Three Colorado universities are working together to organize the first Colorado Celebration of Women in Computing, a regional conference designed to encourage the research and career interests of local women in computing.
The event, planned by the University of Colorado at Boulder, Colorado School of Mines and Colorado State University, will be held April 4 and April 5 at the Hotel Boulderado in downtown Boulder.
Google, Sun Microsystems and Microsoft Research are among nine industry sponsors. The conference also has attracted sponsorships from several non-profit organizations, including the National Center for Women and Information Technology and the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology.
Modeled after the highly successful international Grace Hopper Celebration, the event will feature keynote talks by iRobot Corp. co-founder Helen Greiner and Arizona State University Professor Violet Syrotiuk.
Undergraduate and graduate students also have been invited to present papers or posters based on their research. All attendees can give five-minute presentations on any subject relevant to the conference and join in informal discussion groups on specific topics of interest. A career fair also will be part of the program.
The conference offers an opportunity for students to present their research and to network with leaders from academia, government and industry, said CU computer science Professor Liz Jessup, who is co-chairing the conference with Professor Tracy Camp of CSM. In this way, it will provide a unique opportunity for technical women from Colorado and neighboring states to come together to share experiences and strategies for success.
The Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing was co-founded in 1994 and is the worlds largest gathering of technical women in computing. While more than 4,300 women have attended a GHC conference since they began, a regional conference reduces the travel costs and builds a regional alliance that continues long after the conference comes to a close, organizers say.
Up to 150 people are expected to attend the Colorado event, which will begin at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, April 4, and end at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, April 5.
For more information on registration and a preliminary program, go to www.cs.colorado.edu/conference/ccwic.