Name:Vanessa Jones

Bio:

Vanessa Jones is a Professional Learning Manager for the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA). Vanessa was a 2021-2022 CSTA Equity Fellow and now supports and manages the Equity Fellow Alumni Network. Vanessa develops and supports a series of equity-focused online PD courses that positively impact teacher practice in computer science.

Prior to joining CSTA, she was a Technology Design Coach for the Austin Independent School District in Austin, TX, where she worked at the district level helping to implement and facilitate blended and personalized technology integrated learning experiences. She is a facilitator for Code.org’s CS Fundamentals and CS Discoveries programs and has trained hundreds of teachers in the basics of computer science. Vanessa is an online facilitator and course designer for the University of Texas at Austin -Expanding Pathways in Computing (EPIC) and has helped redesign the course Strategies for Effective and Inclusive Computer Science Teaching. Vanessa was a CS for All Teachers Ambassador and co-facilitated a CS equity and access group. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, earned her master’s degree from North Texas University, and has taught in grades 3–6.

In her free time, she loves to spend time with her fur children Simba Marley and Marlo-Jaxson Jones. She loves to cruise around the world experiencing different cultures and foods.

Country:United States

Affiliation:Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA)

Research interests:Machine Learning, robotics, equity, inclusion, diversity, idenity