DigiGirlz High Tech Camp

DigiGirlz High Tech Camp a Great Success!

by Mary Burton High Tech Learning Centers Over 40 girls from 23 Puget Sound area high schools spent a week at Microsoft this August 2002 exploring information technology. They talked with high-level professional women, as well as toured various departments at Microsoft, including X-Box, Home of the Future, and the usability labs. One of the highlights was the daily hands-on workshops in graphic design, user experience, and web design. The girls learned various skills using PhotoShop, Flash, HTML, and JavaScript. The week culminated with a session on interviewing and resume writing, and also a panel discussion by some of the female high school interns who gave their perspectives about working at Microsoft. Since only about 20 percent of high tech employees are women, encouraging girls to embrace technology has been the focus of the DigiGirlz camp for the two years it has been in existence. Are we succeeding in our mission? We're finding that camp attendees are signing up for more high tech classes than they did before, and many of them came home from the camp requesting their parents buy them some great new software they had tried! Here's what some of the girls said about their experience: * In the short time I was at Microsoft I learned so much about technology, but also about how people can achieve professions that they love and enjoy. * It would be so cool to work for Microsoft! * They showed us all these cool products they're working on. * I want to get Adobe Photoshop and FLASH software. You can do so many great things with them. One parent commented about her daughter's week at Microsoft: These are exactly the kinds of things I had hoped she would say (the last two quotes above) -- but you never know, with teenagers. She came out of DigiGirlz jazzed about a career in high tech. Plus she wants to take classes in graphics and animation. So you hit your target, at least with her! Even the employees involved in the camp had a rewarding experience. Asta Glatzer, Microsoft employee and instructor for the DigiGirlz graphic design workshop, commented, "The girls learned so quickly. The more I gave them, the more they wanted! Teaching them and seeing them get so excited about what they were creating was the highlight of my week!" The High Tech Learning Centers, a program of the Northeast Vocational Area Cooperative, and IGNITE, a program of the Seattle School District, partnered with Microsoft's Diversity Department to provide this opportunity for girls to learn about the IT industry. Thanks to Microsoft for sponsoring the camp and for giving the girls an experience that can potentially change their lives. DigiGirlz proves that business/education partnerships can be incredibly successful and rewarding for all involved.