Welcome To IGNITE!
What does IGNITE do?
IGNITE, an acronym for Inspiring Girls Now in Technology Evolution. IGNITE is a network of volunteers who tell their stories to young women.
The girls—typical high school students trying to figure out what to do with the rest of their lives—use familiar technology everyday (cell phones, video games, the Internet), but most have never considered careers that envision, develop, market, sell, apply, or rely on these and other technologies.
Inspiring young women to consider technology and high wage STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) careers as a positive career choice. Collaboration between industry and schools to create IGNITE chapters is the goal. IGNITE in every middle school, high school and college.
Volunteers tell their story to the girls, and that is the heart or our program. We have a toolkit of activities including, IGNITE Presentations, trips to industry, trips to colleges, conferences, job shadows, internships and mentoring. When the Professionals share their personal stories with the girls, sparks of curiosity, knowledge, hope, and possibility are created. The synergy generated by this interaction soon has the girls blazing paths to previously unimagined futures.
“To create the connections that make IGNITE unique, women share details about their lives to show that they are real people. We’ve heard women share difficulties such as pregnancy, dyslexia, and running away from home. It’s the realness of these struggles that draws the girls in and creates the magic. That’s what makes this program different and successful.”– Cathi Rodgveller, Director of IGNITE
IGNITE has been steadily building a success story, and we welcome you to join us.
Welcome to IGNITE-us.org!
Innovation, Education, and Leadership in Africa: Building Blocks for Development
September 23rd, the World Affairs Council will be hosting an event at the University of Washington featuring Ashesi University leadership and two women alumni from Ghana, titled, “Innovation, Education, and Leadership in Africa.” The event is part of the World Affairs Council’s Africa Connected Series, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates FoundationBill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
IGNITE has a special connection with Ghana through our IGNITE chapter there, so we are particularly interested in the two women panelists from Ghana, one of whom has a degree in Business Administration and the other of whom has a degree in Computer Science.
We are looking for one of our professional members to serve as the face of IGNITE at this high profile event. Please consider volunteering to network and represent IGNITE. Email us if you are interested in getting more involved with the event.
Interested in attending? Register at the World Affairs Council website.
Meeting at World Affairs Council, June 23, 2010
IGNITE is going into many new countries!
IGNITE launch, Lagos, Nigeria, June 10th, 2010
"I liked the fact that we had a chance to hear about the life and challenges of experienced women. We had freedom to ask them questions. The most interesting thing I heard was about determination. I learnt that we should always do what we love and be the best in all our endeavours."
Hi All:
IGNITE Nigeria Chapter had her inaugural event yesterday Thursday, June 10th in Lagos.
We had a super fabulous presentation yesterday at Public Affairs Section, US Consulate, Lagos Nigeria. What an amazing turnout - the hall was almost full!! We had more than six schools in attendance. The girls asked a lot of questions - great questions! We could have been there several more hours, if we were able. The speakers and everyone present were beyond words. The stories by the speakers were so heartfelt, inspirational, and fascinating. Even with all those girls you could hear a pin drop!! Each woman simply told her own story, which is the heart of what we do in IGNITE.
IGNITE Conference in Spokane, March 4th, 2010
On March 4th, 2010 Spokane Community College hosted the second annual IGNITE conference. Over 85 Girls from 14 local high school and middle schools participated in the county wide event. The girls who attended met with and learned from women who hold working titles such as computer forensic scientist, component engineer, biological scientist, chemistry professor, and application engineer.
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