Latinx Heritage Month Talk for GSA

Spoke for the U.S. General Services Administration during Latinx Heritage Month.

Overview

Date & Time
1 pm to 2 pm PT
Wednesday, October 13
Participants
Frances Coronel
Moderator
Pia Zaragoza
Format
50 minutes of chat
10 minutes of Q&A
Icebreakers throughout
Key Topics
Techqueria
Employee Resource Groups
Latinx community & civic techch
Audience Makeup
GSA/TTS/PIF/Center of Excellence
Latinx ERG members
very wide range of backgrounds
~40 in attendance

Bio

Frances Coronel is a software engineer specializing in UI development on the Customer Acquisition Team at Slack where her mission is to make your working life simpler, more pleasant, and more productive.

Outside of Slack, Frances volunteers as the Technology Director and a Board Advisor for Techqueria, a nonprofit that serves the largest global community of Latinx professionals in tech.

Previously acting as the Executive Director, Frances helped Techqueria become the largest global community of Latinx professionals in tech with over 16,000 members and allies and over 7 active city chapters.

Frances has worked in technology since 2015 and entered the nonprofit space in 2019 when she joined Techqueria’s leadership team. Outside of work, Frances enjoys going out and exploring new trails in Inglewood, CA where she lives with her two Corgis and younger sister.

Topics

Intros

5 min - 1:00 to 1:05

LatinX Group Overview (Dahianna)
PIF Overview (Pia)
Frances Coronel Bio (Pia)

Presentation on Techqueria

15 min - 1:05 to 1:20

Overview of Techqueria | Frances Coronel

Topics to touch on
Leadership perspective
Advice on jumping into it
Experience on leading techqueria
ERGs
No Tech for ICE
TTS - open up avenues - professional spectrums - Omar - demystifying a space where Latinx technologists
How Techqueria has been trying to open up avenues - you are needed here, trying to represent
2020 census results
Misconceptions of working in government
Icebreaker: Which communities do you love and why?

Fireside Chat

15 min - 1:20 to 1:35

How have you been celebrating LatinX Heritage month? Any ideas/dreams/vision for future celebrations?
Icebreaker: What holidays do you enjoy celebrating and why?
Intersectional identity
Icebreaker: How would you sum up your identity in a tweet?
What have your experiences been like as a LatinX professional? What are some challenges that you have experienced? How did you overcome it?
Icebreaker: What challenges have you had to overcome in your life and if they didn't kill you, how did they make you stronger?
What have your experiences been like in organizing LatinX ERGs / BRGs?
Fuego ERG Best Practices
Icebreaker: How have you been an ally to other ERGs?
If you had a magic wand, what changes or improvements would you make around the LatinX community in civic tech?

Wrap

5 min - 1:35 to 1:40

Okay Frances, I know we're nearing our time for Q&A. Any final pieces of advice you want folks to take away from this conversation?
If you are underrepresented, take up more space. Speak up more. If you are aware you are someone who listens more and becomes aware of what blind spots you have.

Q&A

20 min - 1:40 to 2:00

Okay let's break for Q&A. Please type into chat any questions you have for Frances or feel to come off of mute and ask your question to her directly

If there's no questions from Q&A

With COVID-19, there's a new way of working now. How has that shifted the way you work and focus on work/life balance?
What is it like being a dog mom to 2 Corgis?
How can someone stay in touch with you?