A U.S. Naval Academy graduate, Desa spent 10 years as a Surface Warfare Officer in the U.S. Navy and Naval Reserve. She later earned an M.B.A. from Florida International University and a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she served as the editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Economic Law. Prior to coming to Zip Code, she was the Assistant General Counsel of Intellectual Property at InterDigital, Inc., where she served as the senior transactions counsel for research and development, technology innovation.

For 30 years, Kris worked at numerous successful startups, including Sun Microsystems, NeXT, and Netscape, centering his technical expertise around networked computing of all kinds. Kris’ coding interest, dormant for many years of management focus, was re-kindled about 10 years ago when he returned to his roots as a computer scientist (Purdue, ’84), writing web apps and mobile apps. He has been working on the idea of digital assets since about 1996.

Lossie began her career on Wall Street at JPMorgan Investment Bank where she worked for 8 years as an Internal Global Consultant assisting in the launch of their Foreign Exchange business in Korea and helping to initialize an Asset Management joint venture in Tokyo. Before joining the Zip Code team, she was a Special Assistant to the Mayor for the City of Wilmington, focusing on Employment Initiatives through coordination and development of a robust employment infrastructure in partnership with the business community to promote job placement, job creation, and employment skills training opportunities for residents.

Working in education for over two decades, Dan oversees both Zip Code’s admissions and its professional development (a/k/a ProDev) curriculum. Along with guiding applicants through Zip Code’s rigorous application process, Dan also co-facilitates its weekly ProDev classes, focused on preparing students for their new careers as software developers and data engineers. In addition to teaching, Dan provides 1:1 mentoring and coaching for ZipCoders as they move through their Zip Code journey and beyond. Along with his extensive background in working with students, Dan has performed and taught improvisation for nearly 20 years.

Mikaila is a Full-Stack Developer and alumnus of Zip Code Wilmington. After completing coding boot camp, Mikaila was a Software Developer at Comcast. While volunteering at Delaware State University’s App Academy, he discovered his passion for teaching. He later decided to combine his love for computer science and his passion for education.

With over 15 years in web and software development, Dolio first gained interest in programming while building a physical therapy device with web connectivity at MIT, where he received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. Since then, Dolio has developed software for telecommunications, online learning applications, and e-commerce for various industries and institutions, as well as serving as an instructor and mentor to students of all ages.

Tyrell’s expertise lies in front-end development and creating course curriculum. He previously worked for Comcast as a Software Developer before deciding to come back and teach for Zip Code Wilmington.

Corrine Yeager, Office Manager, received her Associate of Business Administration from Middlesex County College and comes to Zip Code with over a decade’s experience in the administrative field. Although she has years of experience in many administrative roles, her concentration has been in Accounting and Human Resources. Most recently, she helped build a startup business from 7 employees to over 50 before her departure. She is excited to bring her past experiences to help maintain an organized office and administration here at Zip Code.

Cassie is a seasoned professional with a background in sales and digital marketing. She comes to Zip Code with a wealth of experience and knowledge under her belt. Cassie is now dedicated to assisting students in securing jobs after completion of their bootcamp. Her passion for empowering others in their career journeys shines as she eagerly transitions into the tech industry.

Shanira is passionate about serving others, sharing knowledge, and providing opportunities for youth. She has a background in collaborating with nonprofit organizations, including YWCA Delaware and Five Loaves & Two Fish Unlimited Inc. In these roles, she developed and facilitated a digital literacy curriculum, as well as leading a network of young entrepreneurs to pursue justice through financial freedom. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology at Wilmington University and will apply her knowledge and experience to take a trauma informed approach to community development.

Maryah has a marketing and social media management background and is an all around creative. She has an affection for developing and curating eclectic ideas, concepts & designs. She finds great pleasure in being able to showcase unique perspectives and designs and is thrilled to share her experiences as part of the Zip Code team.

Ben duPont, is a venture capitalist, co-founder and Managing Partner at Chartline Capital Partners. Chartline Capital Partners has 26 portfolio companies.

Jim is CEO of Epic Research and Co-Founder and former President of Juniper Bank, now Barclaycard.

Porter is a partner at Brown Advisory, a leading independent investment management firm with approximately $100 billion in assets.

Teri is the Chief Operating Officer at Provivi, Inc., a groundbreaking science-based company creating scalable, safer insect control technology that will improve the quality of life for all humans and our world. She is also a Director with the American Chemical Society, former President of the Delaware State Board of Education, and has been inducted into the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame.

Gary is a Technology Executive at TD Bank currently leading the Canadian Consumer Investments technology organization. He previously served as SVP, Card Issuer Services for Fiserv; and, former Managing Director, CTO at Chase Consumer Lending.

Diego Calderin was the co-founder and Managing Partner of Banbury Systems, a data acquisition platform company, and was the co-founder and CTO of Anexinet, an award-winning Digital Systems Integration company. He also has extensive board service experience – he served on the board of Bryn Mawr and Bryn Mawr Trust where he was the Chair of the IT Steering Committee, and also served on board of The Haverford Trust Company. Diego is a member of the Board of Trustees for La Salle University, and currently serves on the board of WSFS Bank.

Ayanna “Dax” Hill is the Senior Innovation Manager and Chief Operating Officer at Vanguard Fintech Ventures. Dax is a technology innovator with extensive knowledge of both human capital systems as well as product, data, and strategic management. She is two-time entrepreneur with a track record of driving large scale transformations.

Fennimore is a VP, Engineering Lead at JP Morgan Chase & Co. and is a graduate of the Java Software Developer program at Zip Code Wilmington (Java 4.0). She is the Alumni Committee representative serving on the Board of Directors.