CCT students and teacher are awarded for their commitment to supporting women in technology.
Award recipients smile for the camera (from left, Nicole Blake, Jerry Esparza, Madison Bennett). Photo courtesy of Jerry Esparza
Center for Communication and Technology Teacher Jerry Esparza and two students, Seniors Nicole Blake and Madison Bennett, receive awards for their outstanding commitment to technology.
The National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) consists of over 250 corporations, academic institutions, and government agencies working towards increasing women’s participation in computing and information technology. “NCWIT is an advocate for women to become more involved in technological jobs and careers within the field of technology. They encourage them to get involved by showcasing women who are involved with technology and award them for their accomplishments,” said Jerry Esparza.
NCWIT awards female students at the high school level with the Award for Aspirations in Computing, based on four criteria: computing and IT aptitude, leadership ability, academic history, and plans for post-secondary education. In order to be eligible to receive the award Seniors Nicole Blake and Madison Bennett filled out an online application pertaining to their involvement in the CCT program and future academic plans.
Esparza said he is very proud to see two of his students win the Award for Aspirations in Computing for their work in his class and within the CCT program. “The girls apply with many other high school students. They choose an applicant from each state for the national awards. Our girls got state awards for Colorado,” said Esparza.
NCWIT also recognized Esparza as an outstanding educator for his work with women in computing and information technology. The Educator Award is given to those who have demonstrated a commitment to the encouragement of women in technology. “Essentially my award is for my involvement as a teacher in encouraging and supporting women in technology and my involvement with the organization. I have been working with them for quite a long time as both a middle school and a high school teacher,” said Esparza.
Esparza says he is flattered to be the recipient of the Educators Award for his work in the CCT. “I was quite surprised and amazed to be receiving the award. It is an honor I did not see coming at all. As part of my recognition I will receive up to $1000 in reimbursement to go towards travel expenses for any type of technology conference, which I plan to use within the year,” said Esparza.
The NCWIT organization benefits women all over the country from K-12 and higher education through industry and into the career field. “Colorado is essentially NCWIT’s home base. The organization originated at CU Boulder and has since expanded nationally over the last few years. Even the national awards used to be held at CU,” said Esparza.
The ceremony, where all three accepted their awards and celebrated their accomplishments, was held in the University Memorial Center (UMC) at CU Boulder Saturday, March 5. “It was overall a nice ceremony. Receiving the award was fun and it was interesting to see the other girls from different schools around the state. I liked the guest speakers, two ladies who work for Google that spoke about being women in the field of technology,” said Bennett.
Both students said they were excited to accept their awards. “I feel awesome about receiving the award because no one was picked to get it from TJ last year. We each got a glass trophy; one for us and one for the school to keep. They spoke to us about lots of different scholarships an different opportunities we have. We also got new flip cameras from Google, which are really fun to mess around and play with,” said Blake.
