FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DEAFCYBERCON WEBINAR SERIES LAUNCHED TO INCREASE ACCESS TO CYBERSECURITY CAREERS FOR DEAF WOMEN

Washington, DC (September 20, 2022): We are proud to announce, in partnership with GET Cities DC, to announce the launch of the DEAFCYBERCON webinar program, a five-part series designed to increase awareness of the need for diversity and accessibility for deaf women in cybersecurity.

DEAFCYBERCON was created by Angela Dingle, President and CEO of Ex Nihilo Management, after recognizing the urgent need for greater representation in the field of cybersecurity and the general lack of accessibility in the industry for deaf employees. Although women make up 51% of the U.S. population, only 25% of cybersecurity roles are held by women and only 50.5% of deaf women are in the workforce at all. Meanwhile, there are currently more than 500,000 open jobs in cybersecurity.

“Gender bias, misperceptions and a lack of female role models have created barriers for this underutilized pool of resources. We’re doing what we can to break down barriers to entry for deaf women. Cybersecurity is a people problem, not just a technical one. It’s a person that steals your identity, hacks into your computer or launches a ransomware attack. We need a diverse workforce with a variety of skills to solve the problem. You don't need to be a hearing person to work in cybersecurity. As the sibling of two deaf women with successful careers in Government and Healthcare, I saw a huge opportunity to create an equitable pipeline of careers for deaf women in cybersecurity. I want to redefine the future for deaf women in cybersecurity. DEAFCYBERCON will make this happen.” says Angela Dingle.

The webinar series will consist of five sessions – hosted by Ex Nihilo and supported by GET Cities – designed to engage deaf women, hiring managers, thought leaders in cybersecurity, research partners, collaborators, and government entities. The series will run from October 2022 to January 2023 and participants will be sourced via a direct referral from partner organizations.

American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters will be provided for each webinar. All registered participants will be granted access to the DEAFCYBERCON online community to encourage collaboration, communication and information sharing. Hiring managers have the opportunity to post job openings, upcoming events and industry knowledge. The ultimate goal of DEAFCYBERCON is to increase the net job growth rate for full- and part- time positions for deaf women in cybersecurity.

GET Cities DC is investing in this initiative to promote gender and racial equity in tech by working to increase the number and proportion of deaf women of color hired into in-demand cybersecurity roles.

“Our commitment to transforming the culture of the tech industry extends far beyond our efforts to support women, trans and nonbinary people,” said Ayanna Smith, Managing Director of GET Cities (DC). “When we learned about the challenges deaf tech students face obtaining internships and full-time employment, we jumped at the opportunity to collaborate with Ex Nihilo Management to create a job placement program for Gallaudet University.”

“Our mission at GET Cities is to transform the culture of the tech industry by creating diverse and inclusive environments for all marginalized communities. That’s why we’re thrilled to collaborate with Ex Nihilo Management on DEAFCYBERCON,” said Ayanna Smith, Managing Director of GET Cities DC. “We know that a diverse workforce is critical to the effectiveness of cybersecurity initiatives, and deaf women – an often overlooked talent pool – can offer their own unique perspectives and disruptive ways of thinking to push the industry forward.

About DEAFCYBERCON:

DEAFCYBERCON is an online community, collaborative environment and mobile app where deaf women explore, identify, and excel in careers in cybersecurity. We feature tailored content, bootcamps, conferences, internships, career fairs, and access to mentors. Learn more about DEAFCYBERCON at www.deafcybercon.us/. To register for the webinar visit https://bit.ly/3eN67YH.

About GET Cities:

GET Cities, led by SecondMuse Foundation and Break Through Tech in partnership with Pivotal Ventures, is an initiative designed to accelerate the representation and leadership of women, transgender, and non-binary people in tech through the development of inclusive tech hubs across the United States.

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