Supporting Innovation & Social Mobility through Maker Ecosystems

Colin has led social entrepreneurial efforts in the education equity field for over 10 years. This experience includes a leadership role in the launch of US2020 in 2013 in partnership with the White House Office and Science Technology Policy, ultimately serving as Executive Director of "Makers + Mentors Network" (rebrand of US2020). He is now serving as the CEO and co-founder of MakerUSA, which is incubated within the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE). Our goal at MakerUSA is to help communities build stronger pathways for underserved students into making-related careers and entrepreneurship. His volunteer leadership roles have included serving as a three-term president of a regional chamber of commerce and elected school-board official. He is deeply committed to the belief that our collective future will be determined by our ability to empower the ideas and solutions of all of us.

Dr. Stephanie Santoso is the Co-Founder and President of MakerUSA, which helps communities build stronger pathways for underserved students into making-related careers and entrepreneurship through talent and capacity. From 2014-2016, Stephanie served as the first Senior Advisor for Making at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, where she helped develop President Obama’s Nation of Makers initiative, to broaden access to the Maker Movement. Stephanie has helped grow 20+ local and regional ecosystems to support STEM and maker-centered learning across the U.S. through her previous role as Managing Director for Citizen Schools’ Makers + Mentors Network and has advised foundations on maker education, makerspaces and innovation. Stephanie has a Ph.D. in Information Science from Cornell University, where her research focused on the social impact of democratizing 3D printing. As a maker, Stephanie sews, experiments with 3D printing and enjoys making handmade toys for her 2 year old son.

Kimberly Hunter is the Project Director for Mantles and Makers. She brings experience as a librarian, customer service professional, and a youth education advocate.  Kimberly’s broad experience as an advocate includes serving as a houseparent for an international boarding school, a Children’s Defense Fund trainee, and several volunteer roles with The Salvation Army, The Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, and church youth groups.   

Kimberly holds a B.A. in Comparative Religion from Miami University of Ohio and a Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science from Kent State University. As a student at KSU, her studies focused on website creation and accessibility, storage and retrieval of digital information, cultural heritage informatics, and copyrighting. 

Kimberly’s library career has focused on computer and technology support and accessibility to makerspace tools and equipment. At Southern Methodist University (SMU), she was Access Services Manager, where she earned her certification in a library management system (LMS). Additionally, she supervised and mentored four staff members and up to 14 U.S. and international students. Kimberly  served on 11 different university committees at the request of University leadership. She is most proud of her involvement with the SMU Libraries Accessibility & Disability Committee and Bridwell Library’s Administrative Council. 

Kimberly’s passion for her new position in non-profit is grounded in the belief that education, information, and technology should be accessible to all - regardless of age, abilities or zip code. And she is looking forward to serving the greater purpose of bringing makerspace technology to everyone.