In this special SWE Diverse Episode for Black History Month, Louvere-Walker Hannon, co-leader of the African American Affinity Group for the Society of Women Engineers sits down with Debra Coleman, co-lead of the SWE African-American Affinity Group and the collegiate development lead for FY22. Debra is also a real time embedded software engineer at the Boeing Company in Seattle. Debra talks about what building a community means to her and how being a black engineer impacts the way she leads in her community. Listen as she delves into her beginnings as an engineer in her school MESA program and how her experiences led her to be who she is now.
Guest: Debra Coleman
Debra L Coleman is a real time embedded software engineer at The Boeing Company in Seattle, WA where she supports many organizations including propulsion, flight deck, seats and lavatories. She is a graduate of Boston University where she received a BS in Electrical Engineering and a MS in Computer Information Systems, as well as the University of Washington where she received a MS in Electrical Engineering. Debra has served as the VP of Outreach for SWE PNW and is currently the co-lead and collegiate lead of the SWE African American Affinity Group. Debra loves gardening, maker projects, arts and crafts and cooking.
Host: Louvere Hannon-Walker
Louvere Walker-Hannon is a MathWorks Application Engineering Senior Team Lead, who provides technical guidance and strategic direction to a team of Application Engineers. She has a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering and a master’s degree in Geographic Information Technology with a specialization in Remote Sensing. Louvere has presented and continues to present at several STEM related conferences on various topics and is an active STEM advocate. She is also a recent recipient of the SWE WE Local 2022 Engaged Advocate Award which honors individuals who contributed to the advancement or acceptance of women in engineering. Louvere is a Co-Lead of the SWE African-American Affinity Group and the Professional Development Lead of the SWE Latinos Affinity Group for FY22. In her spare time, she enjoys volunteering, advocating for STEM Youth outreach for underrepresented groups in STEM, and helping as many people as possible via her work and volunteerism.
