2017 Sacramento Indie Arcade Speaker: Alona Jennings
The Sacramento Indie Arcade is proud to welcome Alona Jennings!
Alona is the Co-Founder and Chief Learning Officer of Operation Innovate, Inc. DBA Code for Hood and CEO of The Go 2 Network, LLC an education technology consulting firm.
Ms. Jennings is a Social Entrepreneur whose focus is on community, business, and youth workforce development at Operation Innovate, Inc. Alona possesses 10+ years’ technology experience as Sr. E-Learning Developer and Instructional Designer.
Operation Innovate, Inc. is the home of Sacramento’s only youth hack-a-thon, youth STEM workshops & boot camps. In 2016 the organization became a Rapid Acceleration Innovation & Leadership in Sacramento (RAILS) grantee whose funds will go towards the launch Sacramento’s first Digital Badge career tech program, starting Summer 2017.
The Get STEAMED Digital Badge project, by Operation Innovate, is an educational leadership project that offers digital badge certification for underserved youth ages 16-24 in top three STEM/Tech Fields IOS App, Website and Video Game Development. The project aims to train and badge 45 youth in IOS App Development, Instructional Website Design and Development, Video Game Development, Startup Entrepreneurship and Workforce Readiness.
Alona's speaking engagements include:
- Comstock Magazine Groundbreakers event – Guest Speaker/Panelist
- Comstock Magazine podcast: Leveraging Diversity for Maximum Impact – Guest Speaker
- Sierra College NOW STEM Talks For Nontraditional Women’s Careers – Guest Speaker/Panelist
Don't miss an opportunity to hear from this dynamic leader!
On Saturday, April 8th, 2017, West Sacramento Parks & Recreation in partnership with Nascent Games and IGDA Sacramento presents the 4th Annual Sacramento Indie Arcade!
Since 2014, we’ve had the distinct honor of working alongside some memorable nerd and geek community members including: Atari Party, Capitol Fight District, Ninja Pandas, Consolecade, Orange Lounge Radio, Videogame Bang, Sac Geeks and Extra Life!
Now, for 2017, we continue to extend our collaborative reach with NEW community members: KittensLIVE (representing the TwitchKittens streamers community), Last Token Gaming, Small Business Association of Sacramento and more to bring it all together!
The core of the Sacramento Indie Arcade is about our ever-growing list of Indie Game Developers here in the Sacramento region and beyond! Attendees will be able to play games created by 30+ developers (Board, Card & Video Game), including our VERY 1ST INTERNATIONAL Game Developer all the way from Singapore! Our inspiration is beginning to spread to new parts of the world now! Incredible stuff, isn’t it?
Because Sacramento Indie Arcade continues to create inspiration and results for all who attend, we will once again incorporate speakers and panelists including: Michelle Hill – Keynote (2K Games), Joe McClure (Small Business Association-Sacramento), Sela Davis (Xbox Live, VREAL), Alona Jennings & Gina Lujan (Hacker Lab & Code for Hood) and MORE!
These truly inspiring speakers and panelists will be ready to provide some professional and thought-provoking discussion throughout our community! +1 WISDOM!
Gaming Tournaments will, of course, return thanks to our awesome Capitol Fight District crew! This will include Street Fighter and more! Stay tuned for the official list very soon!
There will also be an awesome lineup of game-themed vendors ready to show their crafts on display for sale!
Finally, we will be incorporating something new to expand our efforts even MORE: INDEPENDENT FILM DEVELOPERS! More on this addition soon!
What is Sacramento Indie Arcade:
Since 2007, our active game developer community has fostered growth of game development in Sacramento. In April 2014, Nascent Games & IGDA Sacramento decided it was time to show the region and the world what is being created in California’s capital city. A reason to CELEBRATE these milestones from our respective developers! Through celebration, education and inspiration, the inaugural Sacramento Indie Arcade was born!
