Over a third (38%) of women working in the IT and tech industry claim that a lack of females in the sector made them wary of entering the profession, according to Kaspersky’s latest Women in Tech report, Where are we now? Understanding the evolution of women in technology. Highlighting the importance of role models in the quest for gender diversity in the technology industry, the research also found that only 19% of women currently working in the sector were encouraged to take up a role in IT or technology by a female role model. The research, involving 13,000 men and women working in IT, found that almost half of women (43%) had to find their role through their own research. A further third (33%) were encouraged into tech during their education thanks to their school, college or university. These results show early signs of change at the grassroots stage, but that a current lack of female representation is still a key barrier to achieving a diverse workforce.

Dr. Barbara Ryder, J. Byron Maupin Professor Emerita of Engineering in the Department of Computer Science at Virginia Tech, has been named the recipient of the 2021 Harrold and Notkin Research and Graduate Mentoring Award. The award, sponsored by the NCWIT Board of Directors, recognizes faculty members from non-profit institutions who distinguish themselves with outstanding research and excellent graduate mentoring, as well as those who recruit, encourage, and promote women and minorities in computing fields. It is bestowed in memory of Mary Jean Harrold and David Notkin, in honor of their outstanding research, graduate mentoring, and diversity contributions.

Considering the crucial role Katherine Johnson played in helping humankind reach space, it’s only fitting that a space craft would finally be named after her. Northrop Grumman has announced that it will name its new NG-15 Cygnus spacecraft after the legendary NASA mathematician. The ship, which will bear the name the SS Katherine Johnson, will be used for an upcoming cargo delivery mission to the International Space Station. Johnson, who passed away last February at the age of 101, spent 33 years working at NASA as a mathematician. During her time at the space agency, her calculations of orbital mechanics - including trajectories, launch windows, and emergency return and rendezvous paths - were vital to the success of the first crewed space flights. Her work was so trusted that astronaut John Glenn requested that she double check the computer’s calculations by hand before he became the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962. Johnson’s story - along with those of Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughn, two other female African-American mathematicians working at NASA at the same time - was the basis for 2016 film Hidden Figures, in which she was portrayed by Taraji P. Henson. In 2015, Johnson was awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

AnitaB.org, The National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT), and the STARS Computing Corps (STARS) are conducting a survey to understand the impact of the global pandemic on the conditions of work and educational environments related to computing and technical degree programs and professions. Through the Investigating Compounding Impacts of Racism & COVID-19 on Learning & Employment in Computing & Technology (CIRCLE-CT) Study, we are gathering responses from individuals across the computing and technical ecosystem including K-12 teachers; post-secondary program leaders, educators and students; and individuals in the computing and technical workforce and tech startup communities. Individuals who are at least 18 years old are eligible to participate.

SWE Scholarships support those who identify as a female/woman and are pursuing an ABET-accredited bachelor or graduate student program in preparation for careers in engineering, engineering technology and computer science globally. In 2020, SWE disbursed nearly 260 new and renewed scholarships valued at more than $1,000,000! Applicants complete one application and are considered for all scholarships for which they are eligible.

In the early days of the pandemic, while patients in nursing homes were dying at an alarming rate, geriatric nurse practitioner Ashley Ritter was plagued by the same uncertainty around Covid-19 as the rest of us. Her patients at NewCourtland Services in Germantown had questions about this terrifying new illness; her colleagues at Penn had questions; her family and friends wanted answers. But mostly, she found what the rest of us did: Bits and pieces of science, mixed in with a lot of theory, panic and unproven advice. One source Ritter kept coming back to, though, was the Twitter feed of a colleague at the University of Pennsylvania, Alison Buttenheim, a behavioral scientist who specializes in infectious disease prevention and whose tweets shared the best science-backed information out there at the time. So Ritter, Buttenheim and Malia Jones, an epidemiologist at University of Wisconsin-Madison, started a Facebook page called Dear Pandemic, a source for easy-to-understand, science-backed Covid information written by a volunteer team of 12 women scientists from around the country and England, including five in Philly. The scientists call themselves “Those Nerdy Girls” and hail from a variety of research fields - epidemiology, immunology, mental health, demography, population science, behavioral science. Like Ritter, 11 of the 12 women have PhDs; three are also nurse practitioners; one is a medical doctor. Many were recruited by Ritter in the early days, as the initial group tried to find experts to answer particular questions and to keep up with the frenetic pace of information needing to be shared.

Girls Who Code's Virtual Summer Immersion Program (SIP) is a FREE, 2-week program for current 9th–11th grade students (rising sophomores, juniors and seniors), to learn about computer science, gain exposure to tech jobs, and join a supportive sisterhood of thousands of students around the world. The Virtual Summer Immersion Program is a 2-week virtual introductory computer science course for current 9th - 11th graders (rising sophomore, junior and senior girls and non-binary students). Students will learn how to apply computer science concepts to engaging projects during our virtual programming. The Virtual SIP will run for two weeks for up to four to five hours a day and will include a combination of both partner-sponsored and Girls Who Code virtual engagement opportunities. Each day, you log into your virtual classroom to attend daily instruction with the entire class, learn from your Teaching Team and practice concepts in smaller breakout groups.

In September 2018 - not long after Google removed its flippantly simple “don’t be evil” slogan from its code of conduct - artificial intelligence ethics researcher Timnit Gebru began working at the storied tech company. “There [were] so many red flags,” Gebru says. “I was fighting constant battles.” Barely more than two years later, Gebru was dismissed by Google. Her firing in December made waves across the tech industry, sparking conversations about diversity in tech and what an inclusive work environment does not look like. Though that conversation is evergreen in Silicon Valley, Gebru, a respected researcher, became the face of tech equity—and the shortcomings thereof. She’s spending the start of 2021 working on policy recommendations to address the industry’s diversity ills. But Gebru is also clear that none of those recommendations can replace tech company leaders taking responsibility for the culture in their workplaces and simultaneously working to change that culture.

The Girls Who Code Hiring Summit welcomes the Girls Who Code community of college students, recent graduates, and young professionals to network with companies looking to connect with a talented, ambitious, diverse group of technical students and professionals! Featuring mini-keynotes, a booth expo showcasing hiring partners, a student roundtable, and networking, the Hiring Summit will leave both hiring managers and job seekers with new connections, opportunities, and inspiration!

The Moderna vaccine has recently been approved, and Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett is one of the key scientists to thank. Read why visibility matters to her as a Black woman in this role.