West Virginia State University (WVSU) Extension Service will host an information session for the “Plane Janes” Girls Who Code 4-H Club Wednesday, September 4, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the WVSU Aerospace Education Laboratory (AEL) on the University’s Institute campus. The free club is for middle and high school girls interested in learning about and developing skills in computer coding.
“Girls who Code is all about empowering young women to create projects with code,” said Emma Gardner, STEM educator with the WVSU Center for the Advancement of STEM. “This interest meeting will give families a chance to meet our members and volunteer team, while showing the girls what to expect from the club for this school year.”
Gardner launched the Plane Janes club in 2015 to help girls develop their computer coding skills and empower them to explore career possibilities in engineering and computer science. The 4-H club is a collaborative effort between WVSU Extension Service and the Kanawha County West Virginia University Extension Service office.
Earlier this year, the Plane Janes participated in Facebook’s Engineer for the Week program, a competition that allowed them to create an artificial intelligence that would prompt online conversations with human users. The project led to a spot in Facebook’s Engineer for the Week Achievement Summit and Hackathon in California.
The group looks to expand its membership and will share information about the purpose, structure and activities at the information session.
Girls Who Code is a non-profit organization that aims to support and increase the number of women in computer science by equipping young women with the necessary computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities.
The WVSU AEL is located on the eastern edge of the University’s campus, and is Building No. 33 on the Campus Map. Space is limited for the Plane Janes group. For additional information and to RSVP, contact Emma Gardner at (304) 437-2448 or emma.gardner@wvstateu.edu.
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