Pass-It-On Awards Program: Spring 2009 Systers Pass-It-On Award Winners
Alida C.
Project Title:
Peruvian woman seeking support to accomplish her Computer Science dream
Project Description:
Alida is a Peruvian woman who is coming to the United States to study at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, PA. She plans on obtaining a Masters of Science in Computer Science. Alida’s sponsor who lives in New Jersey will be providing her with room and board and Alida will use the award money to pay for her travel from New Jersey to Pennsylvania three days a week.
Renida S.
Project Title:
To equip the girls in HIV/AIDS infected/affected families in computer skills for self-reliance
Project Description:
Renida, of Namakkal, Tamiladu, India, will use the funding to provide 20 girls/women from the HIV/AIDS infected Namakkal District the opportunity to learn computer skills that will allow them to return home and help support their families who have been affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The Namakkal District in Tamilnadu is a southern state of India with a population of 1.5 million and is one of the most deeply affected regions of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in India both in terms of prevalence and impact. It is anticipated that after the girls/women learn either Tally, an accounting software package, or desktop publishing they will find work in browsing centers, printing presses, warehouses, poultry units, and other offices as accountants, computer operators, programmers and network administrators who handle the computer software and computerized applications.
Sharon P.
Project Title:
Conference attendance to International Conference on Web Services (ICWS) 2009
Project Description:
Sharon, of Athens, Georgia, United States, will use the award to help pay for her expenses to travel to the IEEE Seventh International Conference on Web Services (ICWS). Sharon is currently a student at the University of Georgia pursuing a Masters of Science in Computer Science. She is excited that her paper entitled, “Integrating Behavioral Trust in Web Service Compositions,” that she co-authored with her advisor was accepted by the conference. The ICWS is highly competitive with only 16% of the submissions being accepted.
Sivakamavalli S.
Project Title:
Educate Rural Women with Computer Application Skills for Career Prospects Access
Project Description:
Siva, of Namakkal, Tamilnadu, India, will use the award to educate rural women with computer application skills by creating a small computer training facility in the centralized village of Pandamangalam. Two computers will be purchased with the Pass-It-On award. A printer and funding for the training of the initial group of women will be funded by the Women Organization for Rural Development (WORD) organization. Each girl and woman who is provided computer skills in Microsoft Office, Photoshop, DTP and the use of the Internet will in turn become instructors who will be committed to train at least four other women. The girls and women involved in the program will be afforded career options not otherwise available to them and will be able to experience social mobility.
Stephanie L.
Project Title:
A FIRST Lego League team for Girls in Western New York
Project Description:
Stephanie, of W. Henrietta, NY, United States, will use the funding to purchase equipment and pay for team and tournament fees for the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Lego League team for girls in Western New York. Ten girls aged 9-14 will meet weekly and work together to build a robot using Lego Mindstorms NXT. An evaluation by Brandeis University of the FIRST program in 2004 showed that coaches, participants and parents felt strongly that the FIRST Lego League experience had a positive impact on increasing student interest and understanding of science technology, problem solving, and teamwork. Girls who participated in the league reported an increase in confidence, abilities, and teamwork
skills.