Bio

Dr. Amber Johnson Avery is a Jackson, MS native, entrepreneur, and trailblazer. She is the owner of The Kidult Life, a lifestyle brand she founded after becoming the first black woman to graduate with a PhD in Computer Science from Purdue University. Dr. Amber is also managing partner and co-founder of the JXN Tech District, a live-work-play, mixed-use real estate development project in downtown Jackson, MS.

Dr. Amber attended Tougaloo College, LeMoyne-Owen College, and Jackson State University (JSU) where she studied Computer Science. She has served organizations such as Girls Who Code, Black Girls Lead, and BRIGHT-CS, National Coalition of 100 Black Women (in partnership with Apple), which all aim to bridge the digital divide and pour into youth through tech programming. Dr. Amber has helped mobilize a number of startup companies, pilot and develop educational programs, as well as worked as a software engineer and developer for Northrop Grumman and the Department of Defense. Dr. Amber’s experience in several tech sectors, both public and private, has been a driving force for innovation through entrepreneurship, consulting, and education.