Most Admired
son realize technology is not only a growing industry but also one that’s fun and exciting to work in,” said Detra Newhouse.
Leslie Gray said, “We’re showing these girls that IT is much more than just punching out code all day; they’re getting an exciting education in the business of technology.”
DigiGirlz was born when 2 Microsoft employees had a desire to reach out to young girls and end the notion that IT was a male-dominated field. For the past 10 years, Microsoft has used the program to mentor eager young women looking to pursue careers in information technology fields.
According to the Puget Sound Center study, participants commented on how the diversity of women at Microsoft and their professional stories provided valuable insight into career choices.
Microsoft works with educational institutions, community or- ganizations and agencies to ensure that a diverse base of stu- dents are recruited into the program. Sharon Cates-Williams, the deputy chief information officer for IT delivery services for the New York State Office of Information Technology, joined Microsoft at DigiGirlz Day held at the University at Albany to
“Innovation is for everyone. Microsoft’s DigiGirlz programs strive to provide young women with the expertise and direction to succeed in a world becoming more dependent on the latest technology.”
—Keami Lewis
help inspire and mentor the next generation of female IT leaders.
“I am extremely pleased to be a part of the DigiGirlz program. Women are underrepresented in the technology profession and it is particularly important to create opportunities to introduce young women to hands-on technology learning and thinking. Events like DigiGirlz provide young women the opportunity to imagine and explore the many exciting careers they can consider in technology,” said Cates-Williams.
What’s next for DigiGirlz in the coming decade?
Microsoft continues to evolve the DigiGirlz program and cur- riculum as technology grows and changes. Future evolutions will include a more robust online curriculum, including virtual-
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hosted labs that are proctored remotely by former DigiGirlz, in order to help broaden the reach of the programs.
In addition, Microsoft spokespeople say , we expect to see more virtual collaboration across the camps, as we saw in 2008 when the Fargo and Sweden camp teams joined to con- nect their participants as they were hosting camps during the same time frame.
DigiGirlz events and camps are held all over the world and designed to provide high school girls with a better under- standing of what a career in technology is all about. Through DigiGirlz, Microsoft aims to educate and inspire next genera- tion women IT leaders by introducing them to the opportuni- ties and career choices available. During one day events and camps, students interact with Microsoft employees and man- agers to gain exposure to careers in business and technology and to get an inside look at what it’s like to work at Microsoft.
Nationally, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that more than 300,000 technology-related jobs remain unfilled for lack of qualified workers. Statistics related to female leader- ship in technology are staggering:
Girls comprise fewer than 15 percent of all Advanced Place- ment computer science test takers in secondary schools. This is the lowest of any AP discipline.
Between 1983 and 2006, the share of computer science bach- elor’s degrees awarded to women dropped from 36 to 21 percent.
Women constitute 46.5 percent of the workforce in the U.S., but hold just 25 percent of mathematical and computer sci- ence jobs and 11 percent of engineering jobs. Of the women in engineering professions, only seven percent are Hispanic and six percent are African American (U.S. Department of Labor, 2008; National Science Foundation, 2007).
With DigiGirlz programs, Microsoft seeks to pivot to a different reality.
HISPANIC ENGINEER & Information Technology | 2011 31
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