Navigator University Hospitals Cleveland, OH
 Dr. Mia Simmons (Cheerleader) Mechanical Engineer, Goodyear, Akron, OH
 Nicole Smith (Cheerleader) Assistant Professor of Instruction, Ohio University College of Business, Athens, OH
 Sonia Smith (Cheerleader) IT Program Manager, U.S. Peace Corps Headquarters, Washington, DC
 Dr. Monique Umphrey (Cheerleader) Provost/Executive Vice Chancellor, Academic & Academic & Student Affairs, Austin Community College, Austin, Texas
 Dr. Ruth Washington (Cheerleader) Executive Director for Faculty and Graduate  Student Retention, Inclusion and Success Kent State University Kent, OH
 Dr. Renee Willis, Superintendent/Richmond Heights School District, Richmond Heights, Ohio
 Michelle E. Wilson (Cheerleader) Senior IT Consultant/Systems Analyst Co-Founder of IndeedWeCode Washington D.C.
 Dr. Monique Wilson (Cheerleader) College-wide Dean & Executive Director,  IT Cuyahoga Community College Cleveland, Ohio