Photos, videos, and news will be added to this page by our media team as we receive them. Thank you for joining us at Florida’s Largest Celebration of International Women’s Day!
Female Founders Forum Photos, Video, and News
Christine Caven and Anne Schindler Discuss the PS27 Foundation on NPR
Christine Caven, PS27 Director of Business Development and Communications, and Anne Schindler, Host of WJCT First Coast Connect, discuss the PS27 Foundation on NPR.
The PS27 Female Founders Forum presented by VyStar is the Largest Celebration of International Women's Day in Florida. This will be the first Keynote Speaker in Jacksonville who is an AI Founder; Shelia Marcelo is the Founder of Care.com and is launching a new company, Ohai.ai, which created an AI-powered virtual assistant for families. She is also one of the most accomplished women in tech. Marcelo is one of less than 30 women to take a company all the way from Founder to IPO.
The crowd favorite is the live pitch competition - six founders will pitch live on stage for a $250,000 capital investment from PS27, and the winner will go through due diligence with the PS27 team.
The audience of founders, local leaders, and students will hear stories of resilience from local founders on the She Kept Going panel featuring Megan Hayward, Demika Jackson, and Rebecca Smith.
This year's International Women's Day theme is Inspire Inclusion. For every post on social media during the event, we will donate $1 to Girls Who Code to close the gender gap in technology. A handful of tickets are still available for people who would like to attend at PS27Foundation.org.
Female Founders Forum Featured on First Coast News
PS27 is hosting the first-ever artificial intelligence Keynote Speaker in Jacksonville at the Female Founders Forum presented by VyStar Credit Union. Learn more from Christine Caven, PS27 Director of Business Development and Communications, in the segment below on First Coast Living.
PS27 Female Founders Forum Presented by VyStar Credit Union Announces Care.com Founder as Keynote Speaker
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Feb 5, 2024 – PS27 is pleased to announce Sheila Lirio Marcelo, Co-founder of Ohai.ai and founder and former CEO of Care.com, as the keynote speaker at the PS27 Female Founders Forum. Marcelo is one of fewer than 30 women ever to lead a startup company to an IPO. The event takes place on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2024, at the University of North Florida. The program also includes a pitch competition where five founders compete live on stage for a $250,000* capital investment.
As a Filipino-American and one of the most accomplished women in tech, Marcelo will share her journey of building Care.com into a $500 million company and creating her new venture Ohai.ai, a platform leveraging AI to revolutionize the approach to caregiving and improve the lives of families.
“Balancing family and career has been an ongoing challenge in my life,” said Lirio Marcelo, Co-founder and CEO of Ohai.ai. “These experiences inspired me to establish Care.com with an exceptional team, but we still couldn't fully address the cognitive burdens that families face, impacting their overall well-being, their family’s nutrition, and the daily stress that puts a strain on the entire family’s mental health. Now, with Ohai.ai, my commitment to making a positive impact on families globally has never been stronger. I look forward to sharing my journey with the PS27 Female Founders Forum on such a special day honoring the achievements of women.”
The PS27 Female Founders Forum is presented by VyStar Credit Union.
“VyStar is honored to serve as the presenting sponsor for the PS27 Female Founders Forum to celebrate International Women’s Day,” said VyStar Chief Human Resources Officer, Kawanza Humphrey. “We are proud to have a diverse workforce at our credit union and support visionary women who are shaping industries, driving innovation, and redefining success.”
The largest celebration of International Women’s Day in Florida, the PS27 Female Founders Forum brings together entrepreneurs, business leaders, and students to be inspired by remarkable women on stage who have achieved their dreams. To learn more about the PS27 Female Founders Forum and get tickets, visit ps27foundation.org.
About PS27 Foundation
PS27 Foundation provides educational resources to early-stage companies and startups to help them achieve sustainable growth. We deliver training and education through classroom lessons, company site visits, comprehensive mentoring, and distance learning. We are interested in working with all founders, including those who may be disabled, veterans, women, and people of color.
Advanced techniques and equipment are used to enable an environment that promotes learning and collaboration. PS27 Foundation is constantly working to form strategic partnerships with local and national organizations and the government to create jobs and improve the community. For more information, visit ps27foundation.org, and follow us on LinkedIn.
*All investments are subject to due diligence.
About VyStar
VyStar Credit Union is the second-largest credit union headquartered in Florida, with 75 branches and now serves more than 925,000 members with assets of over $13.5 billion. VyStar is the largest mortgage lender in Northeast Florida and a major employer in the region with over 2,000 employees across the communities it serves. VyStar membership is open to everyone who lives or works in the 49 contiguous counties of Central to North Florida, 29 Georgia counties, and past and present military members and their families all over the world. For more information, visit vystarcu.org, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Veteran Founders Forum Photos and Press
Tech Tuesday: PS27 Veteran Founders Forum
In this week's Tech Tuesday for WCJB TV20, UF Innovate's Melanie Morón speaks with Laurence Andrews from Santa Fe College's CIED about the Veteran Founders Forum on November 2, co-sponsored by the PS27 Foundation. The all-day event offers classes and resources for veterans in their pursuit of a business. Veterans, active military, and their spouses should attend to learn digital marketing, business finance, and sales in this unique hands-on workshop. To register, go to https://ps27foundation.org/.
Special thanks to SCAD Media for co-sponsoring and producing the segment.
Black Founders Forum Headshots
Black Founders Forum Photos & Press
This page will be updated with photos, video, and press as we receive them from our media team.
