|
A Place for Women in Technology: Julia Morgan Girls Meet Cisco and Google eMentors |
| Print |
|
E-mail
|
|
On Thursday, January 22nd, sixty-four 7th graders at the Julia Morgan School for Girls got a face-to-face tour with 15 Cisco and 16 Google eMentors, building upon the connections made in December, when JMSG hosted Cisco. The unique eMentor Program, which has been running for 8 years, allows 7th graders to send email correspondence with women in hi-tech fields for 5 weeks via safe, secure email accounts (through www.gaggle.net ), while being closely supported by the technology and science teachers.
The girls got the behind-the-scenes experience with their eMentors, who range in positions from computer programmers and engineers to marketing managers, and participated in a variety of hands-on activities like simulating packet-switching, learning binary counting, algorithms, and getting a chance to see cutting-edge software applications.
“Setting up the girls with eMentors helps them realize that working in technology is rewarding career choice, and a tangible possibility for women,” said Katie Topper, the JMSG Director of Technology, “ and we hope to inspire girls to take computer-related classes in high school and college where enrollment is predominantly male. The engineering field is in need of strong candidates from both genders.”
The school hopes to teach girls that there is more to working in technology than sitting alone in front of a computer all day, and help them understand that technical jobs require communication, collaboration and confidence - all skills that align directly with JMSG’s innovative academic and social program.
The Julia Morgan School for Girls is located on the Mills College Campus in Oakland, CA. For more information on JMSG, and our events, please see our website at www.juliamorganschool.org. If you are interested in supporting the JMSG Ementor Program, please contact Katie Topper at (510) 632-6000 x109. |
