Philly Tech Week 2019

Technology and Lifestyle Expert Stephanie Humphrey’s mission in life is to show people how technology can make their lives easier. Stephanie spent two years as the technology contributor to the nationally-syndicated talk show The Harry Show, hosted by Harry Connick, Jr. and she is currently a contributor to Good Morning America and Strahan & Sara. She is the regular on-air tech contributor to Fox 29’s Good Day Philadelphia where she’s delivered tech news since 2012. Stephanie spent three years as the technology writer for EBONY.com and a contributor to EBONY magazine and spent two years as the spokesperson for HP, Inc. on the QVC shopping channel. And Stephanie uses social media to help people understand tech basics with her weekly 60-Second Tech Break on Instagram & Twitter.

‘Til Death Do You Tweet is a seminar for students, parents, or professionals that helps them understand the potential negative consequences of online behavior - especially through social media - and gives helpful advice on how people can maintain a positive reputation in cyberspace. Stephanie is a former engineer for Lockheed Martin with engineering degrees from Florida A&M University and the University of Pennsylvania.

Daniel Boylan is an Assistant Professor in Accounting at Purdue University in Fort Wayne, IN. He holds a PhD in Technology (with a cognate in accounting) from Purdue University (USA). His research interests lie in the area of legal ramifications on business practice, focusing on the field of accounting. His research has appeared in several journals including Accounting Education, Review of Business & Finance Studies, and Global Business and Finance Review.

Stephen Babcock is the Assistant Editor for Technical.ly. Stephen Babcock began reporting for Technical.ly in Baltimore in 2014. A graduate of Northeastern University, he moved to Baltimore following stints in New Orleans and Rio Arriba County, New Mexico. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Baltimore Fishbowl, NOLA Defender, NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune and the Rio Grande Sun.

Timothy Wenhold is equal parts entrepreneur technologist. Wenhold turned down a scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania to begin his journey as an entrepreneur. He founded his third company, Sintaks, in 1985, sold it to Canon in 1998, and then started and grew three more companies. In 2007, Power became a client of Wenhold’s systems innovation company, Data in Motion. Wenhold learned every intricacy of the company in order to architect the best, most relevant technology, impressing Power leadership every step of the way. In 2012, Wenhold joined Power full time as their Chief Innovation Officer and in 2017 became a partner.

In his role, Wenhold is responsible for all aspects of technology, including NITRO, Power’s unique, state-of-the-art collaborative intelligence platform that enables seamless, real-time communication across Power’s 21 states and thousands of employees. Wenhold is focused on innovating for the future, continuously developing the technical strategy and human capital to support Power’s rapid growth. He oversees an international team of creators, including developers, engineers, and designers. Under Wenhold’s leadership, technology has been integrated into Power’s cultural fabric, creating a true digital identity across the entire company.

Timothy's educational background doesn't start in a top university. In spite of having a scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania, Timothy decided to tackle life first—going on the road with a band and financing the tour himself. After a year of truly experiencing life, Timothy returned home in debt and needed to figure out his next move. After a series of jobs in varying industries from aerospace to engineering, he found his home in computers, technology and innovation. In 1985 he founded Sintaks, a regional systems integrator working with clients such as ARAMARK, GMAC, SEI, etc. After growing the company for more than 10 years, Timothy sold Sintaks to Cannon in 1996 as Cannon viewed this acquisition as strategic to their goal of connected devices. The entrepreneur bug had taken hold of Timothy, so he went on to start, grow and sell multiple technology companies, laying the groundwork for the creation of Data In Motion, a systems innovation company. Power became a customer of the company in 2007 before finally integrating the company fully into the technology division of Power in 2012. Timothy currently resides in Collegeville, PA.

In tandem with his partner Leon Huff, producer and songwriter Kenny Gamble was the principal architect behind the lush and seductive Philly Soul sound, one of the most popular and influential musical developments of the 1970s. Born in Philadelphia on August 11, 1943, he first teamed with Huff during the late '50s while a member of the harmony group the Romeos, a unit which also included another aspiring area musician named Thom Bell, who would become crucial to Gamble's later success. "The 81," a 1964 single by the little-known Candy & the Kisses, was the inaugural Gamble-Huff co-production, and three years later the duo scored their first Top Five pop hit with the Soul Survivors' "Expressway to Your Heart." Soon recruiting the aforementioned Bell as arranger, they subsequently scored with smashes including Archie Bell & the Drells' "I Can't Stop Dancing" and Jerry Butler's "Only the Strong Survive," gradually forging their own distinctive sound.

Gamble and Huff's success on labels including Atlantic and Chess — as well as their own Neptune and Gamble imprints — spurred them to contact Columbia in the hopes of opening a new affiliate company, one inspired by the continued success of Berry Gordy and Motown. Columbia agreed, and in 1970 the duo's Philadelphia International Records was born. Given a $75,000 advance for 15 singles, with LPs budgeted at $25,000 apiece, Gamble and Huff soon exploded into the national musical consciousness, selling some ten million records in the span of nine months thanks to monster hits including Billy Paul's "Me and Mrs. Jones," Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' "If You Don't Know Me by Now" and the O'Jays' "Back Stabbers" and "Love Train." Their signature aesthetic — an intoxicating combination of sweeping strings, smoky horns and insistent rhythms — emerged as the definitive soul sound of the early '70s, also becoming the blueprint for the rise of disco during the latter half of the decade.

Under Gamble and Huff, Philadelphia International launched hit after hit from acts including the Intruders, MFSB, and the Three Degrees. The bottom fell out in 1975, however, when the label became embroiled in a payola scandal; charged with offering bribes in exchange for radio airplay, Gamble was fined $2500, although Huff was acquitted. Probably not coincidentally, the duo's work began to suffer at much the same time, and as the decade drew to a sound their classic Philly soul sound began to grow stale and derivative. Hits became increasingly rare, although the 1979 McFadden & Whitehead single "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" was a significant return to form. Throughout the disco era Philadelphia International's most consistent hitmaker was Teddy Pendergrass, but in the wake of the tragic 1982 car accident which left the singer paralyzed, the career of Gamble and Huff began to dissipate as well, and they rarely resurfaced on record in the years to follow.

Miracle Olatunji is an entrepreneur, student at Northeastern University, and forthcoming author of Purpose: How To Live and Lead With Impact. In high school, she founded OpportuniMe, an education startup that connects high school youth to summer experiential learning opportunities for passion, career, and self discovery. Through OpportuniMe, Miracle has helped hundreds of youth to find and apply to opportunities and is working to expand OpportuniMe's impact nationally. Miracle believes in the power of experiential learning and empowering youth to gain life skills, an entrepreneurial mindset, leadership experiences, and build their network. She is also the Director of Innovation at Thrive, an organization that empowers college students through financial literacy education and supports student-led entrepreneurial ventures in personal finance and financial technology. Miracle has been honored as a Young Global Leadership Scholar, Youth Entrepreneur Of The Year, a 40 Under 40 Woman To Watch, and a grand prize winner of the World Series of Entrepreneurship. Her work has been featured in Forbes, Thrive Global, Technical.ly, The Female Lead, and other publications. She previously served on the student advisory board of the Diamond Challenge, one of the world's largest entrepreneurship competitions for high school students and she continues to work with other organizations that empower future innovators and world-changers.

Emeka Oguh is the founder & CEO of PeopleJoy http://peoplejoy.com/. PeopleJoy finds borrowers customized solutions across 100+ private and federal student loan repayment and forgiveness options. We give you peace of mind knowing your student loan management is in good hands. Previously Emeka founded and launched a mobile app publishing company that was acquired in 2015. Prior to that he worked as Director of Product at a financial technology startup and as a Wall Street analyst. Emeka received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Rutgers University and his MBA from Harvard Business School. He currently resides in Philadelphia, PA with his wife.

Caloua Lowe, a Hopeworks alumni, recently joined SEER Interactive as an alumni and now works as a permanent contractor at storied digital marketing agency.

Caloua Lowe learned about Hopeworks through a friend. When she started the program, she was unemployed, living with an aunt, and had a desire for change and independence. Growing up, her home life was difficult as her mom struggled with a mental illness and her father was incarcerated. Caloua stepped into the role of caregiver and helped support her family during these difficult times. She made the decision to live with her aunt so that she could begin her own journey to stability. Her motivation for starting the training was to strengthen her knowledge and build experience in graphic design.

Caloua’s journey was even featured in Wired Magazine!