CSTA New England is proud to have Dr. K. Emma Knowland and David Delmar Senties join us in November as keynote speakers. Dr. K Emma Knowland will speak in the morning and David Delmar Senties will speak during the lunch keynote session.
Dr. K. Emma Knowland is a Program Manager and Program Scientist in the Earth Science Division at NASA Headquarters, where she leads Tropospheric Composition research and serves as Program Scientist for key atmospheric missions and networks, including TEMPO, SAGE III/ISS, and MAIA. With a Ph.D. in Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences from the University of Edinburgh, her extensive research background focuses on atmospheric composition modeling, data assimilation, and trace gas transport. Prior to joining NASA HQ in 2025, she spent nearly a decade as a research scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, most notably leading the development and transition of NASA's GEOS-CF air quality forecast system from research to operational production. This unique combination of research excellence and operational experience positions her to strategically guide NASA's tropospheric composition portfolio and integrated observing systems.
Dr. K. Emma Knowland is a Program Manager and Program Scientist at NASA Headquarters, but her journey began right here in Maine as a 2002 graduate of South Portland High School. After earning her BSc and MSc from McGill University and her Ph.D. from the University of Edinburgh, she spent nearly a decade as a research scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center leading air quality forecasting initiatives. In her current role at NASA HQ, she oversees the Tropospheric Composition research program and serves as Program Scientist for multiple key Earth science missions (including TEMPO, SAGE III/ISS, DSCOVR EPIC, and MAIA). Through her leadership, Dr. Knowland guides the integrated observing systems—spanning satellite, airborne, and ground-based data—that are fundamental to understanding global atmospheric chemistry and air quality.
David Delmar Sentíes (sen-TEE-ess) founded Resilient Coders back in 2014, in Boston. It's a first-of-its kind free and stipended coding bootcamp that trains people of color from low-income communities for high growth careers as software engineers, and connects them with full time jobs. He scaled the organization to other cities beyond Boston. At the end of 2022, he hired his successor, and stepped down as RC's Executive Director, to focus first on becoming a dad, then on promoting a new book with Beacon Press called What We Build With Power: The fight for economic justice in tech. These days, he's shifted his attention to Artificial Intelligence and its impact on the workforce, as a board member at Resilient Coders, as an Executive in Residence at Jobs for the Future, and as a consultant and advisor to mission-based organizations. He lives another two and a half hours further north of here in Downeast Maine.