Keynote Speakers

[Profs and Pints DC](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“Is ICE Above the Law?”** An examination of the federal officer accountability crisis and of unconstitutional and unchecked assertions of power, with Scott Michelman, legal director of ACLU-D.C. and lecturer on law and Shikes Fellow in Civil Liberties and Civil Rights at Harvard Law School. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/dc-ice-above-the-law](https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/dc-ice-above-the-law) .] The Trump administration has encouraged Immigration and Customs Enforcement members and other federal agents to commit horrifying abuses based on claims that they have “absolute immunity.” The results have been devastating. Renee Good, Alex Pretti, Ruben Ray Martinez, and Keith Porter Jr. are all dead at the hands of federal agents, and countless more have been subjected to needless violence and trauma. A recent ACLU and YouGov poll showed that 93 percent of voters—including 89 percent of Trump voters—believe that federal agents should not be above the law. What many Americans don’t know is just how difficult it can be to hold federal officers accountable when they violate constitutional rights. Join Scott Michelman, legal scholar and ACLU-D.C. legal director, for a deep dive into why it’s so difficult for most ordinary people to seek justice from federal agents and what can be done about it. He’ll discuss legal precedents that limit the ability of ordinary people to seek justice. Although the Supreme Court had held for most the past half-century that federal officers should be suable just like their state counterparts, it reversed course in a series of cases over the last 10 years, declaring in 2017 that permitting suits against federal officers was a “disfavored judicial activity” that courts should almost never allow because Congress has not specifically provided for such suits. You’ll learn about the ramifications of an alarming accountability gap between federal and state officers. For example, after Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd in 2020, Mr. Floyd’s family sued the City of Minneapolis and police officers for violating his constitutional rights and secured a $27 million settlement. Federal law, however, does not allow the families of Alex Pretti and Renee Good to file that type of lawsuit against the federal agents who shot and killed them just miles from where Mr. Floyd was murdered. You’ll learn how federal and local lawmakers can fix this problem. Potential federal remedies include reform bills pending in Congress right now, such as the Constitutional Accountability Act. At the local level, the District of Columbia could pass a law authorizing federal officer suits for constitutional violations. Finally, we'll talk about what people in D.C. and across the country can do to push for meaningful reform. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image: ICE agents confront an angry crowd at the Minneapolis site where one of their fellow agents, Jonathan Ross, had just killed Renee Good. (Photo by Chad Davis / Creative Commons.)

**###PLEASE NOTE: Even if you RSVP on Meetup, you will need to grab a ticket here https://www.skipthesmalltalk.com/store/skip-the-small-talk-night-at-tonic-tuesday-june-9-2026 in order to attend###** This event is cross-posted so Meetup RSVPs won't accurately reflect the actual number of attendees; typically there are around 30-40 people in attendance. **What's It Like?** Do you wish you could have more of the kinds of conversations you have late at night where for some reason, you feel safe talking about the things you actually care about? Bring your friends (or come by yourself- most people do!) and spend your Tuesday night at an event where you know everyone else is there for the same reason. We'll be offering 'big talk' conversational prompts on them to get you started, and we'll have lots of structure to make sure that you actually talk to people and that it's not awkward. There will be food and drinks available for sale! **Check-in** for this event will begin around **7:15 pm**. Please do your best to arrive before 7:30 pm so we can begin as close to on time as possible. Skip the Small Talk is dedicated to providing an inclusive, welcoming environment for everyone. Check out our safety policy here: tinyurl.com/ststSafety Please see our event [page](https://www.skipthesmalltalk.com/store/skip-the-small-talk-night-at-tonic-tuesday-june-9-2026) for more accessibility info. **Ready to Skip the Small Talk With Us?** **[Grab a ticket](https://www.skipthesmalltalk.com/store/skip-the-small-talk-night-at-tonic-tuesday-june-9-2026)** since entry is on a first come first serve basis and we tend to sell out in advance for these-- once we are out of tickets, we will NOT be able to accommodate folks at the door. Tonic has lots of other fun events going on, too. Feel free to check them out **[here](https://tonicrestaurantdc.com/washington-foggy-bottom-tonic-at-quigleys-bar-and-restaurant-events)**! If you want to be the first to hear about our events before we sell out, feel free to join our mailing list at [Skip the Small Talk Mailing List Sign-Up](https://sendfox.com/skipthesmalltalk)

At Toastmasters, we empower individuals to become more effective communicators and leaders. Our meetings provide a supportive and positive learning environment where members grow through prepared speeches, impromptu speaking (Table Topics), and constructive evaluations. Whether you're looking to overcome your fear of public speaking, enhance your work communication, or develop leadership skills, you're welcome here. Guests are always invited to observe first. If you'd like to speak, we’ll ask before inviting you to participate - no pressure at all. See how Toastmasters can help you build confidence, develop new skills, and connect with a community focused on growth.

https://youtu.be/2hV0hjneKUQ We are group of diverse individuals who invest in improving our public speaking and leadership skills within a warm and supportive environment. We will meet at Jack Taylor's Alexandria Toyota, just across the street from the Potomac Yard shopping center in Alexandria. You can park on the side street or behind the facility. Enter through the main entrance and proceed directly across the showroom to the staircase behind the main desk. Proceed to the top of the stairs and turn to your right. The meeting room is at the end of the hallway. Hope to see you there!

Bonjour! Are you missing your French? Have you been wanting to practice your French in a day-to-day setting? Join the Alliance Française Library in-person during our Salon de Conversation every 2nd Tuesday of the month to practice your French in a fun and informal setting. This event is for all levels of French speakers. **Please note that in June we will be meeting IN-PERSON in the AFDC Library from 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM.**

Title: An Easy Intro to Feynman's QED, Part 3: Electron-Photon Interactions Date: June 13 2026 Noon - 14:00 EDT Summary: In his second QED talk on May 16, Terry discussed how Nobel Laureate Richard Feynman kept Einstein’s idea of a photon as a particle, but replaced the photon’s singular path through space and time with an integral of all paths the photon could have taken. In this final talk, Terry adds Feynman’s critical concept of how photons interact with another incredibly common particle, the electron. He shows the resulting model, called QED, describes not only most everyday phenomena, but also issues such as why antimatter can be interpreted as ordinary matter traveling backward in time. Speaker: Terry Bollinger is a computer scientist with BS, MS, and Professional Degrees from the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“Lafayette’s Long Fight for Liberty,”** a look at the life, struggles, and legacy of America’s favorite fighting Frenchman, with Richard Bell, professor of history at the University of Maryland and author of *The American Revolution and the Fate of the World.* [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/nv-lafayette](https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/nv-lafayette) .] When the Marquis de Lafayette returned to the United States in 1824, Americans greeted him with a frenzy of affection unmatched by anything the nation had ever shown a single individual. Crowds filled streets, towns held ceremonies in his honor, Congress showered him with gifts, and parents named children for the French aristocrat who had helped win the American Revolution. Explore the extraordinary life behind that adulation with historian Richard Bell, whose excellent past talks have earned him a big following among Profs and Pints fans. Professor Bell will take Lafayette far beyond his familiar role as George Washington’s young protégé and the hero of Yorktown. You’ll learn how Lafayette became one of the Atlantic world’s most persistent champions of liberty—fighting for constitutional government, religious freedom, prison reform, press freedom, antislavery, and independence movements from Greece to Poland. You’ll also hear how Lafayette’s ideals repeatedly put him in danger, making him a target of kings, radicals, imperial powers, and revolutionaries who regarded him as “the most dangerous man of all.” Professor Bell will show how Lafayette’s life was full of contradictions: a nobleman who challenged aristocratic privilege, a centrist caught between monarchy and mob rule, an antislavery advocate whose efforts fell short, and a dreamer whose causes often failed in his lifetime. Yet Lafayette never stopped trying to make liberty universal. Come learn why Lafayette’s name still graces hundreds of American towns, parks, counties, schools, rivers, and lakes—and why his most important monument might be not any statue or place name, but the freedoms he helped generations of people imagine, demand, and defend. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image: From an 1834 portrait of Lieutenant General Lafayette painted by Joseph-Désiré Court (Palace of Versailles / Wikimedia).

Join PSW Science® on THURSDAY June 11 at 8 PM as we welcome Earl Miller, Picower Professor of Neuroscience. During the question and answer period, in-person attendees and live stream viewers may ask the speaker questions, and in-person attendees may also engage with the speaker during the post-lecture reception. Refreshments are served. For more information on this meeting, please visit: https://pswscience.org/meeting/2537 The meeting will be held in the John Wesley Powell Auditorium, adjacent to the Cosmos Club. The Powell Auditorium is located at 2170 Florida Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20008. Use of the Cosmos Club is restricted to the Powell Auditorium, the entryway to the auditorium, and the restrooms immediately outside the auditorium. Please note there is no onsite parking available. PSW Science, founded in 1871, is one of the oldest scientific societies in Washington D.C. Now, over 150 years later, we celebrate the Society's rich history and contributions to scientific discovery and cross-disciplinary collaboration. For information on how to become a member of PSW Science and membership benefits, please visit https://pswscience.org/join/

# NVTC Event (NVTC Registration Required) A Morning with Cyber Icon Kevin Mandia *** I am attending this event with the Northern Virginia Technology Council and wanted to share in case others are interested, particularly given our group's strong interest in AI. NVTC morning events typically feature a coffee & bagel breakfast with a really good speaker. I know weekday mornings can be a struggle, but if this is of interest to you, you can register on the NVTC website: [A Morning with Cyber Icon Kevin Mandia - Northern Virginia Technology Council](https://www.nvtc.org/event/a-morning-with-cyber-icon-kevin-mandia/) ## Details Date: June 10, 2026 Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM Cost: Free for NVTC members, $40 for nonmembers ### Venue LMI Headquarters 7940 Jones Branch Drive McLean, VA 22102 From the NVTC website: One of the most consequential figures in cybersecurity history is coming back to where it all began, and you can be in the room. The Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) is proud to name Kevin Mandia as our 2026 Cyber Icon. Chances to hear him speak candidly, outside the world’s biggest stages, are extraordinarily rare. This is one of them. **Why this moment is different** In March 2026, Mandia’s new company, Armadin emerged from stealth with a record-breaking $189+ million raise, the largest in cybersecurity history. His message is unambiguous: AI hasn’t just changed cybersecurity; it has rewritten the rules entirely. Today’s attacks are autonomous, adaptive, and relentless driven by intelligent software agents operating at machine speed. Armadin was built for this new reality, and Mandia is at the center of this transformation. On June 10, he’ll share where cybersecurity is headed next—and what leaders must do now to stay ahead. He’ll be joined by longtime collaborator Ronald Bushar, CISO and Managing Director at Google Public Sector, for a candid, insider conversation that goes far beyond the headlines. **What you’ll hear** * **The Mandiant Legacy:** How the exposure of APT1 reshaped the global understanding of cyber threats—and changed the industry forever. * **The AI Inflection Point:** What autonomous, learning-based attacks mean for defense in a world moving at the speed of compute. * **Autonomous Offense as Defense:** Why the future may involve AI defending against AI—with little to no human intervention. * **The Founder’s Journey:** The decisions, risks, and resilience behind building Mandiant into a $5.4B acquisition—and starting again. * **The Future Cyber Workforce:** How roles are evolving, what skills will matter most, and how the next generation must prepare. No recording. No replay. No second chance. Seats are limited. **Register now before this moment passes you by!** ## CPE Credits are available to attendees *We are pleased to offer 2.4 continuing professional education (CPE) credits to those that attend the event. CPE certification at A Morning with Cyber Icon Kevin Mandia is being administered by Carahsoft Technology Corp. Carahsoft is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education of the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. For more information on the CPE credit we are offering, our CPE sponsor (NASBA), and the submission process, please* ***[click here](https://carahevents.carahsoft.com/Event/Details/759939-cpe?auth=65c43597315342f482a6c07402079c85)****.*

Serving our community by teaching financial literacy is paramount towards long term success. You will learn three main concepts towards building generational wealth. The five engines of revenu that will forever impact your. Lastly, be introduced a path to entrepreneurship that can transform your life and exceed expectations beyond your imagination Come and acquire this free education and walk out with a new drive! Dress code: Business Casual

• What we'll do On https://blackecon101.podbean.com/ Thursdays at 6 pm. discussing the economy....

**The next GeoDC will be held on Wednesday, June 10 from 6-9pm at Sudhouse DC (1340 U St NW, Washington, DC 20009) with the program starting at 7pm.** * Join us early from 6-7pm to grow your network, socialize and grab drinks and appetizers. * Throughout the evening, we'll be sharing job announcements and details of other GIS/Geo upcoming events we're tracking. * We look forward to seeing you on the 10th! **Our Program will feature these presentations:** **The Secret History of the Blue Dot - William H. Tewelow, GISP (GPS World)** This presentation takes the audience from an iconic movie scene they recognize but never understood, through the hidden origins of GPS, and returns them to the blue dot in their own hand, seeing it for the very first time. There is a blue dot on your phone right now. It knows where you are to within a few feet. You have never questioned it. You have never wondered where it came from. You should. Its origins are classified. Its lineage runs through the Cold War, nuclear submarines, and a doctrine built on the promise of mutual annihilation. The technology that tells you where to turn was designed for something else entirely. The technology did not change. Only the purpose did. **GEOINT Symposium's Golden Ticket Program - Katie Weintraub (ESRI)** This is a firsthand account of USGIF's GEOINT Symposium Golden Ticket — a program built for early-career professionals who want to level up their careers. Participants get free admission to GEOINT Symposium, mentorship opportunities, a network of fellow Golden Ticket alumni, and a cohort of peers to grow alongside. This talk breaks it all down fast — what it is and why it's a stellar experience for young professionals breaking into or already working in the geospatial intelligence realm. *->If you’d like to present or sponsor a future GeoDC Meetup, please complete this [form](https://forms.gle/QbAXPfrDnX12GGaS8).*

QA or the Highway is a one-day, affordable, regional, professional conference featuring real-world experience and thought leadership in the QA and testing industry. This is a ticketed event please register here: https://www.qaorthehwy.com/ Featured Keynote Speakers: **Matthew-Hope Eland** **(Wizard at Leading EDJE)** \- An AI Specialist and Wizard at Leading EDJE who is known to teach software engineering\, AI\, and data science concepts in the most ridiculous ways possible\. Matt has used machine learning to settle debates over whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie\, reinforcement learning to drive the behavior of digital squirrels\, data analytics to suggest improvements to his favorite TV show\, and AI agents to play board games and create an AI agent with the personality of a dog\. Matt is the author of "Data Science in \.NET with Polyglot Notebooks" and "Refactoring with C\#" as well as several LinkedIn Learning courses\. Matt helps organize the Central Ohio \.NET Developer Group\, runs several blogs and a YouTube channel\, has a Master’s of Science in Data Analytics\, and is a current Microsoft MVP in AI and \.NET\. **Tatyana Arbouzova** **(CEO at Innovate QA)** \- Tatyana Arbouzova is an engineering and business leader with a strong background in Quality Engineering across multiple industries\, including Big Tech\, Healthcare\, and Entertainment\. She has held leadership roles at world\-class companies such as Microsoft\, VMware\, Disney\, and The Pokémon Company International\, where she focused on building quality\-driven cultures and scaling teams to deliver high\-impact products\. With decades of experience\, Tatyana has helped organizations transform their quality practices so teams can deliver software efficiently\, confidently\, and with measurable business outcomes\. Today\, Tatyana advises software companies on adopting AI to optimize quality practices and improve how software is delivered at scale\. She is also a passionate community builder and the founder of Innovate QA\, a thriving Seattle\-based community and conference for quality professionals\.

The topic for June is "Roadtrip" Speak Easy: true stories, told live. The idea is simple: an audience, an open microphone, and great stories. Hilarious, gripping, poignant- it's up to you. Audiences are invited to come to listen or come to tell as folks from all corners of Columbus offer their stories live on stage! Held at Wild Goose Creative's warm, intimate space, this night of tales occurs on the 3rd Thursday of every month. Doors open at 6:30 pm, show starts at 7:00 pm. Please arrive early if you want to tell, as we generally only have room for a limited number of tellers, and the sign-up sheet has a tendency to fill up fast. Formed around the idea that people need stories--they're what hold and draw us together--SpeakEasy celebrates the strangeness and commonness of being human. And in a world of smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, and more . . . it gives people a real, breathing, in-person way to connect. The night is geared for true stories of all kinds, taking the best tales told around kitchen tables, in darkened pubs, on the street corner, and at late-night parties and giving them an audience. Speak Easy is also a great outlet for performers, writers, and artists looking to share their favorite stories and perfect their skills. We strongly encourage tellers to please tell the story rather than read it so we keep within the spirit of good storytelling and stay engaged with the audience. All are welcome. Hang around after the show for a drink and build community!

**The Behavior Gap: Where Products Win or Lose** Teams today have more data than ever, and yet many still struggle to understand why customers adopt, engage with, or abandon their products. Teams sprint, ship faster, and chase more signals… all while metrics stall and confidence drops. The missing piece isn’t more data. It’s often the behavioral insight between the metrics, explaining why the numbers move in the first place. Dashboards can tell you what customers did, but understanding why they did it (and how to influence what they do next) requires a deeper blend of insights. This session is about closing that gap. Drawing from real-world experience designing and scaling products as [ZoCo Design](https://zocodesign.com/)’s CEO, [Lacey](https://www.linkedin.com/in/laceypicazo/) will share how to cut through the noise and identify the insights that actually change behavior—moving people, and moving metrics. You’ll learn: * Why understanding customer behavior is a quant and qual challenge * How to spot the signals that actually predict behavior change * Where AI accelerates insight, and where it creates distraction * How to get meaningfully closer to customers, without adding more tools This talk reframes how to evaluate performance and identify what levers actually improve it, helping your team to make smarter bets with greater confidence. Every meaningful outcome is driven by behavior change. And when you know how to design for behavior, you stop guessing, and start building things that work. **About Our Speaker** [Lacey Picazo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/laceypicazo/) is the Founder and CEO of ZoCo, a healthcare product studio that turns complex, high-stakes ideas into products that drive real-world adoption. She partners with healthcare organizations to uncover critical care delivery insights, focus product strategy through behavior design, and build solutions that patients and providers actually use. Thanks to our 2026 sponsors: [Clarivoy](https://www.clarivoy.com), [What Box Consulting Group](https://www.whatboxconsultinggroup.com), [Conductrics](https://www.conductrics.com), and [Piwik PRO](https://piwik.pro) More info at [cbusdaw.com](https://cbusdaw.com)

It’s time to take control of your mental health. How do you get rid of stress, anxiety and uncertainty? These emotions are buried deep in your reactive mind. Find out what the reactive mind is, and in the process find yourself. Have you ever suffered from a traumatic experience, a deep loss or been through a painful breakup? Has your ability to communicate suffered as a result? And after that, even though you "moved on" did you find that things were never quite the same? Have you ever looked at childhood photos, or reminisced your early life and wondered where that happiness and spark went? Are your emotions out of your own control? Have you ever felt, even if you aren’t aware of it, that possibly you are getting in your own way of your happiness and success? How does this affect your self-confidence? Find out what is at the root of all stress, anxiety, depression and self-doubt. Find out how and why you hold yourself back from achieving your goals and having the life you have dreamed of. As soon as you learn what is at the root of these unwanted conditions, you’ll see it is something you can DO something about. You will not be labeled or categorized at this MeetUp.

Topic to be announced. **THANK YOU** *Franklin University* for hosting our meetup! To learn more about *Franklin University*, please visit their website: https://www.franklin.edu/ **DIRECTIONS** Franklin University Fisher Hall 300 E. Main St, Columbus, OH 43215 Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/jxjBA2hUmS5qrvhq8 Parking is FREE! Please park in Lot C in front of Fisher Hall. See attached map. NOTE: Map the address only. When mapping with Google Maps it may use the Fisher Hall at OSU, which is NOT correct. **Want to sponsor the pizza and/or bar tab?** Please contact me if you would like to sponsor this meetup's pizza and/or bar tab: angelo@mandato.com

## 🤝 Host Information A co-hosted event by ProductTank Columbus & Women in Product Columbus 💡 About the Workshop AI adoption is stalling across organizations — not because of a lack of motivation or tools, but because it's fundamentally a behavior design challenge. This hands-on workshop applies proven Behavior Design models and methods to help you move from a vague organizational wish to boost AI adoption to 3-5 concrete, testable interventions you can act on starting tomorrow. Whether you're a product manager, on a product team, or just someone trying to get AI to actually stick at work, you'll leave with a clear picture of what's worth focusing on, what to ignore, and how to drive real, sustained adoption — no guesswork required. 🛠️ What to Bring Laptop: Fully charged and ready to go. AI Assistant: Have your favorite AI assistant pulled up. (Dom will be using Claude, but feel free to use whichever assistant you prefer!) 🍕 Logistics & Perks Food & Drink: Pizza and drinks provided! Parking: Plenty of free spaces available on-site. ###

Join the Columbus AI community for a special event. **Battle of the Personal Agents** is your chance to see what people are actually building with AI agents and personal automation systems. Whether you’re running OpenClaw, Hermes, or a completely custom solution, bring your agent and show the community how it works. We’re interested in real-world implementations: the problems your agent solves, how you use it day-to-day, how it’s hosted and managed, how you built it, and why you’ve chosen to keep using it. Live demonstrations are encouraged, so be prepared to show your code, architecture, workflows, and your agent performing real tasks. This is less about polished presentations and more about sharing practical experience, comparing approaches, and learning from one another. If you’d like to present, please contact Chris Slee (via meetup) before the event so we can allocate enough time for everyone’s demonstrations. Come ready to show what you’ve built, discover what others are doing, and maybe find a few ideas worth taking home. Whether you’re deep in the field or just getting curious, come connect with others building and exploring AI in Columbus. Sponsored by [Transform Labs](https://www.linkedin.com/company/transformlabs/) Sign up also accessible via [Transform Labs Luma](https://luma.com/transformlabshq)