Fireside Chat with Caroline Simmons, Mayor of Stamford

575 Pacific Street,Stamford CT 06902

15 December, 2021

Description

Join Stamford's first female Mayor, former State Rep Caroline Simmons for a discussion on the future and growth of the city and region! TechHub Executive Fireside SeriesJoin TechHub by the Stamford Partnership for an intimate fireside chat with Stamford's new mayor, Caroline Simmons. Caroline will share her thoughts on innovation, entrepreneurship, tech, and workforce development. The fireside chat portion will be pre- and proceeded by fun and festive networking and refreshments. Your ticket includes event admission, refreshments, and a drink ticket (ages 21+). AGENDA Doors open @ 6:00pmFireside Chat @ 6:45 - 7:30pmNetworking and Socializing @ 7:30pm and beyond!Thank you to our event sponsor: George Comfort & Sons, Inc. Thank you to our TechHub program sponsors: StamfordNext, CT Next, UCONN, Half Full Brewery, and CSCU. If you would like a need-based complimentary ticket please contact us through the 'contact organizer' feature of Eventbrite. About Caroline Simmons Prior to being elected as Mayor, Caroline served as the State Representative for the 144th District in Stamford. Since she was first elected to public office in 2014, she has been a champion for Stamford schools, small businesses, public safety, our environment, transportation, reducing racial and economic inequities, and improving quality of life and making Stamford more affordable. During her time as a State Representative, she served as co-chair of the Commerce Committee and successfully introduced, led debate, and helped pass over 16 bipartisan business bills. She is a passionate advocate for women and minority-owned businesses and has helped pass legislation to provide more grants and access to capital to entrepreneurs, startups, and to support small business and job growth across Connecticut. She also served as a member of the Higher Education and Employment and Human Services Committees, and was previously a member of the Public Safety and Security Committee. In 2015, she was awarded the Police Chiefs’ Legislator of the Year Award and in 2017, she received the NARAL Pro Choice Connecticut Legislative Champions Award. Caroline also served on the bi-partisan Young Legislators’ and Women’s Caucuses. Caroline also works with Yale University at Elevate: A Policy Lab to Elevate Mental Health and Disrupt Poverty, which is based out of the Yale School of Medicine, where she focuses on maternal mental health policies to help families thrive. Prior to this, she worked at the Women’s Business Development Council in Stamford where she helped provide entrepreneurial, financial, and professional development training programs for women in Connecticut. She serves on the Women's Business Development Council's board and on the Executive Committee Board of the Stamford Partnership. She also served as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Public Policy at Wesleyan University, where she taught a class on state and local government. Prior to serving in the General Assembly, Caroline worked at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for four and a half years. At DHS, Caroline served as a Special Assistant in the Office of the Secretary, a Policy Analyst in the Office of the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia, and as a Director of Special Projects in the Counterterrorism Coordinator’s Office at Homeland Security. In these roles, Caroline provided support for DHS’s domestic and international counterterrorism programs and helped support DHS’s programs and budget for its homeland security team in Kabul, Afghanistan, and she traveled to Kabul multiple times in connection with this work. Caroline also worked to enhance the Department’s countering violent extremism and active shooter awareness and response training for state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement officers. Before this, Caroline interned at the U.S. Department of State for the Middle East Partnership Initiative within the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, where she assisted with economic empowerment programs in the Middle East. Caroline has a BA in Government from Harvard University (2008) and an MA in Middle East Studies (2011) from the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. Caroline also studied at the American University in Cairo, Egypt and the Arabic Language Institute in Fez, Morocco. Caroline and her husband Art Linares live in Stamford and are the proud parents of two sons Teddy & Jack. Website: https://stamfordpartnership.org/organizer/techhub-by-the-stamford-partnership/