Francella Ochillo, Director, Office of Public Engagement, NTIA
Francella Ochillo is an attorney and public interest advocate who works to ensure that all residents benefit from advances in technology. Before serving as the Director of the Office of Public Engagement at NTIA, she was detailed to Energy and Commerce's Innovation, Data, and Commerce Subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives through her fellowship at Georgetown University.
During Francella's tenure as executive director of Next Century Cities, she was a champion for digital equity, centering it as a foundational principle in broadband program development. At the National Hispanic Media Coalition, Francella partnered with government officials and industry stakeholders to improve digital opportunities for Hispanic and Latino communities nationwide. These posts informed Francella's research publications which examine how digital inequities exacerbate other societal inequalities and cause a ripple effect in local and state economies.
Focused on expanding who creates technology, Francella has served on grant selection committees, infused community-based perspectives into federal workgroups, and orchestrated campaigns to advance consumer-focused technology policies in federal, state, and local government proceedings.
Gilbert Resendez, Federal Program Officer, BEAD & Digital Equity Programs, NTIA
Gilbert Resendez joined the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in July 2019 and is a federal program officer (FPO) with for the District of Columbia. In this role, Gilbert coordinates partnerships and outreach with the District of Columbia and local governments, community groups, and other entities with a vested interest on NTIA’s high-speed internet grant programs and policy issues. In this role, Gilbert works with District of Columbia Government and community stakeholder groups to ensure comprehensive engagement from all stakeholders in the state on the high-speed internet planning and funding process.
Prior to NTIA, Gilbert worked as a legal assistant helping clients and community foundations with estate planning and business issues.
Gilbert earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management from the University of Portland. He also received his Master of Science in Public Policy & Management at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy. At Carnegie Mellon, he specialized his studies in technology and information policy.
Ronnie Hammond, Director, Office of Statewide Broadband, Maryland
Ronnie is a highly accomplished professional with a commitment to enhancing connectivity and digital equity. With a decade-long career spanning both the private and public sectors, Ronnie has been a driving force in Diversity & Equity initiatives. In 2019, he transitioned to the Office of Rural Broadband as a Program Manager, dedicated to ensuring that all Maryland residents have access to reliable high-speed internet.
In his current role as Director of the Maryland Office of Statewide Broadband, Ronnie played a pivotal role in facilitating over $300 million in grants to address broadband gaps and close the digital divide. His leadership has been instrumental in implementing Digital Equity initiatives at a broad scale, resulting in more than 140,000 households gaining access to affordability measures, devices, or skills training. Ronnie's unwavering commitment to bridging the digital divide has left an indelible mark on Maryland's efforts to create a more connected and equitable future.
Edwin Canizalez, Program Manager- Policy and Legislation, LULAC
Edwin Canizalez serves as Program Manager, Policy and Legislation at LULAC . Canizalez is a results-driven professional with a 20+ years successful leadership track record. Canizalez has a history of program management in equal access matters for diverse populations including linguistic minorities and people with disabilities. His experience extends to multinational, government, non-profit, consulting, start-up, and publicly held business environments.
Prior to joining LULAC, he was the CEO at Prospects Sports Solutions, a sports management company offering strategic planning and acquisition services to professional sporting clubs in Europe -where he would spend 50% of the year working- with budgets between €10M-€250M.
He also served as COO at TASH, a human rights organization for people with severe disabilities. He developed the logic model to implement a national training and technical assistance center to improve competitive employment outcomes and college enrollment for transition age youth and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and to increase collaboration amongst government state agencies, transition professionals, employers and direct service providers to increase integrated employment and decrease shelter work in 8 states. This plan resulted in a $2M award from the US Department of Health and Human Services. Canizalez has managed quality control and contract compliance for a number of government projects ($100M) for DOJ, DHS, and FBI to name a few.
He implemented the Court Interpreter Certification program while working at the Nevada Supreme Court, Administrative Office of the Courts . Furthermore, he helped in the implementation of equal access initiatives in criminal courts at the State level in Hawaii, and Vermont.
Canizalez has worked in U.S. Department of Education funded projects promoting parental involvement and his initiatives have been adopted in several states. He has served as trainer and panelist at the National Judicial College in matters of equal access and ethics. He is a polyglot, fluent in four languages, and a former language teacher in Long Island, NY, Roslyn, Virginia, Washington, DC, and Las Vegas (NV).