The Intelitek STEM and CTE Education Foundation(ISCEF) is partnering with Girls Who Code, a national nonprofit organization working to close the gender gap in technology and change the image of what a programmer looks like and does. Girls Who Code runs free after-school programs to promote gender equity in the computer science, technology and STEM fields. To further spur girls’ interest and participation in coding, the two organizations will promote one another’s activities in the mid-Atlantic states and have plans to expand their collaboration to other regions.
Through the Girls Who Code Clubs program, girls learn to use computer science to impact their community and join a supportive sisterhood of peers and role models across the United States. Clubs center around a Girls Who Code Project, where Club girls work as a team to design and build a project that solves real-world problems they care about through code (programming). Importantly, Girls Who Code Clubs teach girls much more than computer science: they help unlock potential for creativity, bravery, resilience and purpose as girls learn how to use computer science to impact their community.
The Girls Who Code- ISCEF partnership currently covers those Clubs in New York state, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Virginia and West Virginia. In those states, Girls Who Code will offer members of existing, new and forming Clubs the opportunity to participate in ISCEF’sCyber Robotics Coding Competitions(CRCC), which are web-based coding competitions that provide students and educators with the opportunity to build coding-robotics skills using a cloud-based simulation platform featuring a virtual, 3D-animated robot.
“Researchshows that hands-on experiences through events like CRCC and clubs like Girls Who Code significantly counteract the declining interest in coding that many girls exhibit as they age,” said Ido Yerushalmi, CEO of Intelitek. “Girls Who Code has done extraordinary work to narrow the gender gap in technology career paths, and we are delighted to be joining them in their efforts to explore and learn about computer science, its importance to our communities and the world and the opportunities for different types of employment in the computing fields through the Cyber Robotics Coding Competitions.”
“We’re so grateful to be working with the Intelitek STEM and CTE Education Foundation in the mid-Atlantic region. We’re bringing our lessons of bravery, sisterhood and coding to the area to show girls that they can change the world with computer science,” said Tarika Barrett, Ph. D., the COO of Girls Who Code.
The first CRCC was held in New Hampshire at the end of 2017 and gave rise to an international phenomenon that has resulted in more than 30,000 students all over the world participating in similar events. Of the competitions based in the United States, more than 32 percent of participants have been female. Beginning in October, up to 11 states across the country and counting will host Cyber Robotics Coding Competitions. For more information go to http://iscefoundation.org/cyber-robotics-coding-competitionor to express interest in organizing a Cyber Robotics Competitions for a school, district or state, contact ISCEF at .
About CRCC
The Cyber Robotics Coding Competition (CRCC) is the first-of-its-kind online competitiondesigned to be interactive and exciting as participants learn how robots work and expand their knowledge of STEM careers. Competitors undertake their missions on Intelitek’s CoderZ Cyber Robotics Learning Environment, a cloud-based platform featuring a graphical simulation of LEGO robotics kits. The innovative, online platform has a coding interface where users between 6and 12grade can activate a virtual robot, or “cyber-robot,” and watch the results in a real-time simulation. For more information about CRCC please visit https://crcc.io.
About Intelitek
Intelitek has been transforming education and bringing robotics into classrooms across the globe through comprehensive technology learning solutions for more than 30 years. The Company’s innovative tools and technologies empower instructors and inspire students to improve the world around them. Intelitek’s sustainable support and professional development ensure the continued success of educational programs. By helping deliver the competencies needed for in-demand careers, Intelitek is producing results for students, teachers, nations, and economies.
About Girls Who Code
Girls Who Code is a national non-profit organization working to close the gender gap in technology and change the image of what a programmer looks like and does. With their 7-week Summer Immersion Program, a 2-week specialized Campus Program, after school Clubs, and a 13-book New York Times best-selling series, they are leading the movement to inspire, educate, and equip young women with the computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities. Girls Who Code has reached over 90,000 girls in all 50 states and several US territories. To join the movement or learn more, visit https://girlswhocode.com.
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