On Saturday, February 20, Conestoga’s Cambridge campus welcomed girls in grades 7 through 11 for Go CODE Girl.
The annual event provides participants with a chance to learn more about coding and software development, and to discover program opportunities available at Conestoga through hands-on activities, guest speakers and a tour of the campus.
“This is a great event to have,” said Margo Tavares, a first year student in the Computer Programmer/Analyst program and a volunteer at Go CODE Girl. She worked with some of the girls in the activity lab to program a mobile app.
Tavares said Go CODE Girl provides students with an opportunity to see what coding is all about, and reminds them there are other girls interested in the field. As just one of five women in her program, she knows how important that is.
Parents were invited to participate in the event and listened to keynote speaker Stephanie Rozek, campaign director for Waterloo Region’s Year of Code, along with a panel of five other women that work in technology. The panel included two Conestoga graduates who shared their experiences at the college and discussed their careers.
Panelists reminded parents of the unique opportunities available in the Waterloo Region and encouraged them to help their children understand and explore technology. Rozek also emphasized the importance of having more diversity in the community: “We need to get more women into tech and we need to keep them there.”
Go CODE Girl is sponsored by the Ontario Network of Women in Engineering and is hosted at schools of Engineering and Information Technology across the province each year.
Conestoga is the only college in Ontario to offer accredited engineering degree programs. Learn more through the Engineering website and the Women in Engineering and Technology website