Ever since its inception nine years ago, DigiGirlz has become known as a Microsoft event which has the aim of encouraging young women to get involved in science, technology, engineering, and math. Today, Microsoft UK has published a new post that highlights how the event in the UK also encouraged young women to “create amazing things.”
According to the Microsoft post, “around 160 girls aged 12 and 13 from 19 schools across England took part in the ninth annual DigiGirlz event at Microsoft’s UK headquarters in Reading.” The event featured prominent female speakers such as Microsoft Microsoft UK chief executive Cindy Rose, Microsoft cloud solution architect Claudia Lopez, and even a campaign producer from Rare Studios, Christina Parker. Other activities also occurred at the event, and the youth in attendance were tasked with coming up an idea for an app and filming their plan using phones and the Microsoft Surface Pro 4.
A team of girls from The Highdown School in Reading ended up first prize with their “Back of the Fridge” app, which is an app that gives suggested recipes based on ingredients people had in their kitchen. Mia Carter, a 12-year-old girl who attends the school, reflected on the program and said:
“Girls can make a difference… The event gave me confidence that I could do that [have a career in STEM]. Cindy [Rose] really appealed to me, she was really into tech. It would be cool to work for Microsoft.”
Cindy Rose, meanwhile, also reflected on the benefits of the program, and is quoted as telling the audience at the event:
Every day, girls are using technology just as much as boys, and we have seen today that they are just as interested in using it to create amazing things, too… The popularity of messaging apps and social media shows youngsters of both genders already understand the benefits of using technology to connect and collaborate. These will be vital tools when tackling future problems that affect the world.”
To learn more about the Microsoft DigiGirlz initiative, you can head over to this Microsoft web page. Once you’ve checked it out, be sure to come back to us here at On MSFT, and let us know your thoughts by dropping us a comment below!
