Organizers
MakeIT4Change® is the collaborative work of Charita M. Johnson and Joycelyn Tate. MakeIT4Change® aims to empower individuals with the skills necessary to develop technology solutions to address social and community needs. Both Charita and Joycelyn have dedicated a significant portion of their life’s work to increasing the use of technology to strengthen and empower our nation. Through their work with MakeIT4Change®, they are bringing together both community service and technology leaders throughout the nation to empower and engage individuals to Make IT for Change.
Charita M. Johnson
Social Entrepreneur Director
Charita M. Johnson has dedicated her life to service and the expansion of technology, especially in rural and un-served areas. She is known to be a staunch advocate for and practitioner of expanding technology to rural America. For more than 20 years, she has developed technology access and literacy programs for youth, adults and the disability community in various communities and international provinces. Through these programs, her goal has been to go beyond just teaching people to become proficient users and consumers of technology, but to also become innovators of online content and technology innovation for social change.
In her technology literacy and education programs, Charita encourages people to use technology as a means of social innovation, entrepreneurship and career advancement. She has developed training programs for youth and adults with learning disabilities that have enabled them to take advantage of career opportunities in the technology industry. Charita has also created two pilot programs to develop hardware and software to assist people with learning disabilities so that they can take advantage of viable career opportunities in the technology and media industries.
As the chief administration officer of the new faith-based television network, IHStv (In His Service Television), Charita is continuing her mission of expanding technology access and literacy to the un- and underserved in America and abroad. As part of the upcoming launch of IHStv's online, cable and satellite platforms, Charita is establishing a state-of-the-art digital media content education center for youth and adults (Lamed Technology Media and Technology Center) located in rural Lexington, Tennessee. This center is designed to provide training in technology application and digital media, as well as, become a catalyst for the creation of online and broadcast content.
Charita is the author of, Digital Journey, which is a book that teaches youth the core knowledge of computing, Internet media, technology and content creation in a fun, compelling and interactive way. This book has been adapted in numerous schools, afterschool settings, and tech training workshops, as an instructional curriculum for youth and adults.
Throughout Charita’s vast career, she has received numerous accolades for her community service initiatives.
Charita currently serves on the board of numerous non-profit organizations that provide services to rural and impoverished communities through direct assistance and education. Her vita is filled with experiences, certifications, and projects with numerous companies and governmental organizations, including the Tennessee Department of Health, USDA Rural Development Division, White House, Delta Grassroots Caucus, Unites States Department of Labor Employments and Training Administration, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, United States Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, etc. Charita is a graduate of Murray State University in Murray, KY, where she received her undergraduate degree.
Charita is also a principle of MattiOssie Group, a consulting firm focused on turning visions into reality. At MattiOssie, Charita provides non-profit organizations, churches and businesses throughout the world with consulting services, which include developing diverse revenue-generating models and non-profit management.
Joycelyn Tate
Technology Director
Joycelyn Tate is a technology and telecommunications policy advocate and strategist. She advocates for technology and telecommunications policy reform and corporate best practices that advance diversity and inclusion in technology employment and entrepreneurship, and affordable technology access in underserved communities. She is the senior technology policy advisor for the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and the Black Women’s Roundtable. Joycelyn is a contributing author to the Black Women’s Roundtable annual report where she has authored Black Women in the High-Tech Industry: Employment and Entrepreneurship (2016) and Black Women and Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) (2014). In addition to her advocacy work, Joycelyn organizes mobile app hackathons and workshops in the Washington DC area and conducts seminars for small business owners on effective ways to use social media to promote their businesses. Joycelyn also hosts Telecom Talk on The FLOW Radio where she discusses consumer technology and telecommunications issues.
Joycelyn is the former director of telecommunications policy at the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC), a public interest law firm, where she advocated for laws and policies
that advance ownership and employment opportunities for minorities and women in the media, telecommunications and technology industries. She is a contributing writer to MMTC's, MMTC Roadmap for Telecommunications Policy, a set of legislative and policy proposals that would help women and minorities have a better opportunity to fully participate as owners, employees and content providers in the telecommunication, media and technology industries. Joycelyn was also an associate at MMTC’s media brokerage firm, MMTC Media Brokers, where she brokered the sales of radio and television stations and advised clients on media transactions, financing and ownership issues.
Joycelyn's work in telecommunications and technology spans the business, government, education and broadcasting sectors. She was the chief operating officer at Multisoft Technologies, computer software and IT networking training company. In the office of U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Joycelyn worked on telecommunications issues. At the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Joycelyn served in the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, where she worked on regulations for the wireless telecommunications industry. She also conducted research and analysis for the FCC on the problems experienced by small, women and minority-owned businesses trying to obtain capital financing to enter the telecommunications market. In 2008, she was appointed by the then-chairman of the Federal Communications Commission to serve on the board of directors of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), where she was responsible for administering the Universal Service Fund, an over $8 billion fund that provides access to affordable telecommunications services throughout the United States. Joycelyn was an adjunct professor of communications law at the Howard University School of Communications and Bowie State University Department of Communications. She is also a former television producer and television technical operations engineer.
Joycelyn earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the School of Communications at Howard University, a Juris Doctor from Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America, a certificate of specialization from the Law and Technology Institute at the Columbus School of Law, a graduate certificate in international studies, with regional study focused on China, from the School of Advanced International Studies at The Johns Hopkins University and a certificate from the Executive Leadership for Ministers Program at the Howard University School of Business.