Martha Escalera has over 10 years of experience in higher education. She completed her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Spanish, and a Master's Degree in Organization Development from the University of San Francisco. Martha joined Stanford University as the Administrative Manager for the School of Engineering Dean’s Office of Student Affairs and Engineering Diversity Programs in April 2014. As manager, she brings structure to the diversity programs to offer precollege, college and post graduate students a successful academic experience. Prior to Stanford, Martha worked at The National Hispanic University, a small private institution, engaging parents, families, and young adults who want to pursue a college education. Much of her work has been directing federally funded TRiO grants, which provide resources and support to low-income, disabled, and/or first generation college students. In addition, she is an adjunct faculty for the Foothill Community College Family Engagement Institute. While advocating for family engagement in education, she works with parents in San Jose, California, teaching Strong Start courses, computer courses, college preparedness courses and parenting classes that focus on supporting children in K-12.
Regina Wallace-Jones is Chief of Staff to the Information Security Officer at Yahoo! Inc. and in her spare time, she manages Entrepreneurial Spirit Investment Group, an organization that funds early stage ventures, 60% of whose investments are in African-American led start-up firms. Regina is also committed to public service and dedicates volunteer time and financial support to organizations such as "Black Girls Code" and "Techbridge." A deep believer in community organizing, Regina recently served as a Regional Field Organizer for President Obama's campaign for re-election. Regina also recently partnered with Sheryl Sandberg to help her launch her book "Lean In: Women, Work and the Will the Lead" along with the Lean In Foundation. Perhaps most precious to Regina, is her lifetime membership in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and she maintains active membership in the San Francisco-Peninsula Alumnae Chapter. Regina was initiated into Omicron Chi Chapter, for which she is the current primary advisor. Regina graduated from Stanford University with B.S. in Electrical Engineering. She later earned her Masters degree in Public Policy with Emphasis in Technology Policy from UCLA. (Bio Credit, Allison Slaughter)
Laura Hackney is currently working at the Freeman Spogli lnstitute’s International Policy Implementation Lab at Stanford University. Previously, she was the Senior Research Associate for Stanford’s Anti-Trafficking Project in the Mekong Sub-Region and worked for the Program on Human Rights at Stanford. She holds a Master’s degree from Stanford, a BA from the University of California, Berkeley, and she speaks Mandarin Chinese. In addition to analyzing various forms of human trafficking around the world, she has extensively investigated the specific issue of trafficking Burmese women and children into the marriage market of China. Domestically, she works with the Human Trafficking Task Force within the San Francisco Police Department’s Special Victims Unit and supports the local Bay Area anti-trafficking groups.
Jessica Hubley is an attorney and entrepreneur running her own legal practice in the Bay Area. After earning a BA and Master’s from Emory University and attending Stanford Law School, Jessica worked at Latham & Watkins LLP and Dickstein Shapiro LLP, advising internet, cloud, and digital media companies on general commercial matters, with a particular focus on privacy issues, IP management, and distribution strategies. Her practice specializes in e-commerce and privacy law in the Bay Area, where she works to guide tech startups through their lifecycle with profitable responsibility. She also writes novels and was introduced to the global issues of human trafficking several years ago through her work as the President of Women of Stanford Law. She has been interviewing and gathering stories of human trafficking survivors around the world, and is currently represented by Trident Media Group for a narrative nonfiction piece that highlights the stories of trafficking survivors from around the globe and how existing technology could have helped them.
Speakers Persis Drell, Farhana Huq, Ruthe Farmer, Jaime-Alexis Fowler and Dereca Blackmon will also be participating as mentors.