WiTT News

Approximately one year ago, Bridgestone approached WiTT about creating a new mentor program for our members.

As a new sponsor of WiTT, Bridgestone was looking for a way to not only make an impact on the community but also to improve diversity in their workforce and connect with local women in the IT field. We are so grateful to Bridgestone for the time and effort they put into organizing and leading this program.

While most mentors were IT leaders, they were also able to provide mentors in other areas of the business based on the needs of our member applicants. Ultimately, Bridgestone selected 11 WiTT members to participate in this inaugural program, and the feedback from our members was overwhelmingly positive.

Our members have built lasting relationships that will continue to be valuable throughout their careers. We are now working with Bridgestone on a plan for the next cohort and will announce those details as soon as they are available.

"The Cyber Dragons are deeply grateful WITT and NTC for their support of the all-girl robotics team, the Nashville Cyber Dragons. The Cyber Dragons are proudly competing this weekend at the World Vex Competition in Louisville. As of this moment, our team is ranked 66 in the world out of about 850 teams. Next year the World tournament is in Japan!

Our team is comprised of students from several schools in Nashville (Hume Fogg, FRA and Valor) and is entirely self-funded. With your help, the team was able to buy the important robotics parts it needed to build and program and to help pay registration fees for competitions.

Only because of WITT/NTC support, our team able to compete in the statewide finals and win one of just three spots at the World Robotics Competition. Next year, it will be held in Japan!

The other two teams representing Tennessee, Franklin Road Academy and Brentwood Academy, are incredibly well-funded and very large and we are proud to both represent our state and share this international stage with such a high level of competition.

Please know that we are so grateful to WITT/NTC not only for the opportunity that your gift created to compete in the VEX World Robotics Competition but also to light the spark of curiosity about programming and robotics for our team of girls.

Thank you again for the difference you have made in these young women's understanding of STEM and for the unique opportunity to represent Tennessee at the World VEX Championship. We literally could not have done it without you."

Night of the Arts had a new flavor this year at Apollo Middle School. Students applied what they learned in their engineering, design, and programming club to create smart and interactive e-textiles. Students were encouraged to be creative, innovative, and tech savvy while learning and acquiring the skills that enable them to design and create artifacts inspired by the STEM kits provided to them by VGT. That is where innovative thinking and creativity are being cultivated and this is where we as WiTT continue to encourage and support our youth and girls.

Alexandria Miranda, a 6th grader at Apollo stood very confidently and passionately to explain to us how hard and frustrating it was to complete her project using the conductive threads, making sure they won't intersect so they don't create shortage in her electric circuit and the many other problems she ran into; She stated that  going through the many trial and error was a challenge that she loved making her realize that this might be a type of a career she aspires to. She extended her appreciation to WiTT for providing such an opportunity making her grow a passion for STEM.

NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 29, 2019—Golden Spiral, an integrated marketing agency serving B2B technology clients, has donated $5,000 to Women in Technology of Tennessee (WiTT), a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating new possibilities for women to succeed in technology and science careers. The donation will be part of WiTT’s contribution to eight scholarships for students at Nashville Software School, a community-funded nonprofit that provides intensive training and project-based learning programs in software development.

“At Golden Spiral we believe it’s important to support our local tech community, and we’re proud to partner with WiTT for this strategic investment in workforce development,” said John Farkas, CEO of Golden Spiral. “This scholarship fund will help students cover schooling costs and be more accessible for employment opportunities as they establish their tech careers. We look forward to continue providing this support through our involvement with WiTT in 2019.”

Golden Spiral’s donation to WiTT is part of a $19,000 fund with contributions from WiTT and other NSS sponsors. This money will be given to seven Opportunity Tuition students—who received partial scholarships upon their program acceptance—as a credit toward their remaining tuition balances. Additionally, some funds will go toward laptop costs for the students. Scholarship recipients include:

• Natasha Cox
• Leah Hoefling
• Mehret Kulala
• Fevan Mulugeta
• Ripal Patel
• Jessica Rodgers
• Emily Venturino
• April Watson

“We are thrilled to contribute to the NSS scholarship fund and are appreciative of Golden Spiral’s partnership in this effort,” said Marla Lamont at WiTT. “The scholarships align with our organization’s mission to not only promote women in technology, but to equip them for successful careers in their chosen fields. We look forward to seeing what the future holds for these scholarship recipients.”

About Women in Technology of Tennessee

Women in Technology of Tennessee (WiTT) is a community committed to promoting women in technology through scholarships, education, community outreach, and networking. For more information, or to become a member, please visit www.wittn.org. 

About Golden Spiral

Golden Spiral is a Nashville-based integrated marketing agency focused on meeting the unique needs of B2B companies in the technology arena. Established in 2011, the company serves a client base that spans the nation. Golden Spiral excels at translating complex tech-driven offerings into market-focused solutions that speak to buyers' real needs. For more information, please visit www.goldenspiralmarketing.com.

The 17th Annual TWISTER STEAM Conference was held on April 6th at Adventure Science Center where 38 professional women across STEAM backgrounds came together to present hands-on sessions to high school students to give these young ladies an experience of “a day in the life of” their particular career field.

Over 60 students attended the day long event where they experienced 4 different sessions, interaction with the all the volunteers, meeting new friends, photo booth fun, taking home cool door prizes and great memories! Cheryl D. Mayes, MBA was the keynote speaker kicking it off on ‘Building Your Personal Brand’.

Two high school seniors were awarded a scholarship based off their essay entrance where they addressed these questions, “As you look to enter college and then the full time workforce, what technologies will you focus on and what problems do you plan on solving through technology? And how? How will this scholarship help you achieve this goal?”

The winners…

• WiTT $5000 scholarship was awarded to Jessica Shields.
• Asurion $2500 scholarship was awarded to Tatyana Natal.

WiTT has partnered with Adventure Science Center for years to assist with the event in many ways beyond the scholarship by participating on the committee, helping with recruiting speakers as well as volunteers. This event is one of our most important and impactful Outreach initiatives.

We are lucky to receive handwritten notes from the students we work with, telling us about how that experience shaped them.

Between the lines, we see those moments of awe, inspiration, and gratitude to a new exposure and a new experience. Taking students into a journey that goes beyond just using technology but rather creating with it and loving it.

This year, we took part in the global movement “Hour of Code” at Head Middle Magnet School. We visited students in their classroom to engage them with hands-on activities, giving them the opportunity to learn how to code while encouraging them to start seeing coding as a new form of expression and a new context of learning.

The session was fun and inspiring, so their sponsoring teacher followed up with the below thank you note:

“I wanted to follow up with you today to express my sincere thanks for the great opportunity to engage my 8th grade students with technology and coding. They were still talking about your session today.

When you entered our room on Friday, students had mixed thoughts. Only a few of them had exposure to coding in the past but found what they learned awesome!

Sharing your experience with them and your career path was a great advantage. A few of the students wrote messages to you that I would like to share. The letters are handwritten from each student.

Again, thanks for the energetic session that has sparked an interest like none other.”

We are honored to serve the children in our community and, hopefully, sparking in them a love of tech.

WiTT's 2019 Board of Directors

Thank you to our members for voting in our 2019 Board election. We are pleased to announce our 2019 Board of Directors. 

All of these women are committed to WiTT's mission of providing technology leadership to women, providing options for women in technology to give back through community involvement, and encouraging young women to pursue careers in technology.

We also want to extend a special thank you to our outgoing Board members, Rebekah Panepinto and Betsy Wright, for their hard work and dedication to WiTT!

Marla Lamont, President

Meg Chamblee, Vice President

Beth Hoeg, Immediate Past President

Christine Smalley, Treasurer

Lurleen Sargent, Secretary

Juliet Orgain, Membership

Julie Danielson, Outreach

Kathryn Acord, Programs

Lane Harbin, Marketing

Amy Harris, Scholarships

Katie Prevost, Sponsorship (New role)

Joumana Rahime, Member at Large – Outreach

Deanna Steele, Member at Large (New board member)

Brian Moyer, ex officio Nashville Technology Council

Register!

It is very rewarding seeing young girls exploring STEM through engaging hands-on activities to find excitement and passion for fields they would not have learned about without the opportunities WiTT and our volunteers are providing. 

Here is what Janice Wildrick, an Android Developer, had to say after volunteering at Girl Power Camp:

“What an amazing experience volunteering at the Girl Power Camp! The memory that will stay with me the longest was one particular table of girls. As I was handing out the circuitry parts, each of the girls at the table said she was bad at engineering.  

As I worked with them on and off through the lesson, we talked a lot about how engineering (and STEM overall) isn't about getting things right the first time. What makes a person good at engineering is getting something wrong and going back to it over and over again until they figure out why it was wrong and how to make it right. 

At the end of the lesson, one of the girls at that table was the only one in class to have successfully inserted an on/off switch in her circuit. She was humble about her success but the pride in her eyes was undeniable; she was beaming.  

Amazing the power of a single hour and a bit of encouragement to change a girl's belief about what she can or can't do. Thanks again for the opportunity to volunteer. It was fantastic!”

When creativity merges with science, talents and untapped passions are discovered. During the three-day wearable technology workshop, a group of middle and high school girls began to develop and utilize creative, digital skills through the creation of tech-based projects. 

Ahmed Baali, Field Engineering Investigation from Nissan North America, visited our STEM workshop to speak about the implementation of technology in the automotive industry. The students were engaged and inquisitive, which is indicative of interest and newfound passion. 

We hope that, by raising awareness and providing such opportunities, more young girls will enter the STEM field in the future. STEM is a dynamic field, and to guarantee success in the modern world, we must inform the youth of the importance of technology.

Feedback from Students

“I have always been interested in the medical field since I’ve never been exposed to engineering. However, after this camp I will be considering engineering. This camp was awesome, and I learned so much while having fun. I would want students in the schools to learn how to put lights and sounds into card-making. It was such a cool way to express our creativity and design through the engineering design process”. Ramya Vadapalli, 10th Grade, Ravenwood High School

“I loved this workshop more than I thought I would. I am glad my mom made me come. The part I liked the most was when we made our own stuffed object and we put LED lights in it wherever we wanted it to light up”. Kevelyn Syas, 11th Grade, Oakland High school

“I really liked this session, it opened new doors that I didn’t even know were possible and I had so much fun while doing so. My favorite part was sewing my car together and seeing it light up. Overall, it was an experience that I definitely recommend.” Sloane Chestler, 10th Grade, Ensworth School