Motivated by 28 years of experience as founder and director of the National Computer Camps (NCC) in which participation by girls was only around 10 percent, Dr. Michael Zabinski, has set up a free camp this summer to introduce middle-school female students to the creativity and fun of computers. The camp takes place August 1-5.
A professor of physics and engineering at Fairfield University, Dr. Zabinski says that even though women pioneered the computer industry alongside men, they were and remain under-represented in the field. He cites a report that in 1999, women earned less than 20% of undergraduate computer science degrees, while in 2001 the Connecticut Mastery Test shows female and male students in grades 4, 6, and 8 scoring equally (within 1 percent) in mathematics and the 2001 Connecticut Academic Peformance Test (CAPT) shows equal performance between boys and girls in tenth grade science. The data, he says, suggest that girls do as well as boys in science and mathematics, but do not elect a course of study in technology.
Working in partnership with five area school districts, Dr. Zabinski has enrolled 25 female students entering 7th grade into the technology camp for girls. The students were selected with the help of five liaison teachers in the school districts of Bridgeport, Fairfield, Newtown, Norwalk and Trumbull. The one-week summer camp, conducted in a state-of-the-art facility on the University campus, will be staffed by female computer science majors currently enrolled at Fairfield University, as well as experienced NCC counselors. These young women will serve as role models, fostering intergenerational relationships and gender-affirming identities with the adolescent campers.
The campers will learn about computer programming and how to write their own home pages. They will cover topics such as graphics and animation, spreadsheets and slide shows.
Then, when they return to school in the fall, the 25 campers and their liaison teachers will organize computer clubs at their respective schools, with the teachers serving as advisors and the girls as leaders. The clubs will meet once a week for the entire 2005-2006 academic year. Dr. Zabinski plans to visit each school and meet with its five camp participants and their liaison teacher.
Supporting the effort with sponsorships and grants in kind totaling more than $10,000 are Fairfield University, The American Association of University Women (AAUW), National Computer Camps, Inc., The Harvey Hubbell Foundation and the Fairfield County Community Foundation Fund for Women and Girls.
The Fairfield County Community Foundation is a growing community foundation with assets of approximately $65 million in 210 different donor funds established by individuals, organizations, families and corporations to serve Fairfield County now and in the future. Through the Community Foundation, donors support programs operated by not-for-profit organizations in community and economic development, children and youth, women and girls, health and human services, the environment, arts and culture, and nonprofit organizational effectiveness. In 2004-05, according to Fairfield County Community Foundation Board Chair Wilmot Harris, the Community Foundation awarded grants to nonprofit organizations totaling over $6 million.
The Fairfield County Community Foundation Fund for Women and Girls is a field of interest fund of the Foundation (FCCF) that was established to expand the capacity of women to be effective philanthropists.
Specifically, the Fund was created by women for women to:
The Fund for Women and Girls is designed to change its grant making focus every few years to address the changing needs of women and girls in Fairfield County. Currently the Fund focuses on gender-specific programs that promote positive development in girls and young women ages 7-18. For more information about the Fairfield County Community Foundation, please call (203) 834-9393 or visit www.fccfoundation.org .
Demonstration/Open House: Thursday, Aug. 4, from 4 to 5 p.m.
The McDonnell Atrium, Bannow Science Building, Fairfield University
Editors: The event is NOT open to the public, but reporters are invited to cover.
To contact Dr. Zabinski:
zabinski@mail.fairfield.edu
Posted On: 07-20-2005 10:07 AM
Volume: 37 Number: 300