Maker Ed Announces New Executive Director Warren “Trey” Lathe

PRESS RELEASE

Maker Ed Announces New Executive Director Warren “Trey” Lathe

Co-Founder of OpenHelix to Lead Maker Ed’s Team

Oakland, Calif., October 23, 2014

Maker Ed is thrilled to announce its new Executive Director Dr. Warren “Trey” Lathe. Trey is a business leader and scientist with a passion for making.

Trey has an incredible breadth of experience that will allow him to continue to expand the impact of Maker Ed’s work. Trey received his Ph.D. in molecular biology in 1997, and after four years of research at a lab in Germany, he started the company OpenHelix with two others. OpenHelix provides genomics training to scientists to meet the demand of the rapidly changing field of biology. Trey and his partners sold the company this year.

In 2012, Trey became an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow at that National Science Foundation. In this role he worked in the Computer and Information Science and Engineering directorate supporting programs to broaden participation of women and underrepresented minorities in the computer and technology fields. As a AAAS Fellow, Trey co-founded MOOCs, Making, Mobile and other Disruptive Technologies in Education (MaDTECHEd), a group to explore the challenges and promises of using technology to broaden access and participation in STEM. As part of this group, Trey developed and led an afterschool program for refugee youth that used making activities––from creating ecospheres to 3-D printing and making their own political systems.

Additionally, Trey has previous experience working directly with Maker Ed for two maker events that MaDTECHEd organized in June 2014. Trey served as a committee member for both the first D.C. Mini-Maker Faire and the “Making Education Great” symposium that sought to bring educators, makers, and government agencies together to discuss the power of making in education.

Trey shares, “I am honored and excited to be taking the position of Executive Director of Maker Ed! Maker Ed has a passionate team, excellent projects, and a supportive board, and I’m excited to work with them to bring the joy of discovery to every child. Maker Ed is poised to be a national thought leader at a time when the nation and our communities are remembering that creating, making, and trying things out are what make learning exciting and fun. I thank Dale Dougherty for his vision, and Lisa Regalla for her excellent leadership during this interim period. Their vision and leadership has cleared the path for Maker Ed to grow and fulfill its motto: ‘Every Child a Maker.’ Working with Dale, Lisa, the staff, and board, we will make that happen.”

We know that under Trey’s leadership, Maker Ed will continue its important role as the national leader for making in education.