IGNITE was featured in the Local Section of the Seattle Times.

From the Seattle Times article: "The 16-year-old's blunt question came after the pizza lunch Thursday at an all-girls high-school field trip to take a tour and meet women working at Microsoft in Redmond. More than a dozen female professionals from throughout the company sat on folding chairs up front, passionately coaching the dozens of girls, some of whom were teen mothers, on how to go for it in the male-dominated field of high-tech . . . "

Read the complete article here.

The Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board is a state agency committed to the development of a highly skilled workforce that will sustain Washington's economic vitality. The title of this year's conference is Sector Strategies: Building Washington's Workforce, Industry by Industry. As in the past, the conference will explore effective workforce development strategies, share promising and "tested" best practices, and examine national and state policies on the horizon. We expect about 500 people to attend this event—state and local leaders from business, labor, education (both K-12 and higher education), as well as economic development. The Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board (Workforce Board) is a tripartite partnership of business, labor, and government with a membership of 11. The Workforce Board advises the Governor on workforce development policy, ensures that the state’s workforce preparation services and programs work together, and evaluates performance. The Board also advocates for the nonbaccalaureate training and education needs of the workers who account for about 75 percent of Washington State’s workforce.

It was a very eventful summer for IGNITE. We won the prestigious PROGRAMS AND PRACTICES THAT WORK, and met with Senator Cantwell and Senator Murray in Washington DC. I did a speech in the Congress, which was attended by a huge entourage of IGNITE members. It was quite an exciting event. To read more please visit www.ignite-us.org, to see all of us with Senator Cantwell. Today I received our picture with Senator Murray and will figure out how to get that up on line so everyone can see it too.

IGNITE is an organization of women volunteers who got together some years ago to join forces and tackle the problem of scarcity of women in the technology industry (which is 15% currently). They hope to serve as strong role models and mentors to high school girl students on the verge of making a career choice. Ignite provides various opportunities to young women like organizing job shadows, career talks and field trips to Microsoft.

Cathi, the IGNITE founder, and women from Microsoft, Cisco, T-Mobile, Seattle School District, University of Washington, Seattle Univeristy, Expedia, and The Boeing Corporation pictured along with Washington Senator Maria Cantwell.

More pictures from the event

IGNITE (Inspiring Girls Now In Technology Evolution), an innovative program connecting high school girls with professional women in technology careers, was the 2007 winner of the national “Programs and Practices that Work: Preparing Students for Nontraditional Careers” Award. IGNITE founder Cathi Rodgveller, an SPS nontraditional careers specialist, and technology industry leaders including Microsoft Women in IT, Cisco, T-Mobile, Seattle School District, University of Washington, and The Boeing Corporation, were recognized for their accomplishments at a congressional and media briefing on Capitol Hill July 19, 2007.