Dr. Judith Spitz is a technology leader and social impact innovator who has dedicated her career to transforming the tech industry. After serving as Chief Information Officer at Verizon, where she worked for 30 years, she chose to focus the next phase of her career on changing the path to power and influence in a tech-enabled world.

In 2016, Spitz launched what is now known as Break Through Tech at Cornell Tech, beginning with a partnership with the City University of New York (CUNY). The initiative developed innovative training and work-based learning opportunities designed to meet the needs of companies looking for tech talent and high-potential students looking for opportunity. The approach proved fruitful: CUNY students who participated in Break Through Tech programming landed coveted paid tech internships at nearly ten times the rate of their peers.

Break Through Tech’s programming has quickly become recognized as a model for driving systemic change. In 2020, Dr. Spitz brought the program to Chicago, Maryland and Florida and has since expanded across the country. In 2021, she launched what is now the largest AI workforce development program of its kind in the nation - building programmatic bridges between hundreds of companies and thousands of undergraduate students from over 200 universities across the country. By focusing on innovative approaches to democratizing access to opportunity, Break Through Tech’s AI Fellows are now landing paid internships with an 80% success rate, nearly triple the national average.

Today, Dr. Spitz continues to drive initiatives that bridge opportunity gaps and create pathways for the next generation of tech leaders.