“As you grow older, you discover you have 2 hands. One for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” — Audrey Hepburn
Chairman of the Board & Founder, Heather Holst-Knudsen
Heather is located in Sarasota, FL and is passionate about empowering tomorrow's leaders today and activating them in entrepreneurship whether as a founder of a company or a rockstar performer for an employer. Heather is VP of Sales at Feathr, the event personalization platform and is also CEO & Founder, HatchPad, a social learning network and collaboration platform for student entrepreneurs and Founder and Chairman of the Board of KidBacker Foundation for Entrepreneurship. Heather was previously the President and Founder of Manufacturing Enterprise Communications, a B2B eMedia company that connected CXOs in manufacturing with senior leadership in technology. She led and oversaw the strategic direction and growth of a portfolio that included executive level events, peer-based leadership communities, awards programs, magazines, and websites.
Heather has a BSLL from Georgetown University and an Executive Masters in Publishing from New York University.
Treasurer and Vice Chairman, Renee Farmer
Renee is located in Sarasota, FL and is Co-Founder and President at Rainmaker Capital Funding, a consulting company focused on healthcare and technology. Renee is also a Managing Director at Oberon Securities, a broker-dealer firm in NYC. Renee was a Vice President in Investment Management at Goldman, Sachs & Co. working with ultra-high net worth investors on their private portfolios. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs., Renee spent 10 years in asset management and business development. She served as Senior General Manager with Westfield Group, a Real Estate Investment Trust that owns and manages regional shopping centers in the US and internationally. Renee earned her EMBA at Georgetown University, and received a BA with Honors from the University of South Florida. She is on the Board of Trustees of Forty Carrots and serves with the BIG initiative of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation. Renee is on the Board of Advisors for Kidbacker, LLC as well as the University of South Florida Center of Entrepreneurship.
Renee has also been active with the Tampa Museum of Art, Hands on Suncoast, and Junior Achievement.
Board Member, Danielle Strachman
Danielle Strachman is located in Silicon Valley, CA, and is a General Partner of 1517 Fund, a venture capital firm that invests in startups run by young founders. 1517 supports teams with grants, pre-seed, and seed funding for technology startups. 1517 Fund focuses on makers, hackers, and scientists interested in working outside tracked institutions because they believe that the path geared towards higher education is not for all. 1517 Fund motivates people to work on what they’re passionate about, to learn by doing, and to create new technologies. In 2010, during the founding of the Thiel Fellowship, Danielle joined to lead the design and operations. She is the visionary behind the Thiel Summit series that has been attended by some 2000 young entrepreneurs. Previous to her work with Peter Thiel, Danielle founded and directed Innovations Academy in San Diego, a K-8 charter school serving 350 students, with a focus on student- led project based learning and other alternative programs.
KidBacker Foundation for Entrepreneurship Student Ambassadors
US Ambassador Team
Domenic Aluise
ambassador
Founder, RDM Innovation Freshman University of Florida Brandenton, FL