Dr. Allison Scott is the CEO of the Kapor Foundation, which focuses at the intersection of racial justice and technology and works to remove barriers in access and opportunity, such that the promise and potential of technology can be harnessed to create a more equitable future. In the current moment, the rapid advancements in AI and technology and its impact on all sectors requires urgent action to ensure we minimize harm and maximize potential for good.
For nearly 20 years, the Foundation has been a recognized leader in the movement to transform the technology ecosystem by expanding access to K-12 computer science education and pathways to technology jobs, advocating for increased diversity within tech companies and VC firms, and advancing equitable technology policy. Under her leadership, the Kapor Foundation publishes research on disparities in the technology pipeline, deploys strategic grants to nonprofit organizations and initiatives, and invests in tech entrepreneurs and venture funds aiming to utilize technology to close equity gaps across sectors.
Dr. Scott has been a Principal Investigator on multiple national grants to expand access to computer science education, implement frameworks for culturally responsive-sustaining computing, and build a field of scholarship on women of color in computing. In her previous role as the Chief Research Officer, Dr. Scott authored foundational research on inequity in CS education, disparities in the tech sector, the landscape of women of color in computing, and effective interventions for increasing participation of marginalized groups in computing disciplines. Dr. Scott has also been a member of multiple advisory boards, committees, and coalitions, including the FCC Advisory Committee on Diversity and Digital Empowerment and the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Mathematics Committee for Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech, the SNAP Catalyze Tech Working Group, and the CSforCalifornia coalition.
Previous positions included: Chief Research Officer at the Kapor Center; Program Leader for the National Institutes of Health’s Enhancing the Diversity of the Biomedical Workforce Initiative; Director of Research and Evaluation for the Level Playing Field Institute, and Data Analyst for the Education Trust-West. Dr. Scott holds a Ph.D. in Education from the University of California, Berkeley and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Hampton University.