Leanne Pittsford facts for kids

Leanne Pittsford is an American entrepreneur. She is known for starting Lesbians Who Tech. This group helps connect queer women and their friends in the technology world.

Early Life and Education

Leanne Pittsford grew up in San Diego, California. She came from a family with traditional views. She shared her identity as a lesbian later, towards the end of her college years.

Pittsford attended California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. There, she earned a bachelor's degree in political science. She then continued her studies at San Francisco State University. She received a master's degree focusing on fairness and social justice in education.

Career Highlights

Pittsford started her career working for Equality California. This group works for the rights of LGBTQ people. At that time, they were trying to change a law in California. This law, called Proposition 8, had stopped same-sex marriage in 2008. Pittsford became the head of operations for the organization.

Founding New Programs

Leanne Pittsford helped create the Lesbian Entrepreneur Mentoring Program. This program helped women who were starting their own businesses. She also founded and led Start Somewhere. This was a digital company that helped non-profit groups and social businesses.

Creating Lesbians Who Tech

In 2012, Pittsford started Lesbians Who Tech. She wanted to create more ways for queer women to meet and connect. She also wanted to make sure they were more visible in the tech industry. The group began with just 30 people at a meeting in San Francisco. By 2016, it had grown to over 15,000 queer women and their allies. They had chapters in 33 different cities.

The organization also holds three big conferences each year. They have created scholarships to help people study. These scholarships were supported by a grant from Marc Andreessen and Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen. They also raised money through a Kickstarter campaign.

Working with the White House

In August 2016, Pittsford organized a special event. It was the third annual LGBTQ Tech and Innovation Summit. This important meeting took place at the White House. She had also helped organize the same summit in 2015.

Political Involvement and Recognition

During the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Pittsford was part of Nerdz4Hillary. This was a group of tech professionals who supported Hillary Clinton.

In 2015, San Francisco Magazine called Pittsford a "soldier of social change." They recognized her for being on the "front lines of the culture wars." Also in 2015, the San Francisco Business Times named her one of "40 under 40" young business leaders.

Launching include.io

In 2017, Pittsford launched a new platform called include.io. This platform helps connect technologists from underrepresented groups with recruiters.

In 2019, Business Insider recognized Pittsford. They named her one of the most powerful LGBTQ+ people in the tech world. On October 6, 2019, Pittsford was a guest on the American LGBTQ+ podcast, Queery.

Personal Life

Leanne Pittsford married Pia Carusone in June 2017.