Revolutionizing the Face of Technology.SM

“Investing in research and
education is critical.
So is investing in a more
diverse workforce.
Support for the National
Center for Women &
Information Technology is
key to encouraging young
women to study computing
and empowering women to
play a central role in the
technology workforce.”
Bill Gates
Chairman and Chief Software Architect,
Microsoft Corporation
Revolutionizing the Face of Technology.
SM
in•for•ma•tion tech•nol•ogy
1: all forms of technology used to create, store, exchange
and use information in its various forms;
2: the design and use of computers and communications to
improve the way we live, learn, work and play.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
It’s the language, the medium, the toolbox of our lives.
We use it to communicate and innovate, in our work
and in our play. More and more, it is the means we depend
on for our individual well-being and our collective
progress. Our participation in information technology,
as both its creators and its consumers,
guarantees that it will be a dynamic force in
our future; and technology’s pervasive impact on all
our lives makes our participation an imperative.
There’s a leak in the information technology pipeline.
At all phases of the education and career pipeline, girls and women – from sixth-graders to computer science
majors, from telephony engineers to chief technology officers – are opting out. The scale of the problem has
reached a critical stage, and the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) intends to do
something about it.
Why is there a Gameboy, and not a Gamegirl?
Although girls outnumber boys in sixth-grade math and science classes, they represent only 15 percent of all testtakers in Advanced Placement (AP) computer science – the lowest female representation of any AP test.1 At the
college level, where they earn more than half of all bachelor’s degrees, women are conspicuously absent from
technology fields of study. In 2005, women accounted for only 22 percent of all degrees in computer and information
sciences – down from 37 percent in 1984 – and the percentage is even lower at major research institutions.2
We are missing the input of half our society.
Women’s lack of participation in information technology is a phenomenon with deep implications for our country’s
preparedness, competitiveness, economic wellbeing, and quality of life. At a time when information technology
pervades our work, education, health, entertainment, and safety – and when the U.S. Department of Labor is
predicting that more than one million jobs will be added to the information technology workforce by 20143 – women
can, and must, play an important role in building a strong, competitive, and creative workforce.
Women bring a different life experience and a different perspective to the innovation process, and diversity in
innovation leads to the design of products and services that benefit a broader range of people. Research shows that
broad participation also benefits business. In a study of Fortune 500 companies released recently, those firms with
a higher number of female executives outperformed their peers, delivering return on equity far in excess of those
firms with fewer female executives.4 Women are a valuable, untapped resource whose absence can only be
measured in jobs not filled, technology not created, and problems not solved.
TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED WITHOUT WOMEN IS
ONE-DIMENSIONAL TECHNOLOGY: TAKE THE EXAMPLE
OF SPEECH-RECOGNITION SYSTEMS, THE GENESIS OF
OUR MODERN VOICEMAIL. DEVELOPED AND TESTED
WITHOUT THE PRESENCE OF WOMEN ENGINEERS, THE
ORIGINAL SPEECH-RECOGNITION SOFTWARE FAILED
TO RECOGNIZE A BROAD RANGE OF OCTAVES –
INCLUDING FEMALE VOICES.
What does it take to raise a little girl into a young woman
who excels in a career in information technology?
A study conducted by the American Association of University Women (AAUW) found that the majority of girls
surveyed want to work in a profession that they perceive touches people’s lives; unfortunately, most girls do not
perceive information technology as a profession in which this is likely or even possible.5
In fact, information technology suffers from its image as a predominantly male “clubhouse,6” an arena where men
toil long, solitary hours in front of their machines, producing technology for its own sake. Consistent reinforcement
of a “geeky” image and a lack of mentors, teachers, and role models in the field only confirms the stereotype of
technology as inhospitable or incompatible for women, and is cited as a major reason why girls show dwindling
interest in math and science at the high-school level, why female computer science undergraduates express a
greater lack of confidence in their skills, and why many professional women leave their jobs even before they can hit
their heads on the glass ceiling.
Why should we work harder to get women to work in
information technology?
In the U.S. workforce women make up less than one-third of all programmers, hardware and software engineers,
and computing and information systems managers – despite the fact that they hold more than half of all
professional occupations overall.7 Of corporate officers at the 500 top technology companies in the U.S., only 11
percent are women.8
Women are a growing technology consumer base: they purchase 66 percent of all home computers and accounted
for more than half of the $96 billion spent on consumer electronics in 2003; and female gamers over age 40 spent
more time gaming online than men.9 Yet women are not commensurately represented at the design table when
these products and services are created.
This problem comes at a critical juncture for America. Information technology is a fundamental driver of the
American economy, responsible for nearly two-thirds of the increase in U.S. labor productivity since 1995.10 The U.S.
Department of Labor estimates that the number of new information technology jobs will increase at more than twice
the rate of total new jobs by 2014 (31 percent versus 13 percent.11) However, U.S. universities will graduate only half
the number of qualified, degreed students needed to fill these jobs.12
THE MISSION OF THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR WOMEN & INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY IS TO ENSURE THAT WOMEN ARE FULLY REPRESENTED IN
THE INFLUENTIAL WORLD OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.
THROUGH A NATIONALLY CONNECTED EFFORT OF PROGRAMS, NETWORKS,
AND RESEARCH, NCWIT WILL WORK TO GUARANTEE THAT WOMEN’S
PERSPECTIVES AND SKILLS CONTRIBUTE SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE CREATION
AND APPLICATION OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.
We need a different approach to resolving
the lack of women in information technology,
and we need it now.
Educators, administrators, industry representatives, and policy-makers have been working passionately and
diligently to ameliorate the under-representation of women in information technology, but so far these have been
mostly localized efforts without a widespread national impact. Nearly three decades into the development of
information technology for mass consumption, women are losing ground in the participation process rather than
gaining it.
In February 2003, a group of nationally prominent individuals met to conceptualize a different approach. As leaders
in the areas of education, government, industry and community, these individuals provided a range of perspectives
but shared a common conviction. They agreed that there was a need for a broad, nationally-recognized effort with
maximum impact; and that this would require the creation of a national coalition among academic, industry, and
social institutions, uniting current efforts in order to accelerate their progress and extend their reach. This new
coalition would:
• Connect existing programs in education, outreach, and retention, uniting these localized efforts under
a national umbrella of support and visibility
• Positively change the image of girls and women in information technology, in schools, homes, businesses,
and the media
• Be a national enterprise run on a business model, with success measured in results
• Have the power to implement effective new programs, identify best practices, and disseminate
valuable research and data on a national level
• Be rooted in tangible goals and sweeping transformation
Their solution: the formation of a National Center for Women & Information Technology, to ensure that
women’s knowledge and skills are fully represented in the creation, development and consumption of
information technology.
NCWIT Startup Goals.
Strategic Focus Area
Year 1
Year 3
Year 5
Create Communities of Practitioners
Clearly define the problem.
Use primary and secondary
research to understand
reasons for it. Articulate
effective practices.
Research programs along
the entire pipeline (K-12
through industry careers):
launched. Support provided
by social science researchers.
Identify practices from
research findings and use to
inform NCWIT Alliances.
Populate practices into
NCWIT Digital Library.
Implemented research findings within NCWIT Alliance
member institutions (at least
two practices per institution.)
Track results.
Measure results. Assess
progress nationally.
Develop NCWIT metrics. Pilot
annual NCWIT Scorecard, a
barometer of women and IT.
Institutionalize NCWIT
metrics. Publish annual
NCWIT Scorecard.
Verified and/or modify
metrics by research results
of full system model.
Expedite dissemination of
practices by building and
supporting NCWIT Alliances.
Commit members to
institutional reform.
Workforce Alliance &
Academic Alliance memberships at critical mass:
meeting regularly.
Extend existing alliances as
appropriate. Establish
K-12 and Entrepreneurial
Alliances. Maintain regular
attendance at NCWIT meetings.
Identify at least 15 exemplar
institutions (that are meeting
their numeric goals) as
case studies. Scale results
nationally.
Communication pieces
Website launched. NCWIT
Prospectus re-printed. Stat
sheet and practices sheets
disseminated.
Create and launch press
campaigns, PR, and outreach. Revamp website.
Establish award program.
Use practices to inform
outreach collateral.
IT Image Campaign
Pilot awareness campaign:
completed.
Plan image campaign and
spokesperson.
Implement image campaign.
Washington, D.C. presence:
established
Influence innovation policy.
One major acceleration
program funded and
underway.
Second major acceleration
program funded and
underway.
Broaden the Conversation
Accelerate Progress
Foundational policy work:
launch and measure
programs.
The NCWIT strategy.
Although many organizations cover part of the
“women in technology” charter, NCWIT is the only
organization to address the end-to-end problem.
Instead of replicating all the same constituencies
as other organizations, NCWIT leverages and
coordinates the work of many efforts – building
capacity, reducing duplication, encouraging re-use,
and improving efficiency – following a cogent national
implementation plan.
NCWIT is organized as a national mobilizing agent,
forming Alliances with a broadly connected network of
partner organizations and individuals to give the overall
issue a stronger voice and achieve rapid change. NCWIT
is building a culture of evaluative evidence as it pursues
this strategy, assuring that all efforts are based on the
best social science research available.
NCWIT’s strategy is
three-pronged:
Create and empower national
communities of practitioners.
NCWIT has formed key Alliances focused on
institutional reform at all stages of the education and
workforce pipeline. NCWIT builds a sustaining
infrastructure for these Alliances to succeed in their
work by determining and distributing effective
practices, providing technical resources, supporting
educational events, and measuring progress through
goals and metrics. Over 70 universities, non-profits,
and corporations already are members of the NCWIT
Academic and Workforce Alliances.
Broaden the conversation.
NCWIT will spotlight the issue of women and
information technology by serving as a national
advocate through press, media, and image reform
campaigns, and by presenting a strong, united voice in
the media, in schools, at home, and in Washington, D.C.
Accelerate progress.
NCWIT will catalyze the attraction and retention of
women to information technology by targeting key
opportunities – such as innovation policy, nontraditional educational paths, and identifying and
leveraging best practices – that quickly increase the
number of women entering IT careers.
How NCWIT
builds capacity.
NCWIT is building organizational capacity for the nation.
NCWIT is organized using a distributed core-hub model, a model that encourages efficiency, supports existing
programs, unifies like-minded efforts, and leverages consolidated efforts for national impact. NCWIT’s core is
responsible for promoting resources, programmatic priorities, support, and visibility on a national level; while
NCWIT’s distributed hubs – consisting of academic institutions, businesses, and professional groups – act as the
flexible foundation for the creation and application of programs, research, and outreach.
NCWIT’s core is responsible for assessing programs and data; disseminating research and statistics; identifying best
practices; raising national awareness of weaknesses in the education and career pipeline; spearheading support for
technology-related policy issues and establishing an influential voice in Washington, D.C.; generating publicity and
marketing for NCWIT’s programs and mission; encouraging industry involvement; raising funds; and assisting with
event planning, conferences, and awards to encourage excellence. Although it is a small administrative body, the
core acts as an umbrella serving both the hubs and the general population.
NCWIT’s hubs are distributed geographically and represent excellence in a broad range of programs. Hubs collect
and contribute data for assessment and evaluation, and assist in NCWIT’s management and leadership. Sample hub
programs include: advancement of women into senior faculty, computing and information sciences positions;
research on women’s barriers to technical careers; identification of promising practices in undergraduate education;
identification of promising practices in informal K-12 education; and examination of community colleges as a
pipeline for women to earn four-year technology-related degrees.
The following organizations constitute many of the national leaders in advancing the participation of women and
girls in information technology. Their involvement as hubs is valued for their following areas of focus:
Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, Palo Alto, California: for its involvement in
undergraduate curriculum, relationships with information technology professionals and prominent
events and conferences.
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) New York City and nationwide: for its breadth of influence
among students, faculty and professionals, its K-12 Alliance and its extensive publications, symposia,
and online resources.
Colorado Coalition for Gender and IT, statewide: for the University of Colorado's research and
assessment group and ATLAS (Alliance for Technology, Learning and Society) Institute, the workforce
programs at the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, the programs for non-traditional
students at The Women's College, University of Denver, the Colorado community colleges, the K-12
programs of the Denver Public School System's Computer Magnet Program, and the breadth of Colorado
high-tech industries.
The Computing Research Association (CRA) and the Committee on the Status of Women in Computing
Research (CRA-W), Washington D.C. and nationwide: for CRA’s wide network of events and experience
with influencing technology policy, and for CRA-W’s emphasis on mentoring and recruitment for women
in academic and research careers.
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia: for its societal research concerning women and
technology, emphasis on graduate education and faculty advancement, and College of Computing.
Girl Scouts of the USA, New York City and nationwide: for its focus on motivating K-12 girls to become
interested in technology, its high-profile reputation and national reach, and community contact and
experience with influencing policy issues.
University of California at Berkeley and Irvine: for their links to community colleges (advancement and
recruitment), strong ties to the hi-tech digital coast, high percentage of women faculty in the School of
Information and Computer Science and Ada Byron Research Center for Diversity in Computing and
Information Technology (Irvine), K-12 outreach programs, and undergraduate curriculum and societal
research on gender issues regarding design and technology (Berkeley).
Empowering change agents,
leveraging success.
Forming strong partnerships with academia, industry, other non-profits, and
professional organizations is vital to NCWIT’s success. NCWIT Alliances and
the NCWIT Social Science Network are central to the NCWIT change agenda.
Alliance members act as change agents within their institutions, advise
NCWIT regarding needed research programs, and raise the visibility of the
issue on a national level. Membership in NCWIT’s Alliances provides many
benefits, including:
• Participation with colleagues from across the country
• Sharing of practices
• Discussing challenges and receiving input
• Access to NCWIT research and programs
• Leverage and national connections across
the entire pipeline
• Working for the greater good
The NCWIT Academic Alliance consists of more than 45 distinguished
representatives from the computer science and IT departments of colleges and
universities across the country, spanning research universities, community
colleges, women's colleges, and minority-serving institutions. Charged with
implementing institutional change in higher education, the Academic Alliance
provides feedback on NCWIT programs, contributes and adopts effective
practices, and serves as a national agent of change. It meets several times per
year to compare approaches and provide guidance and mutual support.
The Workforce Alliance leads NCWIT's efforts in corporate institutional
reform and helps NCWIT gauge its success in achieving workforce gender
parity. The Workforce Alliance facilitates ongoing projects, such as research
concerning women's career issues; contributes statistical information,
promising practices, and ideas for career development and industry
programs; provides advice about K-12 and higher-education outreach
programs; and supports NCWIT and its own work with annual funding.
The Social Science Network plays a key role in determining NCWIT's
evaluation techniques and research agenda, and serves as a valuable
resource to the Workforce and Academic Alliances. Over 15 social scientists
from preeminent institutions nationwide, with expertise in areas of history,
policy, anthropology, gender studies, technology, education, and workforce
study, provide guidance and research for NCWIT projects and lend their
evaluation skills to the determination of best practices. The Network also
guides the formation of evaluation procedures and research foundations and
identifies and disseminates theories relevant to girls and women and
information technology.
In 2006 NCWIT is forming a K-12 Alliance and an Entrepreneurial Alliance.
Strong leadership.
A CEO (based in Colorado) leads NCWIT and each hub provides its own
administrative team. NCWIT’s Executive and Leadership Teams and its board
of directors -- consisting of representatives from academia, industry, policy
and the community -- meet regularly to guide NCWIT’s mission and function.
“The IT workforce has
lost significant ground in
gender diversity in less
than a decade. This
disturbing information
should cause all employers
of IT professionals – both
in the tech industry and
outside it – to revisit their
own hiring procedures,
consider best practice
diversity programs, and
support industry efforts
to explore this issue in
greater detail.”
“Untapped Talent: Diversity, Competition,
and America’s High Tech Future,”
The Information Technology Association
of America, June 21, 2005.
The right solution. Right now.
“At a very fundamental level, men, women, racial minorities and the handicapped have different life experiences.
From the perspective of creative engineering, those differences are the fodder for creative, elegant engineered
solutions. They are a “gene pool” for creative engineering. To the extent we limit the gene pool for creativity, we limit
the set of creative solutions that we will produce. There is a real economic cost to that… an opportunity cost, a cost
measured in might-have-beens.
“Every time we approach a design problem with a pale male team we run the risk of not finding the elegant solution.
Diversity is essential to good engineering. If we don’t have a diverse workforce, we limit the set of life experiences
that an engineering team will have and, consequently, we limit the creativity that could be brought to bear. This is a
problem that we must solve.”
– William Wulf, President, National Academy of Engineering
We must recognize:
• that women’s participation is essential in building an information technology workforce that is creative,
innovative, diverse and responsive.
• that it is the responsibility of educational institutions, parents, industry and government to ensure
that women have opportunities in information technology.
• that current efforts to advance opportunities for women are not keeping pace with our country’s rate
of development, and require united efforts of a national scale.
• that this is not a women’s issue, because women’s lack of involvement in information technology
affects all members of our society.
• that this is an issue we cannot wait any longer to address.
EXECUTIVE ADVISORY COUNCIL:
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
Frances E. Allen
Marie Alexander
IBM Fellow Emerita
President & CEO, Quova, Inc.
Kathy Cloninger
Michael Borrus
CEO, Girl Scouts
Executive in Residence, Mohr-Davdow Ventures
Linda Dillman
Jack Burns
Executive Vice President and CIO, Wal-Mart
Vice President for Academic Affairs & Research, University of
Colorado System
Robert Dynes
President, University of California
Charlie Feld
Ronnie Caropreso
Senior Vice President, Technology & Operations, Bank of America
Executive Vice President of Portfolio Management, EDS
Harriet Edelman
George Fisher
Senior Vice President, Business Transformation & Chief
Information Officer, Avon Products, Inc.
Former Chairman & CEO, Motorola, Inc. and Eastman Kodak
Company
Pat Gelsinger
Brad Feld
Managing Director, Mobius Venture Capital
Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Intel
Corporation
Nick Grouf
Shirley Ann Jackson
Avis Yates Rivers
President, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
President and CEO, Technology Concepts Group, Inc.
Brian Hawkins
Lucy Sanders
President, EDUCAUSE
CEO, National Center for Women & Information Technology
Wayne Johnson
Kim Silverman
Vice President, University Relations Worldwide, Hewlett-Packard
Partner and Co-founder, Ops A La Carte LLC
Founder, Chairman and CEO, Spot Runner, Inc.
Maria Klawe
Dean of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Princeton University;
President, Association for Computing Machinery
Ed Lazowska
Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science & Engineering,
University of Washington
Michael Lomax
President and CEO, United Negro College Fund, Inc.
Tom Peters
We are grateful for the support of our current
Investment Partners: the National Science Foundation,
AVAYA, and Microsoft.
This material is based upon work supported by the
National Science Foundation.
Donald K. Peterson
Chairman and CEO, Avaya Inc.
Richard Rashid
Senior Vice President, Microsoft Research
Sally K. Ride
Former NASA astronaut; Founder and CEO, Sally Ride Science
Heidi Roizen
Managing Director, Mobius Venture Capital
Jerre Stead
Chairman of the Board, Information Handling Services Group, Inc.
John White
Executive Director and CEO, Association for Computing Machinery
James Wright
President, Dartmouth College
William A. Wulf
President, National Academy of Engineering
ENDNOTES
1 The College Board, 2005.
2 National Center for Education Statistics, 2006.
3 “Occupational Outlook Handbook,” Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2004-2005.
4 “The Bottom Line: Connecting Corporate Performance and Gender Diversity,” Catalyst, 2004.
5 Tech-Savvy: Educating Girls in the New Computer Age, AAUW Educational Foundation on
Technology, Gender and Teacher Education, 2000.
www.ncwit.org
6 Fisher, Allan and Margolis, Jane: Unlocking the Clubhouse: Women in Computing,
MIT Press, 2001.
7 Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2005.
8 “Women CEOs of Fortune 500 Companies,” Fortune, 2003.
9 Wow! Quick Facts, 2005.
10 Oliner, Stephen D. and Sichel, Daniel E., “The Resurgence of Growth in the Late 1990s: Is
Information Technology the Story?,” Federal Reserve Board, Washington, D.C., February 2000.
©2006 National Center for Women & Information Technology.
11 “Occupational employment projections to 2014,” Department of Labor Monthly Labor Review,
November 2005.
Our thanks to Hagan Communications for their design,
copy and guidance on this piece.
12 “Survey of the American Freshman,” Higher Education Research Institute, 2005.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR
WOMEN & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
GOVERNANCE
Board of Directors
Marie Alexander is the President and CEO of Quova, Inc. In her 20 years in the high tech
industry, Ms. Alexander has held management and executive positions in Engineering, Product
Management, Services and Support and Strategic Relationships. She held executive positions
at Vantive and Harbinger and prior to her entrepreneurial career, worked as a music therapist
focused on adolescent development. Ms. Alexander holds a Bachelor of Music Therapy as well
as a Master of Business Information Systems.
Michael Borrus is Executive-in-residence at Mohr, Davidow Ventures, an early stage venture
capital firm based in Menlo Park, California. Mr. Borrus is also an Adjunct Professor in UC
Berkeley’s College of Engineering (on-leave). Mr. Borrus serves on the Advisory Committee to
the U.S. Government’s Advanced Technology Program (ATP), several National Research Council
Steering Committees, and the faculty committee overseeing U.C. Berkeley’s Management of
Technology Program. He is an honors graduate of Harvard Law School, the University of
California, Berkeley and Princeton University and a member of the California State Bar.
Jack Burns is the Vice President for Academic Affairs & Research for the University of
Colorado System. He is also a Professor and active NASA-funded researcher in the Department
of Astrophysical & Planetary Sciences at CU-Boulder. Dr. Burns previously held academic
positions at the University of Missouri, New Mexico State University and the University of New
Mexico. He holds B.S. in Astrophysics from the University of Massachusetts, and an M.S. and
a Ph.D. in Astronomy from Indiana University.
Ronnie Carapreso is a Senior Vice President & Business Unit Executive, Technology and
Operations, at Bank of America. As the technology infrastructure executive, Ms. Carapreso
oversees the nationwide network of computing platforms for Bank of America. Before joining
the Bank in 2002 she was Senior Vice President of Technology Solutions for First Data
Corporation. She began her career with IBM and led the development effort of the US
Treasury’s Electronic Federal Tax Payment System. She holds a B.B.A in Business Administration
from the University of Denver – Daniels School of Business.
Harriet Edelman is Senior Vice President, Business Transformation, and Chief Information
Officer for Avon Products, Inc. She is responsible for Avon’s information technology strategy
and operations globally, delivering solutions and technology infrastructure serving over four
million sales representatives and operations in over 143 countries. Ms. Edelman is a member of
Avon’s Operating Committee and serves on the Board of Directors of the Blair Corporation, the
Direct Selling Association, the Police Athletic League and Hershey Foods Corporation.
Brad Feld is a managing director of Mobius Venture Capital. In 1995, he founded Intensity
Ventures, a venture affiliate of SOFTBANK that helped launch and operate software companies.
Previously, Mr. Feld served as Chief Technology Officer of AmeriData Technologies following
AmeriData’s acquisition of Feld Technologies, one of Boston’s leading software consulting firms
founded by Mr. Feld in 1988. He also directed the diversification into software consulting at
AmeriData, a $1.5 billion publicly-traded company which was acquired by GE Capital. Mr. Feld
serves as director to a number of privately held Internet-related and software companies. He
holds S.B. and S.M. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Nick Grouf is founder, chairman, and CEO of Spot Runner, Inc., a closely held technology
concern based in Los Angeles. Previously Mr. Grouf served as founder, chairman and CEO of
PeoplePC, a $200 million company offering computer technology and internet services. Nick
also was Founder, President and CEO of Firefly Network, Inc. – acquired by Microsoft in 1998 –
which led the development of personalization technologies for the Internet and pioneered the
P3P privacy standard. Mr. Grouf spent his early career with McKinsey & Co. and at Goldman
Sachs. He holds an M.B.A. from Harvard and a B.A. with Honors from Yale. He sits on several
boards, including the Alfred Meyer Foundation.
Avis Yates Rivers is President and CEO of Technology Concepts Group, Inc. (TCGI),
an e-business solutions provider. Until 1985 she held a number of positions with Exxon
Corporation and its New York subsidiaries. She has been named Entrepreneur of the Year,
Top-25 African-American Women in Business, and Top 10 Women in Technology. Ms. Yates
Rivers holds a BA, Business Administration from City University of New York and is a graduate
of the Executive Management Programs at the Amos Tuck School of Business, the Kellogg
Graduate School of Management and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Lucinda Sanders is CEO of the National Center for Women & Information Technology.
A recipient of the Bell Labs Fellow Award, Ms. Sanders retired as a CTO and Vice President of
R&D at AT&T Bell Labs, Lucent Bell Labs and Avaya Labs. Currently she is Executive in
Residence for the ATLAS (Alliance for Technology, Learning and Society) Institute at the
University of Colorado at Boulder, whose broad mission includes bridging information
technology with the arts, humanities, and social sciences. Ms. Sanders holds six patents in
the telecommunications area. She serves on the boards of several high-tech companies and
a number of non-profit boards.
Kim Silverman is Partner and Co-founder of Ops A La Carte LLC. Formerly Ms. Silverman
held the positions of Corporate Controller and Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at GRIC
Communications, Inc., where she was instrumental in developing the company’s automated
accounting systems and processes. Ms. Silverman also held positions with Silicon Graphics,
Inc., ReadiCare, Inc., and Touche Ross and Company, currently known as Deloitte Touche
Tohmatsu. Ms. Silverman earned her B.S. in Accounting at the University of Colorado and is
a Certified Public Accountant.
Co-founders
Dr. Robert Schnabel is Vice Provost for Academic and Campus
Technology and founding director of the ATLAS Institute. A faculty
member in the Department of Computer Science at the University of
Colorado, Boulder since 1977, he has been active in diversity-related
activities, serving on major strategic planning committees for the
Multicultural Engineering Program and the Women in Engineering
Program in the University’s College of Engineering.
Dr. Telle Whitney is President and CEO of the Anita Borg Institute
for Women and Technology. Before accepting the position with the
Anita Borg Institute she was part of the founding management team
at Malleable Technologies and served as Vice President until it was
acquired by PMC-Sierra in June 2000. In 1994, Telle co-founded the
Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing conference along
with Dr. Anita Borg.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR
WOMEN & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
HUBS
Participating Hubs
The Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology (ABI) is a nationally recognized organization that
believes women have a different perspective and that this perspective matters. ABI accomplishes its
mission through four platforms: The Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference,
The Systers online community, The Senior Women’s Summit and the Virtual Development Center. ABI
also partners in important initiatives that enhance its mission and support its constituencies. Each
program and initiative addresses the ABI mission in a unique way and focuses on specific communities
within its constituency. Industry, foundations, institutions and individuals rally around this effort and
contribute to ABI’s success.
www.anitaborg.org Contact: Cindy Goral, Director of Operations
Founded in 1947, the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) is the first society established to
promote the educational and scientific aspects of computing and information technology. Today, ACM’s
80,000 worldwide members include leading computer scientists, computing professionals, and students.
Through its Special Interest Groups, ACM sponsors and publishes the proceedings of over 85
conferences and symposia each year. The ACM Digital Library provides a bibliographic database of all
relevant articles in computing, with over 800,000 citations and growing. In addition to a world-class set
of programs for disseminating information and advancing the field of computing and information
technology, ACM’s mission includes assessing and influencing the impact of information technologies on
all aspects of society. At present ACM is engaged in helping shape U.S. public policy, improving gender
equity and diversity and influencing the teaching of computing and information technology.
www.acm.org Contact: John White, Executive Director and CEO
The Colorado Coalition for Gender & IT (CCGIT) is the "non-traditional pathways" hub of NCWIT, developing and piloting effective practices for recruiting girls and women in secondary schools, community colleges, and workforce centers to undergraduate IT programs in Colorado, and disseminating those practices nationally. CCGIT members include higher education, industry, and foundation partners, bringing
together a rich variety of existing programs and research from across the state. CCGIT will leverage the
research strength of the University of Colorado; the novel curricular approach used by the ATLAS (Alliance
for Technology, Learning, and Society) Institute; networking and innovation of the Workforce Programs at
the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment; the reach and focus of the Women's Foundation of
Colorado; the programs for non-traditional students at The Women's College, University of Denver;
Colorado community colleges, the K-12 programs of the Denver Public School System's Computer
Magnet Program; and the breadth of Colorado high-tech industries.
www.colorado.edu Contact: Deborah Keyek-Franssen, Lead IT Initiatives Coordinator
www.e-colorado.org Contact: Mary Ann Roe, Coordinator, e-Colorado Learning Portal, Colorado
Department of Labor and Employment
The Computing Research Association (CRA) is an association of more than 200 North American academic
departments of computer science, computer engineering, and related fields; laboratories and centers in
industry, government, and academia engaging in basic computing research; and affiliated professional
societies. CRA’s mission is to strengthen research and education in the computing fields, expand
opportunities for women and minorities and improve public and policymaker understanding of the
importance of computing and computing research in our society. The Computer Research Association’s
Committee on the Status of Women in Computing Research (CRA-W) is dedicated to increasing the
number of women as well as their degree of success. CRA-W fosters community-building through
professional networking, collaboration and recognition of women in computing, and its programs include
the Systers Academia electronic network and the Distributed Mentor Project.
www.cra.org Contact: Andrew Bernat, Executive Director, CRA
www.cra.org/activities/craw/ Contact: Mary Lou Soffa, Hub Director, CRA-W
Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), one of the top research universities in the country, shares
NCWIT’s commitment to increasing the number of women in computing. With the support of the College
of Computing’s Assistant Dean for Diversity, the Dean of the College of Computing, and the top Georgia
Tech administration, NCWIT will leverage Georgia Tech’s strength in societal research concerning women
and technology and its connections with colleges and universities in Georgia and surrounding states.
Programs include: an innovative introductory computing curriculum for undergraduates; the College-level
Diversity in Computing Advisory Board; the Technology, Engineering and Computing Summer Camp (for
middle-school girls) and Career Conference (for high-school girls); high-school AP-CS teachers workshop
and support; the NSF ADVANCE Program for Institutional Transformation (for faculty); and the Center for
the Study of Women, Science and Technology.
www.gatech.edu Contact: Mary Jean Harrold, NSF ADVANCE Professor of Computing
Girl Scouts of the USA* is the world’s pre-eminent organization dedicated solely to girls, where, in an
accepting and nurturing environment, girls build character and skills for success in the real world. In
partnership with committed adult volunteers, Girl Scouts cultivate their full individual potential. The
qualities they develop in Girl Scouting – leadership, values, social conscience and conviction about their
own self-worth – serve them all their lives. Girl Scouts believes that girls do have an interest in math,
science and technology; however, their interest is not reflected in their academic and career choices. Girl
Scouts wants all girls to know that they can succeed in these fields and that their participation is vital in
strengthening our new economy. Girl Scouts is working to change the image of technology through
projects like GirlFacts and Fair Play; and, under their Girls Go Tech initiative, to cultivate technical,
abstract reasoning and analytical problem solving skills in K-12 girls across the nation.
www.girlscouts.org Contact: Harriet S. Mosatche, Vice-President of Program Collaborations and Initiatives
The University of California (UC) hub will draw upon the vast resources and collective expertise of
programs and faculty in one of the nation’s premier university systems. Initial contributions will be
centered at UC Irvine and UC Berkeley.
UC Irvine’s School of Information and Computer Science and the newly established Ada Byron Center for
Diversity in Computing and Information Technology will support NCWIT’s mission with their broad,
interdisciplinary curricula and programs specifically addressing the recruitment and retention of women.
UC Irvine will leverage existing programs – including ADVANCE for Institutional Transformation (faculty
recruitment, retention, and advancement issues) and FOCUS! (math and science teacher training) – as
well as several other initiatives, including collaborative programs with local community colleges and
school districts, and ongoing information-technology-related outreach programs and summer camps.
UC Berkeley’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and Department of Electrical Engineering and
Computer Science are among the leading departments of their kind in the world. These two departments
and the Berkeley Expert System Technology Lab (BEST) are collaborating to develop innovative
approaches to involving women in software design and studying the impact of women designers on
information technology software, and will collaborate with NCWIT in these areas. UC Berkeley also
houses the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS), which is
developing information technology solutions to large-scale problems facing our society.
www.abrc.uci.edu Contact: Debra J. Richardson, the Ted and Janice Smith Dean, School of Information
and Computer Science
www.berkeley.edu Contact: Alice Agogino, Roscoe and Elizabeth Hughes Professor of Mechanical
Engineering, University of California, Berkeley
*The “Girl Scouts” name, mark and all associated trademarks and logotypes, including the “Trefoil Design”
are owned by Girl Scouts of the USA and are used here by permission of GSUSA.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR
WOMEN & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
ACADEMIC ALLIANCE
Current members of the Academic Alliance are:
Institution
Representative
Brown University
Carnegie Mellon University
Coastline Community College
Colorado School of Mines
Tom Dean
Lenore Blum
Sally Kurz
Tracy Camp
Colorado State University
Darrell Whitley
Columbia University
Cornell University
DePauw University
Dillard University
Duke University
Florida State University
Georgia Tech
Harvard University
Dave Waltz
Charles Van Loan
Jennifer Wofford
Gloria Townsend
John Wilson
Carla Ellis
Kathleen Burnett
Mark Guzdial
Margo Seltzer
iCarnegie Inc.
Illinois Institute of Technology
Indiana University
Dr. Marie Dahleh
Allan Fisher
Cindy Hood
Michael Dunn
Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT)
MIT Computer Science and
Artificial Intelligence Lab
MentorNet
Microsoft Research
North Carolina A&T State University
Ohio State
Carol Muller
Jane Chu Prey
John Kelly
Bettina Bair
Oregon State
Margaret Burnett
Penn State
Susan Shuman
Princeton
Purdue University
Adam Finkelstein
Julie Mariga
Susanne Hambrusch
Gene Spafford
Eydie Lawson
Ruth E. Davis
Rochester Institute of Technology
Santa Clara University
Rod Brooks
Eric Grimson
Title
Vice Provost & Past Chair, Department of Computer Science
Distinguished Career Professor of Computer Science
Department Chair, Information Technology
Associate Professor, Department of Mathematical
and Computer Sciences
Professor of Computer Science & Director,
Colorado State Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL)
Director, Center for Computational Learning Systems
Joseph C. Ford Professor of Engineering
Assistant Dean for Educational Programs
Professor, Computer Science Department Chair
Division of Natural Sciences and Public Health
Professor, Department of Computer Science
Associate Dean & Associate Professor, School of Information Studies
Director of Collaborative Software Laboratory
Herchel Smith Professor of Computer Science &
Associate Dean for Computer Science and Engineering
Assistant Dean for Academic Programs
President & CEO
Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
Dean, School of Informatics, Oscar R. Ewing Professor of Philosophy,
Professor of Computer Science
Panasonic Professor of Robotics & Director, MIT Computer Science
and Artificial Intelligence Lab
Associate Head of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
President & CEO
Program Manager, External Research & Programs
Chair, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Professor and Diversity Co-chairwoman,
Computer Science and Engineering Department
Professor of Computer Science, School of Electrical Engineering
and Computer Science
Assistant Dean for Equity and Diversity,
School of Information Sciences and Technology
Associate Professor, Computer Science Department
Associate Professor, Department of Computer Technology
Chair, Computer Science Department
Professor, Computer Science Department
Associate Dean and Chair, Department of Information Technology
Robert W. Peters Professor of Computer Engineering,
Associate Dean for Undergraduate Engineering
Current members of the Academic Alliance are:
Institution
Smith College
Spelman College
Stanford University
Texas A&M
University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Irvine
Representative
Joe O'Rourke
Andrea Lawrence
Eric Roberts
Nancy Amato
Sheila Humphreys
Debra J. Richardson
Sandy Irani
David Redmiles
University of California, Los Angeles Jason Cong
University of California, San Diego Jeanne Ferrante
NPACI
University of Colorado, Boulder
Elizabeth Jessup
University of Illinois,
Sam Kamin
Urbana-Champaign
University of Maryland,
Claudia Morrell
Baltimore County
University of Massachusetts,
Lori Clarke
Amherst
University of Michigan
C. Olivia Frost
University of Texas
J. Moore
University of Texas, El Paso
Ann Gates
University of Utah
Martin Berzins
University of Virginia
Jim Cohoon
University of Washington
David Notkin
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Susan Horwitz
Virginia Tech
Dennis Kafura
Scott McCrickard
Wellesley College
Panagiotis Takis Metaxas
Xavier University of Louisiana
Marguerite S. Giguette
Title
Olin Professor & Chair of Computer Science
Associate Professor & Chair, Department of Computer Science
Professor & past Chair, Computer Science
Professor, Parasol Lab, Department of Computer Science
Interim Director, Center for Transfer, Reentry, and Student Parents
Ted and Janice Smith Family Foundation Dean of the
Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Science
Professor, Information and Computer Science
Associate Professor, Informatics
Chair, Computer Science Department
Professor & Associate Dean of the Jacobs School of Engineering
Chair, Department of Computer Science
Director of Undergraduate Programs
Director, Center for Women and Information Technology
Professor, Department of Computer Science
Associate Dean & Professor, School of Information
Admiral B.R. Inman Centennial Chair in Computing Theory
Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science
Associate Director, The School of Computing
Associate Professor of Computer Science
Chair, Department of Computer Science
Professor of Computer Science
Professor and Computer Science Department Head
Assistant Professor of Computer Science
Associate Professor of Computer Science
& Co-Director, Media Arts and Sciences Program
Interim Associate Vice President Academic Affairs
NATIONAL CENTER FOR
WOMEN & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
WORKFORCE ALLIANCE
AND SOCIAL SCIENCE NETWORK
Current members of the Workforce Alliance are:
Company
Representative
Title
Alliance of Technology & Women
Bettyjo H. Bouchey
National President
Avaya
Susan Bailey
Vice President of Americas Global Accounts, Channels and Alliances
Veena Bricker
Director, Human Resources
Bank of America
Jane Kopper
Director, Card Operations & Engineering
Catalyst
Kara Helander
Vice President Western Region
Cisco
Van Dang
Vice President, Law and Deputy General Counsel
Christine M. Yoshida
Ed.D, Manager, Learning and Development
Kim Stevenson
Infrastructure Portfolio
Karen Charles
Service Delivery Executive
EDS
Google
Emily Nishi
Director, Diversity Programs
Robin Jeffries
Usability Lead, UI-team
Wayne Johnson
Vice President, University Relations Worldwide
Barbara Waugh
Founder, e-Inclusion
Kellee Noonan
Program Manager, Technical Women's Program
Junior Achievement
Cherlyn Linden
Senior Vice President/CIO of Information Technology
IBM
Margaret Ashida
Director, University Talent Programs
Jennifer Topp
HR Workforce Diversity Program Manager
Women in Technology Initiatives
Intel
Steve Tolopka
Senior Principal Engineer
Microsoft
Sean Kelley
Program Director, Global Diversity & Inclusion
Motorola
Lynn Zielke
Director, IT Project Management
Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center
Cheryl Begandy
Corporate Programs and Planning Consultant
Sandia National Laboratories
Joselyne Gallegos
Manager, Information Systems Development
Sun Microsystems
Linda Park
VP, Software Lifecycle Engineering
Katy Dickinson
Director, Business Process Architecture
Jay Littlepage
Senior Vice President, Customer Networked Services
Carol Mosely
Senior VP of Information Systems
HP
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Current members of the Social Science Network are:
Representative
Title
Research Area
Eleanor Babco
Executive Director, Commission on
Professionals in Science & Technology
Workforce & Workforce Diversity
Mary Frank Fox
NSF Advance Professor, School of Public Policy
Co-director, Center for Study of Women, Science,
and Technology, Georgia Tech
Sociology/Gender, Science,
& Technology
Gerhard Sonnert
Sociologist of Science, Department of Physics,
Harvard University
Science & Society
Janice Stockard
Associate in Research, Fairbank Center for
East Asian Research, Harvard University
Cultural Anthropology, Gender,
Family & Technology
Bill Aspray
Professor, School of Informatics, Indiana University
History/Policy
Genevieve Bell
Senior Researcher, Intel Research
Cultural Anthropology, Technology
Marjorie Bynum
Vice President of Workforce Development,
Information Technology Association of America (ITAA)
Evaluation, IT Workforce Development
Research & Strategy
Sarah Kuhn
Associate Professor, Department of Regional Economic
and Social Development and Faculty Associate, Center
for Women and Work, University of Massachusetts
at Lowell
Human/Computer Interaction;
IT Workforce
Justine Cassell
Professor, Media Technology & Society, School of
Communication, Northwestern
Communication, Gender & Technology
Penny Eckert
Professor, Department of Linguistics; Director,
Program in Feminist Studies, Stanford
Linguistics, Ethnography &
Feminist Studies
Jane Margolis
Researcher, Graduate School of Education and
Information Studies, UCLA
Social Inequity, Gender,
Ethnicity & Education
Lecia Barker
Lead Research Associate, ATLAS Institute, Evaluation
and Research Group, University of Colorado
Communication, Education,
IT Workforce Research & Evaluation
Margaret Eisenhart
Professor of Education, Fellow of the American
Anthropological Association, University of Colorado
Educational Anthropology &
Research Methodology
Joanne Cohoon
Research Assistant Professor, Department of Science,
Technology, & Society, University of Virginia
Sociology of Gender, Technology &
Education; Evaluation
Deborah Johnson
Olsson Professor of Applied Ethics & Department Chair
Department of Science and Technology Studies,
University of Virginia
Ethics, Science & Technology
Sylvia Beyer
Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin, Parkside
Gender & Self-perception
in Computing