Women in Computer Science offers outreach programs for girls ages 10 - 18 in Waterloo Region to encourage them to explore technology and computer science.
Technovation Girls
Technovation Girls is a program that runs from the fall until the spring and introduces girls and young women+ (including transgender, gender non-binary, and gender fluid) to computing via entrepreneurship. Participants identify a problem in their community, learn to create a mobile app or an AI solution to address that problem, and then pitch their work as a business. The Technovation Girls Waterloo chapter supports girls and young women+ between the ages of 13 and 18.
FLIGHT (Future Leaders Innovating to Go Higher in Technology)
FLIGHT is a virtual summer camp that introduces girls aged 13-18 who self-identify as Black or any other underrepresented minority, to tech entrepreneurship by teaching them how to; define a problem, think of a solution, prototype their idea, and pitch their project!
GIRLsmarts4tech
GIRLsmarts4tech is an outreach program aimed at inspiring girls in Grades 6 and 7 to explore technology. GIRLsmarts4tech is a good stepping stone for the Technovation program, though girls can go straight into Technovation.
Girls Mean Business
A program aimed to encourage girls and young women to explore technology and entrepreneurship through a series of hands-on programs for girls in grades 6 through 12. Programs will include standalone workshops, weekly after-school courses, and school break programs.
Resources for GIRLsmarts4tech
A list of resources for young female coders, including the Master's in Data Science Ultimate STEM Guide for Kids. The gender gap is slowly shrinking in these fields as more initiatives crop up, including organizations such as Girls Who Code, but since women are still vastly underrepresented, we’ve included STEM activities specifically for girls and young women.
Team Digital_Dragons, from Technovation Girls Waterloo 2021, shows off their favourite books for a weekly photo challenge.