The BreakLine Arena

Join us in The BreakLine Arena for an intimate conversation with BreakLine Alum, Jay Staples.Jay is a member of the BreakLine Alumni Council, where he played a critical role in the successful launch of Apex, our vertical hyper-focused on closing the diversity gap in tech by helping high-performing people of color pivot into compelling careers within the industry.In this episode, Jay shares deep insights into the value and power of building community within organizations, especially as a member of an underselected group. Upon joining PayPal, Jay became an Employee Resource Group (ERG) Leader for Amplify, an internal organization advocating for Black employees at the company.Before joining PayPal, Jay had a 4.2 GPA in high school and received a full merit-based scholarship to college as a pre-med mathematics major. He is a master of the pivot and ended up graduating summa cum laude with a degree in Intelligence, Security Studies, and Analysis.He then enlisted in the United States Air Force, where he spent 6 years as an Intelligence Analyst, including gathering data for the NSA and deploying to Benghazi, Libya & Greece.Credits: Music for this episode was provided by fellow BreakLine Alum, Gabby Allong, courtesy of Valery Kingdom Records. Featured selections include: Gift, Stuck in My Head (Remix), and Rose.

Join us in The BreakLine Arena for an intimate conversation with BreakLine Alum, Jasmine "Jas" Motupalli.Jas is a member of the BreakLine Alumni Council, where she played a critical role in the successful launch of Apex, our vertical hyper-focused on closing the diversity gap in tech by helping high-performing people of color pivot into compelling careers within the industry.In this episode, Jas shares empowering thoughts surrounding the mental models we carry, as well as how diversity elevates high-performing teams to the next level.Before joining Gusto, Jas graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and served 13 years in the Army including an assignment as a Data Analyst at the Pentagon. Jas deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart.As an Army Officer, she also earned a Master of Science in Operations Research from Georgia Tech prior to returning to West Point as an Assistant Professor of Systems Engineering and the Associate Director of the Center for Leadership and Diversity in STEM.Credits: Music for this episode was provided by fellow BreakLine Alum, Gabby Allong, courtesy of Valery Kingdom Records. Featured selections include: Gift, Stuck in My Head (Remix), and Rose.

Join us in The BreakLine Arena for an intimate conversation with BreakLine Alum, Deon Scott.Deon is a member of the BreakLine Alumni Council, where he played a critical role in the successful launch of Apex, our vertical hyper-focused on closing the diversity gap in tech by helping high-performing people of color pivot into compelling careers within the industry.In this episode, Deon masterfully shares the genesis of his lifetime commitment to service, both in and out of uniform. Deon's love and advocacy for Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs), in particular his alma mater, Hampton University shines through as he talks about the importance of creating pipelines of opportunity.Before joining Google, Deon spent 20 years in the Coast Guard, where he led Hurricane Harvey response efforts, including the safe rescue of more than 7,500 people.Most recently, Deon was hand-selected to assist the Biden/Harris Presidential Transition Team as the Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Policy Lead for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Agency Review.Credits: Music for this episode was provided by fellow BreakLine Alum, Gabby Allong, courtesy of Valery Kingdom Records. Featured selections include: Gift, Stuck in My Head (Remix), and Rose.

Join us in The BreakLine Arena as we share a compelling conversation with Lieutenant General Vince Stewart, former Deputy Commander, United States Cyber Command and 20th Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.In this conversation, Lt. Gen. Stewart shares lessons from his childhood as a first-generation Jamaican immigrant, the importance of mentorship and sponsorship over the course of his 38 years of service in the US Marine Corps, as well as deeper insight into the dichotomy of being a person of color in America.If you have not had the opportunity to read his moving OpEd, it can be found at: https://taskandpurpose.com/opinion/vincent-stewart-racism-black-lives-matter/If you like what you've heard, please subscribe, follow and rate our show. To learn more about BreakLine Education, check us out at breakline.org.

Join us in the BreakLine Arena for a conversation with Dr. Amy Cuddy. We dive into the power of our body language, overcoming imposter syndrome, and roller-skating tricks.  Dr. Amy Cuddy is a social psychologist, bestselling author, award-winning Harvard lecturer, and expert on the behavioral science of power, presence, and prejudice. Cuddy earned her Ph.D. from Princeton University in 2005 and was a professor at Harvard Business School from 2008 to 2017, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management from 2006 to 2008, and Rutgers University from 2005 to 2006. She continues to teach at Harvard Business School in executive education. Her TED talk, “Your body language may shape who you are,” can be found here:  https://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_may_shape_who_you_are?language=en

Join us in the Arena with Baba Shiv. He breaks down how to leverage our physiology in order to make better decisions. Embedded in this episode are tiny tweaks we can all make to our daily lives that can profoundly upgrade our well-being.Baba Shiv has done extensive work on the emotional brain, documenting its powerful role in shaping decisions and experiences. His work includes the application of neuroeconomics to the study and practice of innovation and entrepreneurial leadership in companies, from Silicon Valley startups to Fortune 500 companies, as well as countries including India, Malaysia, and New Zealand. His work has been featured in a variety of media outlets including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, CNN, Economic Times, Fox Business, Financial Times, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and Radio Lab. Baba Shiv teaches courses at Stanford GSB and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford, including “The Frisky Science of the Mind,” “Scaling Design Thinking Globally,” and “Crafting Interventions for Massive Change.”

Join us in The BreakLine Arena for a gripping conversation between General Jim Mattis and Bethany Coates. In this episode, General Mattis delves into his style of servant leadership, and how we as citizens can each step up to help heal the fractures of our nation in pursuit of a more perfect union.James N. Mattis served as the 26th Secretary of Defense. Secretary Mattis enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve at the age of 18, and after graduating from Central Washington University, he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. During his more than four decades in uniform, Secretary Mattis commanded Marines at all levels, from an infantry rifle platoon to a Marine Expeditionary Force. His last role in the U.S. Marine Corps before retiring in 2013, was the Commander of U.S. Central Command, directing military operations of over 200,000 Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Coast Guardsmen, Marines, and Allied Forces across the Middle East. Following his retirement, Secretary Mattis served as the Davies Family Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, specializing in the study of leadership, national security, strategy, innovation, and the effective use of military force. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller, Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead, and the co-editor of the book, Warriors & Citizens: American Views of Our Military. If you like what you've heard, please subscribe, follow and rate our show. To learn more about BreakLine Education, check us out at breakline.org.

Join us in The BreakLine Arena as our Founder & CEO, Bethany Coates, shares the origin story of BreakLine Education - a company hyper-focused on helping high performing veterans, women and people of color pivot into the tech industry.Bethany's story is truly one of the pursuit of happiness - a journey in aligning one's natural gifts, talents, and professional expertise in hopes of altering the course of a societal issue with deeply significant impact - in this case employment outcomes stemming from higher education.This episode reveals the personal courage, unanticipated allyship and deeply held conviction to stay the course which led to the creation of BreakLine Education. Since it's inception in 2016, BreakLine Education has built a robust community and positively impacted the lives of over 1,000 BreakLine alumni, helping them find compelling careers at over 50 partner companies within the tech industry - numbers that continue to grow by the day.As a company, we would be remiss if we did not acknowledge how deeply our BreakLiners, partner companies, and their families have enriched our lives. This inaugural episode is dedicated to you and the amazingly vibrant community you all are actively helping us to build.We hope you enjoy!If you like what you've heard, please subscribe, follow and rate our show. To learn more about BreakLine Education, check us our at breakline.org.

Join hosts Kenny Vaughn, Director of BreakLine Apex, and Sophia Beaudoin, Talent Recruiter at BreakLine Education, as they welcome you to The BreakLine Arena.