Valerie Juarez, a senior computer science and electrical engineering double major from Sour Lake, won a competitive scholarship to participate in the 2009 Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing in Tucson, Ariz.
“I had an amazing time. The number and caliber of women there was awe-inspiring,” said Juarez. “They were so passionate about their careers, and it inspired me to find something that ignites the same type of passion within me. I had a hard time choosing which sessions to go to, because there were so many interesting ones to choose from."
The Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing was co-founded by Dr. Anita Borg and Dr. Telle Whitney in 1994 and inspired by the legacy of Admiral Grace Murray Hopper. The series of conferences is designed to bring the research and career interests of women in computing to light. The presenters are leaders in their fields, representing industrial, academic and government communities. Leading researchers present their current work, and special sessions focus on the role of women in today’s technology fields, including computer science, information technology, research and engineering. This year’s theme, “Creating Technology for Social Good,” highlights the responsibility technologists have to society. It also, Juarez explained, “recognizes how women positively affect technology and, conversely, how technology positively affects women.”
Juarez, a Mirabeau scholar and the president of Lamar’s chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery, was one of 331 applicants chosen from a pool of more than 900 for this scholarship, which for her was sponsored by Cisco. While at the conference, she learned about successful women in computing as well as received advice on how to apply for graduate school.
Juarez also participated in the Association for Computer Educators in Texas conference in Corpus Christi. She was the co-presenter of two posters for the INSPIRED (Increasing Student Participation in Research Development) program, an organization that strives to increase the participation of women and minorities in computing. Juarez, along with fellow presenter Kelli Hall, presented one poster on the high school academy the INSPIRED program hosted this summer. She presented a second poster on INSPIRED’s middle school academies with another member, Daniel Vincent. Both posters chronicled the activities of each academy and the results of the assessments filled out by each student.
