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National Coalition of Girls' Schools Newsletter
IN THIS ISSUE
Girl Up Hosting International Day of the Girl Event
PBS Premieres Season Two of "MAKERS: Women Who Make America"
Student and Educator Tech Contests
Highlights from the NCGS "Listening & Learning Tour"

NCGS MISSION

The National Coalition of Girls' Schools (NCGS) is a leading advocate for girls' education with a distinct commitment to the transformative power of all-girls schools. The Coalition acts at the forefront of educational thought, collaborating and connecting globally with individuals, schools, and organizations dedicated to empowering girls to be influential contributors to the world.
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IN THE NEWS
The Most Powerful Women in Business

Fortune

 

Why Women in Business Should Take Risks-Thoughts From Sallie Krawcheck  

Forbes

 

The Washington Post

 

Why Do Girls Tend to Get Better Grades Than Boys Do 

The Atlantic

 

Counting on Girls  

The World Post

 

Geena Davis Institute New Research Shows That Girls and Women Are Missing Onscreen and Behind the Scenes Worldwide  

Forbes

 

A Commitment to Raise the Global Ambition for Girls' Education  

Brookings Institution

  

Q&A: The Mis-Education of African-American Girls 

NPR  

 

Why the Economic Gender Gap Will Eventually Close
The New York Times

Do Toy Companies Need More Women at the Top?

STEM/STEAM Articles:

Support Girls in STEM Fields  

The Daily Herald  


The Lack of Women in STEM is a National Security Issue

U.S. News & World Report

 

STEM Engagement With a Shipbuilding Focus

STEM: It's a "Girl Thing," Too

The Huffington Post Canada  

 

New Documentary Follows Big Dream of Girls in Tech

USA Today

The Women Who STEM-ed Their Way to Power

Fortune   

 

The New York Academy of Sciences Announces 1000 Girls-1000 Futures

The New York Academy of Sciences   

 

The 30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech

Business Insider 

 

STEM Is Not Just For Boys as Three Girls Win Google Science Fair

Guardian Liberty Voice 

 

The STEM Paradoxes: Graduates' Lack of Non-technical Skills, and Not Enough Women

The Washington Post  

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THE COALITION CONNECTION
October 3, 2014
Dear NCGS Community,

   

I am excited to announce our keynote speakers for the 2015 NCGS Conference, From STEM to STEAM: Girls' Schools Leading the Way (June 22-24). We have assembled an impressive line-up of women who are truly "leading the way" by breaking boundaries in STEAM industries:

 

Margaret Honey, President and CEO / New York Hall of Science (NYSCI): Among Dr. Honey's current interests at NYSCI is the role of design-based learning in promoting student interest and achievement in STEM subjects. She is widely recognized for her work using digital technologies to support children's learning across the STEM disciplines.

 

Maria Klawe, President / Harvey Mudd College: President Klawe is a renowned computer scientist and scholar. Following her tenure as dean of Princeton's School of Engineering and Applied Science, she became the first woman to lead Harvey Mudd College since its founding in 1955. Dr. Klawe has made significant research contributions in several areas of mathematics and computer science.

 

Amy Leidtke, Industrial Designer, Artist, and Adjunct Professor of Industrial Design / Rhode Island School of Design and Design and Education Consultant / Leidtke Design: A proponent of STEAM education, Ms. Leidtke advocates for innovation literacy and believes building strong visual literacy skills in students helps to create confident innovators, fluent communicators, and empathetic business leaders.

 

Reshma Saujani, Founder and CEO / Girls Who Code: Ms. Saujani founded Girls Who Code to help close the gender gap in technology and prepare young women for jobs of the future. She is also an advocate for a new model of female leadership focused on embracing risk and failure, and promoting mentorship and sponsorship.

 

Ellen Stofan, Chief Scientist / NASA: Appointed NASA chief scientist in 2013, Dr. Stofan serves as principal advisor on the agency's science programs and science-related strategic planning and investments.

 

Click here to read the keynote speakers' full biographies and to learn more about the From STEM to STEAM conference.

 

We look forward to hearing and learning from these accomplished women during our time together in Richmond next summer.


Best wishes,

Megan 

 

Megan Murphy  

Executive Director

Girl Up Hosting International Day of the Girl Event

NCGS strategic partner Girl Up, an innovative campaign of the United Nations Foundation, invites your school community to join Girl Up Teen Advisors and hundreds of youth supporters for a fun and inspiring "PINK-carpet" event in recognition of the International Day of the Girl. Hear from powerful advocates for girls, international thought leaders, and teens committed to embracing the power of being a girl. Plus, enjoy a great party to celebrate girls!

 

Event is Saturday, October 11, from 7:00 to 9:30 PM at UCLA. Click here for more details.

PBS Premieres Season Two of "MAKERS: Women Who Make America"

Season two of the documentary series MAKERS: Women Who Make America premiered earlier this week on PBS, highlighting women in MAKERS Logo comedy, including Carol Burnett, Ellen DeGeneres, Lily Tomlin, and the late Joan Rivers. The next episode in the six-part series will take a sobering look at women in Hollywood, with insight from Geena Davis and Laura Linney on how gender disparities still exist on screen and behind the scenes.

  

Episodes air every Tuesday night at 9/8c on PBS followed by a special online screening the following night on MAKERS.com. 

Student and Educator Tech Contests

Three technology contests -- two for students and one for educators -- are currently accepting applications.

 

FOR STUDENTS: 

ProjectCSGIRLS is an initiative aimed to cultivate a love for technology and computer science in girls and encourage them to pursue their interests and careers in these fields. Run by high school and college girls from around the U.S. who are passionate about computer science and technology, ProjectCSGIRLS offers the nation's biggest computer science competition for middle school girls. The competition is designed to challenge girls to actively use computer science and technology to develop a solution to an imminent social problem.

 

To be eligible to participate, female students must currently be attending middle school (grades 6-8) and reside in the continental U.S.

 

Click here for details. 

 

She++, Stanford's first conference on women in technology, has expanded into a social enterprise that empowers women to make their mark on the technology industry. High school students are invited to apply for the 2015 #include Fellowship Program, which provides resources and content to ambitious students wishing to cultivate their own technical skills and facilitate conversations within their communities about computer science and the importance of diversity in technology.

High school participants are paired with college students -- studying science, technology, engineering, or math -- who serve as mentors. Participants may then apply to attend the #include Summit in spring 2015 in the Bay Area, where they will get to connect with other participants and leaders in the tech industry, share their work, and be inspired to further explore the field of technology.

Click here for details.

 

FOR EDUCATORS:

NCWIT encourages educators such as teachers, technology specialists, counselors, and mentors who help address the shortage of young women in computing to apply for the 2014-2015 Aspirations in Computing Educator Award.

 

The award identifies outstanding educators who play a pivotal role in helping to encourage young women to continue exploring their interest in computing and technology. Awardees are recognized for their efforts to promote gender equity in computing and are selected from the pool of educators who are engaged in endorsing student Aspirations in Computing award applications.

 

Click here for details.  

Highlights from the NCGS "Listening & Learning Tour"

Last week, Megan's travels took her to Dallas and Philadelphia, with a stop in beautiful Middleburg, Virginia, while Jen was nearby in Richmond doing research and planning for the 2015 NCGS Conference. Here's what they said from the road:

 

"Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women's Leadership School, founded in 2004, is the first all-girls public magnet school in Texas. The school serves 550 girls in grades 6-12 with the motto 'Girls Today. Women Tomorrow. Leaders Forever.'

 

The Young Women's Preparatory Network (formerly FEYW) engenders change in public education by using an innovative model of public-private partnerships around the state to support several all-girls schools. At the invitation of CEO Lynn McBee, I spoke at the Network's annual Leadership Retreat about the relevancy of all-girls schools and the universal themes that guide our professional development programs

 

I was honored to speak at the Installation Ceremony of Cathy McGehee as the 10th Head of Foxcroft School. In the words of Foxcroft's founder, Charlotte Haxall Noland, I encouraged Cathy to 'Keep up with the times. Don't be narrow. Have two rules: hard, good work and much fun.'

 

While at Hockaday School, I toured their new Science Center, which includes a performance hall, independent student labs, rooftop green space, flexible IDEA labs, engineering shop, 16-seat planetarium, and Foucault pendulum. In this new facility, students have the opportunity to use a plethora of dynamic tools and real-world resources to explore the STEAM fields.

 

Ursuline Academy, the oldest continuously operating school in Dallas, was one of the original six schools in the U.S. to introduce a 1:1 laptop program. Since then, Ursuline Academy of Dallas has been honored with Computerworld Smithsonian Awards and the National Catholic Educational Association for innovative use of technology in the classroom.

 

Students at Agnes Irwin School invited me to their leadership conference conceived and implemented by the student-led Council for the Advancement of Girls. Over 130 girls from coed and all-girls schools attended the 'Leading for Change Conference,' a program 'by girls, for girls.'"

-- Megan Murphy, Executive Director  

 

"I attended WomenETC, the Virginia Women in Technology Conference, organized by RichTech, Richmond's Technology Council, in conjunction with a fantastic visit to St. Catherine's School to continue planning for the 2015 NCGS Conference, 'From STEM to STEAM.' After a morning of inspirational and thought-provoking keynote speeches -- and a surprise appearance by Virginia's governor, Terry McAuliffe -- I had the opportunity to attend smaller sessions on topics ranging from how to use Scratch (a programming language) to gamification in the classroom."
-- Jen Shakeshaft, Director of Strategic Initiatives & Professional Development