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Tech-Girl Monthly: August 2015

Girls Leading the Way


Eve Ensler once said that “if teenage girls wake up, if teenage girls take it back, this whole world will change overnight because they have more energy, more brilliance, more gut-filled, open-hearted wisdom.” I’m a believer and being part of Tech-Girls has given me an amazing opportunity to see the energy, brilliance & wisdom first-hand. I’ve always felt that opportunity, access and support were the keys that unlock this potential. A recent study, Leaning Out: Teen Girls and Leadership, from the Harvard Graduate School of Education provides more insights.

“Our research suggests that the teen girls who are key to closing the gender gap appear to face an age-old and powerful barrier: gender bias, and specifically biases about their leadership.”

They offer the following advice for parents, educators and other adults to be intentional about combating these barriers:
  1. Check your own biases
  2. Cultivate family practices that prevent and reduce bias
  3. Teach teens to spot and effectively confront stereotypes and discrimination
  4. Don’t just let “boys be boys”
  5. Challenge teens’ biased assumptions and beliefs
  6. Use programs and strategies that build girls’ leadership skills
They also offer a checklist to help parents and educators identify high quality girls’ leadership programs and I'm proud to say that Tech-Girls meets and exceeds many of these guideposts. 

Spotlight: Keila Banks


Each month we spotlight a woman or girl in tech who inspires us. This month we are highlighting Keila Banks. She is a 13-year-old who recently gave a keynote at OSCON developer conference. What led her to this stage - a desire to follow her passions while overcoming stereotypes. 
“How would you define someone like me and someone like you too because I’m pretty sure that a lot of people in here have a lot of qualities or labels that really don’t go together. You don’t! That’s why I like to call myself undefinable. What you see on the outside looking at me and what I see on the outside looking at you is not what you really are. Join me in being an undefinable you.”

Check out her keynote yourself.

Get Involved!

Are you ready to become a mentor or sponsor a Tech-Girl workshop? Can you help us get the word out or cater an event? However you would like to get involved, we need you! 

Activities & Events

Live & Local

  • August 7 - Bio-Med Tech-Girls ReceptionJoin us in the i.Lab at UVA at 4pm to learn about this amazing program and meet the students who have been participating in it this year. Please RSVP.
  • August 12 - Make It @ the Library at 2:00pm. Kickstart your creativity in this Pop-up MakerSpace that meets on the second Wednesday of the month. August features Fun with LEDs. Grades 6-12. Registration recommended. Call 434.979.7151 x4 to sign up.
  • September 5 - Tech-Girls Running Team is fundraising for the UVA Cancer Center’s Breast Care Program through the Charlottesville Women’s Four Miler. If you are already signed up for the race, please Join the Team. If you are not running, but want to support the cause, you can Donate Now.
  • September 9 - Back to School: Engaging Women & Girls in Tech. Join the Charlottesville Women in Tech's monthly meetup with a panel discussion that will focus on ways we can all help engage more women & girls in tech. Panel participants represent local organizations including Girls' Geek Day, UVA Ladies in the Lab, UVA GEMS and Girl Develop It. Registration coming soon.
  • September 24 - Girls Geek Day Open House. Get a preview of the activities we'll be doing this year and learn how you can get involved as a parent, participant, volunteer, etc. The open house will take place from 6 to 7:30pm at Crozet Elementary School.
  • October 8 - CBIC Tech Tour. Open to middle and high school students from participating schools. Check to see if your school is on board the tour & sign up quickly. Spots are limited for this popular regional event!
  • Ongoing - Charlottesville Women in Tech Meetup. If you are a mom of a Tech-Girl & want to connect with other female techies or a woman in tech who wants to inspire the next generation, please consider joining us at a monthly meetup. More info.
  • Ongoing - Girl Develop It Central VA. What better way to inspire your daughter, grand-daughter or niece to learn to code than to learn yourself. Girl Develop It Central VA offers beginner classes in Charlottesville and Harrisonburg for adults.
  • Ongoing - Tinkersmiths Makerspace hosts a wide range of workshops that are open to a variety of ages and experience levels. Check out their latest meetups.

Virtual & Global

  • September 1-October 26 - NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing applications openThis award honors young women at the high-school level for their computing-related achievements and interests. 
  • October 9 (deadline) - CyberPatriot, National Youth Cyber Education Program. Middle and high school teams compete in online cyber challenges. More info.
  • Ongoing - Made with Code for classes & workshops geared toward girls.
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2015 Tech-Girls, This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
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