Sunday Mainstage

Priscilla Chan is the co-founder and co-CEO of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which is leveraging technology to help solve some of the world’s toughest challenges – from eradicating disease, to improving education, to reforming the criminal justice system. As a pediatrician and teacher, Chan’s work with patients and students informs her desire to ensure that demographics like race and socioeconomic status are not predictive of student outcomes, and that every child enters adulthood with the knowledge, skills, habits and agency they need to reach their full potential. Chan is also the founder of The Primary School, which integrates health and education, and serves children and families in East Palo Alto and the Belle Haven neighborhoods in Menlo Park and Hayward, California. Chan earned a bachelor’s in biology at Harvard University and an M.D. at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She completed her pediatrics training in the UCSF/PLUS Pediatrics Residency.

Richard Culatta, chief executive officer, brings vast experience in education policy, teacher preparation, educational technology and innovation to his role with ISTE. Culatta is a longtime ISTE member and a past recipient of the ISTE Making IT Happen Award. Prior to joining ISTE, Culatta served as the chief innovation officer for the state of Rhode Island. In this role, he focused on developing partnerships to improve opportunities for students, including launching a program to make Rhode Island the first state to offer computer science in every K-12 school and creating a state vision for personalized learning. As the director of the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology, Culatta was at the helm of numerous efforts to expand connectivity to schools across the country, promote personalized learning and develop the National Education Technology Plan. He also pioneered new ways for the department to engage with educators and tech developers. Prior to his role with the Department of Education, Culatta served as an education policy adviser to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray. He was also the learning technologies adviser for the David O. McKay School of Education at Brigham Young University where he redesigned the technology component of the teacher prep program. He also served as the director of operations for the Rose Education Foundation, which brought the first internet connections to schools in rural Guatemala. Culatta began his career in the classroom as a high school teacher and, across his career, has coached educators and national leaders around the world on using technology as a tool to reimagine learning. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Spanish teaching and a master's in educational psychology and technology, both from Brigham Young University

Ronda Felton is a 19-year-old singer, songwriter, performer and recent contestant on American Idol 2021, where she brought Idol judge and music legend Lionel Richie to tears. Ronda will be sharing her music and some of her inspirational personal story during ISTELive’s Sunday Mainstage session.

Megan McMahon is a senior events manager with ISTE, helping shape amazing educator content and events like the Creative Constructor Lab. She also has experience as a teacher resident with IDEO’s The Teachers Guild, spent 10 years as an art educator for San Francisco Unified School District, was a Peace Corps education volunteer in Bolivia, worked as a designer and art director for Anderson & Lembke Advertising, and was a co-founder of Beyond Borders Storytelling. McMahon is also an artist, and is always seeking that elusive San Francisco sun. She believes changes in education will come from inside school communities, from the ground up.

Noelle Silver is the senior vice president of AI solutions for ElectrifAI.net and the founder of the AI Leadership Institute. An award-winning technologist who specializes in conversational artificial intelligence and voice technology, intelligent apps and agents, and responsible AI practices, she’s led teams at NPR, Microsoft and Amazon. She’s also the founder of #Lovefluencers. Silver is passionate about mindful leadership, authentic personal branding and the ethical and responsible use of technology in business. She was recently awarded the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional award for Artificial Intelligence, and is an influencer in voice and AI globally.