Day-long event spotlighting skills and careers for future women in technology
Not so long ago, the world of computers and high-tech gadgetry seemed to be a fairly closed “boys club.” Software and mainframes, satellites and gigabytes tended to be male-dominated career fields.
A team at Kirkwood Community College says that attitude is so last-century. The college will host a High-Tech Girlz Day Friday, October 23, presenting interactive workshops and presentations on GPS/GIS systems, Local Area Networking, Web design and other future-focused careers for area high school females.
Kirkwood Business and Information Technologies Coordinator Michelle Kruse is part of the High-Tech Girlz Day organizing team and says the event gets area high school girls from 9th grade to seniors involved in promising career ideas.
“This is a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience in a variety of information technology fields taught here at Kirkwood. We have designed projects and demonstrations so the students can rotate through our labs to get direct experience in these skills. We call them ‘byte-sized’ learning sessions. We got some great comments from the students last year and hope for even more this time,” Kruse said.
The High-Tech Girlz Day programs are set from 9 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. and will feature presentations on:
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• Local Area Networking Management (LAN)
• Computer Support and Hardware Repair
• Web Design, Development and Marketing; and
• Computer Programming
Participating students will receive a complementary T-shirt and a computer flash drive. Lunch will be served during the one-day program. The project is supported in part by a grant from the Alliant Energy Foundation.
Registrations are open through Friday, Oct. 16 for Kirkwood High-Tech Girlz Day. Students can register online at: www.kirkwood.edu/techgirlz
More information on the event is available from Michelle Kruse via e-mail: [email protected]