Communications of the ACM
Tech Girlz Rule: Microsoft Camps Designed to Draw Young Women Into Field
Campers gather around demonstration tables during the three-day DigiGirlz Technology Camp at Microsoft in Fargo, ND. The camp is designed to draw young women into a field lightly represented by females.
Credit: David Samson / The Forum
Microsoft's Fargo, ND campus drew participants from multiple states to a three-day event designed to spark interest and provide role models for the next generation of female information technology (IT) professionals. Part of Microsoft's DigiGirlz initiative, the program provides laptops and other equipment, and Microsoft employees donate their time to teach different IT skills. "We need more females, we need more males — but we really need more females to balance out the disparity," says Microsoft Fargo's Katie Hasbargen.
Just 25 percent of IT jobs currently are held by women, according to the National Center for Women & Information Technology. In addition, a shortage of female students in technical fields leads to a shortage of female faculty and role models, which further discourages female students from enrolling, says North Dakota State University's (NDSU's) Brian Slator.
NDSU, Minnesota State University Moorhead, Concordia, and 18 other schools in the region take part in Mentorship Outreach and Retention in Education, another Microsoft program designed to expose college students to female role models in the industry. The Microsoft program fosters relationships between students and teachers, as each Microsoft employee works with a small group of no more than eight participants.
From INFORUM
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