Four AVHS Students Receive Bay Area NCWIT Awards

Pleasanton CA

17 May, 2021

8:29 PM

Description

Press release from Pleasanton Unified School District: May 17, 2021 Pleasanton, California – Four Amador Valley High School (AVHS) students havereceived Bay Area NCWIT Awards for Aspirations in Computing (AiC). Nitya Ayyagari, Hiya Shah, Suhani Singhal and Deanna Wood are all Bay Area AffiliateWinners. Singhal also received a National Honorable Mention. The award, powered by the National Center for Women & Information Technology(NCWIT), recognizes 9th-12th grade students who self-identify as women, genderqueer, or non-binary for their computing-related achievements and interests, as part of an effort to encourage a diverse range of students to choose careers in technology. Award recipients were selected from over 200 applicants from 13 Bay Area counties fortheir outstanding aptitude and aspirations in technology and computing asdemonstrated by their computing experience, computing-related activities, leadershipexperience, tenacity in the face of barriers to access, and plans for post-secondaryeducation. Each recipient will receive recognition and prizes; induction into the AiC Communityof nearly 20,000 technical individuals who self-identify as women, genderqueer, ornon-binary; access to resources, scholarships, and internship opportunities; andmore. "Encouraging young women's interest in technology careers is critical: our workforceneeds their creativity and unique perspectives to produce technology that is as broad and innovative as the population it serves," said NCWIT CEO and Co-founder Lucy Sanders. "Our young women at AVHS continue to excel in STEM classes and in their efforts toreach out to our community," AVHS teacher Richard Hanson said. "Theserepresentatives are truly amazing people and a pleasure to have in class. Theirleadership and imagination in this difficult year give me hope for our future!" This press release was produced by the Pleasanton Unified School District. The views expressed here are the author's own.