Kat Calvin

Kat Calvin is an American activist, businesswoman and author. She is the founder of Spread the Vote and Project ID and the Co-founder of Blerdology. Calvin's organization supports Americans to obtain their IDs for housing, jobs, and voting. Additionally, Calvin advocates for advanced minority representation in the STEM field.

Early life and education Calvin's parents served full-time in the United States Armed Forces. She lived in Seattle and Sierra Vista, Arizona. In 2005, Calvin graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a bachelor's in theater. From 2007 to 2010 Calvin attended the University of Michigan Law School, receiving her doctorate.

Career Kat Calvin, Amanda Spann and Janelle Jolley created the hackathon series "Black Girls Hack" exclusively for black girls, becoming the first non-profit hackathon catering to the African-American community. This hackathon was a network of leading tech startups created and financed by black women. Black Girls Hack allows girls of color to create solutions for evolving digital problems.

The first Blerdology hackathon in November 2013, introduced fifty developers and coders to create a mobile application with some of the proceeds from the event going to Black Girls Code, to advance young black girls across America in their pursuit of computer programming. Spread the Vote was awarded a grant from New Media Ventures, which is a network of investors that fund media and tech startups.

Calvin created two other satellite political non-profits under the Spread the Vote organization. Project ID and Project ID Action Fund seek to educate further and empower its voters through laws and policies.

In 2023, Calvin became the author of "American Identity in Crisis," which was released on the 19th of September. Business Insider 30 under 30

Selected publication Calvin, Kat. American Identity in Crisis: Notes from an Accidental Activist. Amistad, 2023.