Carroll Computer Science Department hosted the 6th annual Montana NCWIT (National Center for Women and Information Technology) Aspirations in Computing Contest on Saturday, April 7, in the Fortin Scola.
Computer Science Professors Steve Harper and Dr. Ted Wendt were excited to host the banquet again this year to honor these promising Montana High School girls. Harper said, "It always fun to read through the accomplishments and aspirations of these young women. The group this year is particularly talented, and two of them were National Honorable Mentions!"
There are 16 winners this year from 13 Montana high schools. Three of those Montana winners are students of Carroll grad and Helena High teacher Buffy Smith. National judges pick the Montana winners and Buffy's students have been winners all 6 years.
The contest is part of an effort to encourage more young women to choose careers in technology, and will feature four Montana women from NorthWestern Energy, Northrop Grumman and Google talking about their technology careers.
The NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing was created to promote the computing aspirations of young women, introduce them to leadership opportunities in the field, and generate visibility for women’s participation in technology fields. Winners are acknowledged for their outstanding aptitude and interest in technology and computing, leadership ability, academic history, and plans for post-secondary education.
The contest is sponsored by NorthWestern Energy and Carroll College's Mathematics, Engineering and Computer Science Department.
NCWIT (National Center for Women & Information Technology) is a non-profit coalition of over 300 prominent corporations, academic institutions, government agencies, and nonprofits working to improve U.S. innovation, competitiveness, and workforce sustainability by increasing women's participation in IT. NCWIT's work spans K-12 and higher education through industry and academic careers. Find out more at www.ncwit.org.