Organizer of Diversity & Inclusion Event Series: Recruiting & Retention

Time and time again, research has indicated that a diverse workforce can introduce a broad array of perspectives into an organization and can yield a significant number of additional benefits including increased employee engagement, more informed and creative decision-making, increased innovation, greater productivity, and decreased employee turnover. Despite this, entities in the technology policy space still struggle to integrate diversity and inclusion in their workplaces. Join the Internet Law and Policy Foundry for a virtual panel discussion on how tech policy organizations can hire and build diverse workforces, establish workplace cultures that promote an inclusive environment, and address issues of implicit and explicit bias.

Chanelle Hardy

Chanelle Hardy is an attorney and public policy expert dedicated to advancing policies that promote economic growth, opportunity and justice. She is a member of the Public Policy team at Google, focusing on Strategic Outreach and External Partnerships. Most recently, she had the honor to serve as Chief of Staff to Federal Communications Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, the first woman to serve as Commission Chair and the only African American currently on the dais.Before that she led the Washington Bureau of the National Urban League – the nation’s oldest civil rights and urban advocacy organization; was Counsel and Chief of Staff to former US Congressman Artur Davis; and served as an FTC staff attorney, Fellow and Counsel at Consumers Union, and fifth grade teacher.

Marie Sylla-Dixon

Marie Sylla-Dixon is Vice President of Federal Government and External Affairs for T-Mobile US, where she is responsible for shaping and advancing the company’s public policy agenda. She leads the team responsible for increasing visibility and awareness of the brand among external partners in the community and NGOs to further shared policy issues, including 5G deployment, internet governance, privacy and broadband adoption. Previously, Sylla-Dixon was Vice-President of Government Relations for Verizon Communications.

Sylla-Dixon was appointed to serve on the Federal Communications Commission’s Advisory Committee on Diversity and Digital Empowerment, and serves on T-Mobile’s internal Diversity and Inclusion Executive Leadership Council. She also sits on the board of City Year Washington DC and the National Urban League’s Policy Solutions Council.

Sylla-Dixon has been awarded the two highest honors in her company, the T-Mobilizer and the Peak Award for overcoming a major regulatory barrier to advance the company’s business. A recipient of the Most Influential and Inspiring Leadership Award by The Rainbow Push Coalition, Sylla-Dixon holds a Juris Doctor degree from Catholic University Law School and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Hampton University.

Tsion Tesfaye

Tsion Tesfaye is a Communications Justice Fellow at Public Knowledge where she is focused on a project to promote diversity in the technology policy sector. Prior to joining Public Knowledge, Tsion was the coordinator for CeasefirePA’s Motivating Young Citizens project where she taught students about community organizing and the legislative process.

Tsion received her Master’s degree in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University and her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Virginia Commonwealth University. Tsion is originally from Richmond, VA, enjoys hiking, and is learning to appreciate baseball.

Moderator - April Jones

April Jones serves as Counsel and Deputy Legislative Director to U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, advising her on issues within the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee portfolio, which include telecommunications, privacy, consumer protection, transportation, and aviation policy. Prior to this role, Ms. Jones held positions at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as an attorney advisor in the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau and as a Special Advisor to former FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn. In addition, Ms. Jones worked as a Political Organizer on Hillary Clinton’s 2016 Presidential campaign and as an attorney at an antitrust litigation boutique law firm in DC. Ms. Jones received her J.D. from The George Washington University School of Law, where she also completed an International Human Rights Law Program at the University of Oxford. Ms. Jones received her undergraduate degree from the University of Southern California.