America’s first African American female combat pilot will bring to the largest cable trade show in the Americas the edgy, energetic, self-confident style that propelled her from beat cop in the Nashville Police Department to the annals of military history.

AUG. 2, 2018 (Exton, PA)—SCTE•ISBE Cable-Tec Expo 2018, in Atlanta, will lift the bar of career advice to new heights on Wednesday, Oct. 24, when a groundbreaking aviator delivers her inspirational message at the Annual Awards Luncheon, the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) and its global arm, the International Society of Broadband Experts (ISBE), announced today.

Vernice “FlyGirl” Armour, America’s first African American female combat pilot, will bring to the luncheon podium the edgy, energetic, self-confident style that propelled her from beat cop in the Nashville Police Department to the annals of military history. With a message of “You have permission to engage—CLEARED HOT!,” she will extoll the value of making “gutsy moves” that create breakthrough results. Following the luncheon in the Georgia World Congress Center’s Thomas Murphy Ballroom, FlyGirl will meet and greet Expo attendees at a book signing at the Cox Business Continuity Area, Booth 36 on the Exhibit Floor.

Luncheon tickets are included with all Expo Full Conference registrations. Luncheon tickets can be purchased by attendees with Expo Floor Pass registrations.

“FlyGirl’s story is an inspiration for us all,” said Zenita Henderson, senior director, Marketing Operations, Business Development and National Conferences for SCTE•ISBE and president of the Philadelphia chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications. “With her breakthrough mentality and her ‘get gutsy’ mindset, she sees obstacles not as barriers but as challenges to be overcome.”

A frequent speaker on television and at corporate events, FlyGirl made history as the United States Marine Corps’ first African American female pilot and as the first African American woman on the Nashville Police Department motorcycle squad. She was a Camp Pendleton Female Athlete of the Year and two-time titleholder in their Strongest Warrior Competition and a running back for the San Diego Sunfire women’s pro football team. She is a member of the Comcast/NBCUniversal Joint Diversity Council, was a Diversity Liaison Officer to the Pentagon for Headquarters Marine Corps, and has received numerous awards—and two honorary doctorates—as a pioneering pilot and an advocate for STEM education.

“The exciting future of cable and cable technology depends on the decisions the leaders and technologists attending SCTE•ISBE Cable-Tec Expo make,” said FlyGirl. “I look forward to helping the innovators who have always been at the forefront of digital transformation make gutsy moves that create breakthrough results for our future. Our global community depends on it.”

FlyGirl is one of numerous high-profile speakers slated for SCTE•ISBE Cable-Tec Expo 2018, which is under the leadership of Program Chair Kevin Hart, Executive Vice President and Chief Product and Technology Officer for Cox Communications. Following opening remarks by Hart, the Opening General Session on Tuesday, Oct. 23 will feature a keynote by Pat Esser, president of Cox Communications, and a landmark panel comprising: Michael Powell, president and CEO of NCTA–The Internet & Television Association; Phil McKinney, president and CEO of CableLabs; Mark Dzuban, president and CEO of SCTE•ISBE; and moderator Tony Werner, president, Technology and Product, Comcast Cable.

Later on Tuesday, a panel featuring Shirley Bloomfield, CEO of NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association, Rich Fickle, President and CEO of the National Cable Telecommunications Cooperative (NCTC), and Matt Polka, President and CEO of the American Cable Association, will kick off the Innovation Theater with a discussion of issues and opportunities facing providers in small- and mid-size markets. The panel will be moderated by Mike Grebb, Publisher of Cablefax.

Scheduled from Monday, Oct. 22 through Thursday, Oct. 25 at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center, SCTE•ISBE Cable-Tec Expo is the largest cable trade event in the Americas. The conference is renowned as the pre-eminent venue that combines the thought leadership, engineering innovation, and deal-making that power the technological future of broadband telecommunications. As a nexus for content and service providers, technology partners, and industry experts, Expo provides rich insights into technologies, products, and services that can generate revenue, streamline operations, and increase customer satisfaction.

This year’s event will include a Distributed Access Architecture pre-conference session on Monday, Oct. 22, that will feature insights from international operators and vendors and is free to all full-conference attendees.

The Fall Technical Forum at Expo 2018 will set records for number of technical sessions (104) and workshops (48). In addition, the Cable TV Pioneers will conduct their annual banquet in conjunction with Expo, on Monday, Oct. 22.

Registration for SCTE•ISBE Cable-Tec Expo 2018 is now available at expo.scte.org/attendee-registration. Attendance, exhibit, and sponsorship/advertisement information about Expo is at http://expo.scte.org.