Theme: The Comfort Zone

On April 8th we will explore how to make the uncomfortable comfortable, and how the act of exploring new and foreign ideas can help us to grow and improve our community.

Hoag Student Center
University of North Georgia 82 College Circle
Dahlonega, Georgia, 30597
United States

Bryson Payne

Author and Computer Science Professor

Dr. Bryson Payne is the founding Director of the Center for Cyber Operations Education at the University of North Georgia, an NSA Center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense. He is a tenured professor of computer science at UNG, where he has taught aspiring coders since 1998, and he enjoys working with K-12 schools worldwide to promote computer science education. Dr. Payne is the best-selling author of Teach Your Kids to Code: A Parent-Friendly Guide to Python Programming (2015, No Starch Press), now published in six languages (Russian, Chinese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, and English). His new book, Learn Java the Easy Way (2017, No Starch Press) is already translated into three languages, and he’s a popular online instructor with over 25,000 students from more than 150 countries, including his top-rated Udemy course, Real-World Ethical Hacking (2017). Dr. Payne lives north of Atlanta, Georgia, with his wife, Bev, two sons, Alex and Max, and three cats, Leo, Rocky and Pixel.

Jackie Martin

CEO/Founder of A Matter of Motivation

Jackie Martin believes that growth, achievement, and personal success are all a matter of motivation, so she designed her company, A Matter of Motivation (AMOM), to inspire others to have more, do more, and be more. Jackie has been providing exceptional training, coaching, masterminds, and presentations for organizations across the world for more than 20 years. Jackie’s goal is to help connect leaders and individuals with their purpose and passion so they can fall in love with what they do. Jackie considers herself a leadership junkie, serial entrepreneur, and a life-long learner. She received her Bachelor of Journalism from the renowned Missouri School of Journalism. She’s also a Professional Speaker with the National Speakers Association, a John Maxwell Certified Leadership trainer, a Certified Change Cycle expert, and a Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) Practitioner.

Juan Moore

Author and Co-director of The Future C.E.O Male Character Development Program

Juan C. Moore, MSW is a public speaker, author, mentor and entrepreneur from Augusta, Georgia. Moore specializes in motivational speaking and has published two books, Change is Progression and Progression is Growth and 25 Letters to My Unborn Child He currently serves as the co-director of the Future C.E.O. Male Character Development Program. Moore received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology from Georgia Southern University and obtained his Master’s Degree in Clinical Social Work from Savannah State University. He is committed to making a difference and reaching new heights in his career as a public speaker and author. Juan travels the country seeking new opportunities to inspire people. Mr. Moore has been honored to be the keynote speaker at several social events, corporations, colleges and universities. Juan lives by the motto "Love the Process" and will stop at nothing to impact every person he encounters.

Kiera Chan

Women's Rights Activist

Kiera Chan is a junior at the University of North Georgia. She is majoring in Sociology with a minor in Gender Studies. She is also an active member of the Honors Program at UNG. She hopes to pursue a Masters in Global Health. She would like to have a career in Non-Profit program management with a focus in Women’s reproductive health issues. She is currently researching the effects of the distribution of menstrual products on school attendance to girls in low income countries. She has presented her research so far at the Georgia Sociological Annual Conference and the Georgia Collegiate Honors Conference. Her hobbies are art and music. She plays viola in the UNG Orchestra. She uses her free time to volunteer at various organizations in the community such as the food pantry. She recently secured an internship at Days for Girls. She plans to go on a Community Development study abroad program this summer in Israel, Thailand, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka. Her passion is helping others.