Participants Sought for Grace Murray Hopper Panel on the Computing Industry and Career Goals of Young Girls

Published 06/05/1997

For more information:
http://www.systers.org/hopper
Andrea Jepson, CrossRoads Foundation/Backyard Project
415-752-3886, andrea@dnai.com
Ann Redelfs, SDSC, 619-534-5032, redelfs@sdsc.edu

Six female panelists are sought to participate in a follow-on discussion for young girls attending "The Future of Women: Views from the Executive Suite" at the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference, September 19-21, 1997. The panel will discuss and answer questions about their education, career, and outside interests, including how they arrived at their present positions and their plans for the future. Potential panelists should have experience speaking or interacting with young girls, and will ideally represent diverse careers in computer science.

The attendance of 50 teenage girls between the ages of 14 and 17 at the Sunday, September 21st plenary session of the Grace Hopper Celebration is being coordinated by the Backyard Project. The organization was founded by CrossRoads Software President and CEO Katrina Garnett to address the under representation of women in the computer field. The teenagers are being recruited through math and science programs for young girls in the Silicon Valley, including a recent "Expanding Your Horizons" conference sponsored by the Math Science Network.

Garnett will be serving as a panelist for "The Future of Computing: Views from the Executive Suite," which will be hosted by Pamela McCorduck, author of The Futures of Women. Also participating on the panel are Ruth Ann Quindlen, a partner with Institutional Venture Partners; Linda Alepin, president and CEO of Pebblesoft; and Lounette Dyer, co-founder and CTO of Cogit Corp.

Potential panelists for the follow-on discussion should send a bio and resume to:

Andrea Jepson
c/o CrossRoads Foundation/Backyard Project
1960 Hayes Street #5
San Francisco, CA 94117
email: andrea@dnai.com
voice: 415-752-3886
fax: 415-752-0814

The submission deadline is July 1, 1997.

The Grace Hopper Celebration is a world-class technical conference presenting the significant contributions of women to the computing field. Inspired by the legacy of Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, a pioneer in the field of computing, the conference makes visible the possibilities, success stories, and rewards available to women in computing. At the first Grace Hopper Celebration, held in Washington, DC, in 1994, more than 450 computer scientists and students exchanged ideas and updated their knowledge, fostering collaboration between individuals working in various fields of computing.

The second annual Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing conference will be held September 19-21, 1997, at The Fairmont Hotel in San Jose, California. Professionals and academics in computer science and computer-related fields and students pursuing graduate study are encouraged to attend. For more information, connect to http://www.systers.org/hopper.