Fresno State President Joseph I. Castro announced the appointment of Bitwise co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Irma Olguin Jr. to the University Advisory Board, a panel of community members who assist the University in carrying out its mission by providing advice and counsel to the president.
With her expertise in computer science and engineering, Olguin co-founded Bitwise Industries in Fresno with Jake Soberal in 2013. They have stated that the organization’s goal is to inspire people in the Valley to believe in themselves and in the advancement of their community.
“I am very pleased that Ms. Olguin – a native of Caruthers – has agreed to serve on the University Advisory Board,” said Castro. “She is a bold and talented leader in the Central Valley’s emerging technology hub at Bitwise with a passion for helping Fresno State to further enhance its high quality STEAM, or science, technology, engineering, agriculture and math programs.”
In addition to Bitwise, Olguin is also the co-founder of Edit LLC, 59DaysOfCode and Overfundit, all of which were built from the ground up. She received her bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Toledo and has over 15 years of experience in her field.
Bitwise Industries, located in the Mural District in downtown Fresno, is working to transform the city into a technological hub by encouraging the growth of the industry and providing a place to educate people about technology, funding projects and launching new startups.
Since its founding in 2013, Bitwise has seen over 2,000 people attend its Geekwise Academy to receive training in how to code. It launched over 20 startups with $100 million projected aggregate revenue for its companies.
Olguin’s advisory board term will run through June 2019.
(University Communications news assistant Jose Diaz contributed to this report.)
