WHEREAS, Dr. Chad Womack was born and raised in East Mount Airy, Philadelphia. He attended Germantown Friends School and Masterman High School; and
WHEREAS, Currently, Dr. Womack served as the Vice President of National STEM Programs and Tech Initiatives at the UNCF (United Negro College Fund), Dr. Womack has launched many initiatives across the nation and in Philadelphia, his hometown; and
WHEREAS, As Founder for the UNCF iRISE Center for Innovation and Research-Inspired STEM Empowerment, Dr. Womack has organized a diverse group representing public and private sector stakeholders who are equally concerned about the need to establish a more diverse, inclusive and equitable innovation and tech economy in the Greater Philadelphia region. The primary purpose is to sound the alarm on the STEM education and economic crisis facing African Americans and other minoritized and underestimated communities in the Greater Philadelphia region. At his upcoming summit in May of 2024, Dr. Womack is facilitating a process to design a framework for how diverse stakeholders can work together and build scalable solutions
to address the crisis
; and
WHEREAS, In 2017, Dr. Womack and Naomi Housman launched CS4Philly <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cs4philly.org%2F&data=05%7C02%7Canthony.glass%40phila.gov%7Cac8de58f673a40d6647308dc74e8fbf5%7C2046864f68ea497daf34a6629a6cd700%7C0%7C0%7C638513791207508620%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=YQeoNTDcnZBEcU2jBLU3hWd83uv%2BwpYjY1Aj3PXXcxI%3D&reserved=0>
, with a mission to ensure equity and access to high-quality, college- and career-aligned computer science education, for all Philadelphia children. Mayor Kenney served as an honorary chair of CS4Philly along with then Superintendent Hite, and other state, city, and corporate leaders. CS4Philly was launched in response to President Obama's White House CS4All summit calling for cities across the nation to meet this need. For the past five years, CS4Philly has engaged children, teachers, parents, community members, corporate leaders, and higher education in Philadelphia around this mission; and
WHEREAS, As the head of STEM initiatives for the University City Science Center in 2006-2007, Dr. Womack led science education initiatives and secured state funding for Philadelphia students; and
WHEREAS, As a consultant to the School District of Philadelphia, Dr. Womack prepared a first-of-its-kind data analysis and report on the percentage of District school graduates who pursue STEM fields in post-secondary education; and
WHEREAS, The work of Dr. Chad Womack and the United Negro College Fund should be honored and celebrated for their work in the City of Philadelphia; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby honors Dr. Chad Womack and the United Negro College Fund for their work to advance STEM education in the City of Philadelphia.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this Resolution be presented to Dr. Chad Womack as a sign of the admiration and respect of this legislative body.
End