Dr. Kumar Vadaparty spent several years being an educator – both as a student and then later as faculty at the Computer Science department at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland OH. He strongly believes in the importance of education and empowerment of diverse populations, a belief that inspires him to contribute both his expertise and other resources to further this mission. Dr. Vadaparty is convinced that the more educated the general public is about the fast-changing, nuanced world of science, the more democratic and robust our policy decisions will be, and the more far-reaching and beneficial the consequences will be. To this end, he strongly supports community laboratories of all kinds: electronic/3D-printing maker spaces, bio-maker spaces, maker-fairs, libraries that support DIY making, etc. He currently works in the financial district in NYC, and lives with his family in Belle Mead, NJ.