Submitted by the Stanford WIT Service and Outreach Committee
The Stanford Women in Technology (WIT) Service and Outreach committee connects with organizations outside of the Stanford community to identify volunteer engagement opportunities for WIT. It’s through this activity that we can influence and impact girls and young women who might be considering IT as a possible study or career path.
On Sept. 23, WIT learned that the Bay Area Science Festival (BASF) – which celebrated its 10th anniversary this year – adjusted their normal format in order to conduct a fully virtual event. The BASF team was looking for Zoom-savvy volunteers to assist with moderating the 125+ sessions being offered as part of the festival, which ran from Oct. 21 through Oct. 25.
Through Stanford WIT, we were able to provide six volunteers - Hannah Herde, Soledad Merlo, Molly Glover, Jennifer Saltzman, Judy Zhang, and Julie Schloss. Each of the WIT volunteers attended a Zoom moderating training session, and then moderated several sessions during the course of the festival.
Making an Impact
Before WIT reached out to help, the BASF team of seven was facing the daunting challenge of moderating all 125+ sessions without much support. Jennifer Kaelin, BASF coordinator, expressed her gratitude for Stanford WIT, exclaiming, “I can’t believe you reached out, out of nowhere. I was asking my colleague, does this sound like what I think it does? They want to help us?!” Stanford WIT is already planning to provide volunteers for the 2021 BASF.
Volunteering on behalf of Stanford is a source of pride for volunteers like Julie Schloss, who moderated the “Science of Noodle Pulling” session for Stanford Grad students of the Stanford Polymer Collective.
Julie shared, “I know that when I identify as a member of Stanford University, I have impact. I want little girls and young women to see me, as a woman, working in one of the most respected academic technology groups in the world. I want them to see themselves. These are the moments that make all our hard work worthwhile.”
Learn More and Get Involved
The Service and Outreach committee will continue to identify opportunities for WIT members to get involved and help cultivate the next generation of girls and women to pursue careers in IT. If you find an event that could use our support, please share that information by sending an email to wit-talent-pipeline@lists.stanford.edu.
If you would like to watch any of the recorded sessions from the Bay Area Science festival, they will be available until next year's event. You can find the recordings in the sessions listing on their event schedule.
