Elisha Fernandez – Keeping Youth Safe In the Changing World of Technology

One of our youngest speakers at WordCamp DFW this year, we’re thrilled to welcome Elisha Fernandez back for another year of WCDFW!
I’ve spoken at several WordCamps across the country with my sister, Elyssa, but my favorite one is always WordCamp DFW. The amount of love and unity we feel by coming together with like minded WordPress individuals has been amazing. The energy is always exciting and we always find new people to collaborate with.
Elisha will be presenting, “Keeping Youth Safe In the Changing World of Technology,” with her sister, Elyssa, and they’ve been in business together for almost 9 years!
After having a static website for several years, I finally switched over to WordPress in 2012 with my sister, and I’ve been in love with it ever since. I love how simple it is to use, and I’m immensely grateful I use it in my business. I couldn’t think of a better platform for WhollyART!
In her presentation, she hopes to make a big statement about changing the way we perceive youth in media, and turning around negative myths society promotes.
The amount of content creators under the age of 18 seems to be growing at an exponential rate. Sometimes this can start accidentally, with a personal account that eventually grows into a community, and many teens and kids have no idea what to do with that level of responsibility. I am grateful to have had a mom to guide me through that process and teach me the do’s and don’ts, so my mission is to teach parents and educators how to equip youth with the capacity to create and consume content in meaningful, safe, and fun ways!
Elisha has been creating videos, blog posts, and more starting at 6 years old. She has grown up with business and has learned that it’s not as scary or difficult as it seems.
Being a content creator is a daunting task, and there are many taboos surrounding the topic, which may instill fear in adults or even kids, but the more we bring that to light, we can make sure that awareness replaces that fear. I believe kids and teens have unique voices and stories to share, but we need to help them learn how, when, where, why, and who to share it with.
Elisha Fernandez Speaker WordCamp DFW 2019
The top 3 takeaways she hopes you will gain are:
Learn how to encourage teens to keep safe online yet still have a good time
How to protect yourself (as adults) and youth against cyber bullying
The rules to being a good online citizen in content creation and in general!
She is passionate about content creation, and also design. She works as a virtual assistant and graphic designer for many bloggers and people looking to start their business.
My website, WhollyART.com, was made with WordPress. I use it for content creation and also practice coding, and I am learning all the web design secrets I can from my mom, Elayna Fernandez, who designed WhollyART. I also help my clients manage their own sites on WordPress, taking on editing, freelance writing, and SEO optimization work.
Elisha and her sister are also homeschooled. She graduated high school before her 17th birthday and is planning for college right now to major in English and Editing. She considers herself a Word NERD and an absolute geek when it comes to books. (She’s also a grammar police, according to her family and practically everyone who knows her.)
I believe this is my third year speaking at WordCamp DFW! It has been quite a journey, and in my opinion it’s always the speaking engagement that is perfect for the end of my year. I always love the after parties because of the connection and conversation, but also because we WordCamp attendees really know how to party and dance!
Give her a shoutout on social media @WhollyART on all major platforms, and be sure to email her elisha@whollyart.com if you have any questions!
We’d love to see you at this year’s WordCamp DFW!  Get your Tickets here!