A Houghton High School student who has been active in Michigan Tech’s Copper Country Programmers, a computer club for local teens, has been named winner of a Michigan regional award in the National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) Aspirations in Computing competition. Another Houghton High School student is a runner-up.
Caitlyn McKenzie received a Michigan Regional Award. Miriam Eikenberry-Ureel was a runner-up. They were honored at an awards ceremony last weekend at the Michigan Celebration of Women in Computing conference at the University of Michigan- Dearborn.
Both girls have been involved with the Copper Country Programmers for several years. They also work to help others in the community learn more about computers and coding.
“They have become role models for other young women,” said Leo Ureel, a lecturer in computer science at Michigan Tech and one of the faculty advisors to the computer club. Associate Professor Charles Wallace and computer science graduate student John Earnest also work with the teens.
Copper Country Programmers meets every Saturday in the Van Pelt and Opie Library on the Michigan Tech campus from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information, contact Charles Wallace at wallace@mtu.edu.
NCWIT is a national non-profit organization of more than 600 universities, companies, non-profits and government agencies working to increase women’s participation in computing and technology. Michigan Tech is one of NCWIT’s designated Pathways universities.
The NCWIT Aspirations in Computing award honors high-school young women for their computing-related achievements and interests. Awardees are selected for their computing and IT aptitude, leadership ability, academic history and plans for post-secondary education. National and regional NCWIT Aspirations in Computing awards are given to generate support and visibility for young women’s participation in computing.
For more information about NCWIT, the Aspirations in Computing award or how young women can become engaged in computer science, contact Linda Ott, linda@mtu.edu.