Steffanie Rivers will host a Dallas red-carpet experience on September 19, designed to turn national television visibility into conversations about Black entrepreneurship, careers, HBCUs, technology, ownership, and the future of work.
Nationwide — Steffanie Rivers, founder and CEO of TCB Drones and the first Black woman in Texas to register a drone academy, is rolling out the red carpet for Next Level CEO: The TCB Drones Red Carpet Experience on Saturday, September 19, 2026, at the Tippie National Aviation Education Center in Dallas, Texas. The special event celebrates her appearance on Next Level CEO, the business platform led by entrepreneur and Shark Tank co-host Daymond John, while bringing together entrepreneurs, executives, educators, students, aviation professionals, investors, media personalities, and community leaders for an evening centered on networking, technology, and opportunity.
At the heart of the event will be an exclusive VIP Red Carpet Experience limited to just 27 guests. Priced at $97, the VIP experience will include exclusive red carpet access, a paparazzi-style arrival, a professional photo opportunity with Rivers, and admission to an exclusive Q&A in the VIP lounge. The intimate experience is designed to give attendees greater access to Steffanie while creating an environment where meaningful business and professional connections can develop. Once all 27 VIP passes are claimed, VIP registration will officially close.
The evening will offer much more than photographs and a television screening. Guests will experience professional photography, networking, drone technology demonstrations, and conversations surrounding workforce development, entrepreneurship, and the rapidly expanding drone economy. Attendees will also watch Rivers’ Next Level CEO appearance and hear directly from her about what happened behind the scenes and what comes next. “This isn’t about filling a room,” she says. “It is about putting the right people in the room so relationships can turn into opportunities.”
General admission to the event is complimentary, opening the experience to individuals who may have never considered careers or businesses involving drone technology. Steffanie hopes the diverse audience will create unexpected connections: a student could meet a future employer, an entrepreneur could meet a potential client, a school administrator could discover a new workforce program, or a corporation could identify a drone-service partner. “The television cameras may be focused on my journey, but September 19 is bigger than me,” Rivers says. “If somebody walks into that room thinking they missed their opportunity in technology and walks out believing there is still a place for them, then we accomplished something much more important than having a red carpet.”
Steffanie founded TCB Drones Academy to help everyday people understand that professional drone training can lead to far more than simply learning how to operate an aircraft. It can provide a pathway toward professional certification, a new career, an additional stream of income, a service-based business, corporate or government contracts, or an entry point into aviation and STEM. Drone technology is already being used across construction, inspections, agriculture, infrastructure, public safety, emergency response, education and logistics, and she believes Black communities should be positioning themselves now to participate in the industry’s growth.
“We cannot afford to be late to the next economy,” she says. “Too often, our communities learn about emerging industries after many of the biggest opportunities have already been claimed.” Her message is that Black Americans should not simply be consumers of the next technological revolution, but should also be trained, certified, employed, contracted, and positioned to own companies within it. “We can learn it. We can become certified. We can teach it. We can build companies around it. And our young people can grow up seeing themselves as part of the future instead of trying to catch up to it.”
How to Register
Next Level CEO: The TCB Drones Red Carpet Experience will take place Saturday, September 19, 2026, at the Tippie National Aviation Education Center, 5657 Mariner Drive in Dallas, Texas. General admission is complimentary, while the VIP Red Carpet Experience is $97 and limited to only 27 guests. Event information and registration are available at SteffanieRedCarpet.com/next-level-ceo
For Rivers, the red carpet may celebrate one Black woman’s journey, but the larger mission is to make sure she is not the last.
About the Founder
Steffanie Rivers is an entrepreneur, drone educator, and founder of TCB Drones. She became the first Black woman in Texas to register a drone academy and has built her platform around expanding awareness of professional opportunities in drone technology, aviation education, entrepreneurship, and workforce development.
Her work focuses on helping aspiring pilots, professionals, businesses, schools, and organizations better understand how to use unmanned aircraft systems safely, legally, and professionally.
About TCB Drones
TCB Drones is a Dallas-area drone education and professional-services organization providing drone training, FAA Part 107 preparation, hands-on flight education, workforce development, and education around commercial drone applications. Learn more at TCBDrones.com
For press inquiries, contact Kevin D. Williams, Opportunities Strategist, Team Vision, LLC, 501-952-4331 or
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