FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Jessica Love
March 12, 2007
Phone: (202) 667-0901
AS PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN COMPUTER SCIENCE DECLINES,TWO ROLE MODELS STEP FORWARD
Awards for Achievements in Computer Science to Drs. Judith Gal-Ezer and Frances Allen
New York, NY, March 12, 2007 The announcement of two prestigious computing awards points to a rising profile for women in the computing field. The two female recipients of these awards are both playing important roles in strengthening computer science education.
Dr. Judith Gal-Ezer, a professor of computer science at the Open University of Israel and member of the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) Board of Directors, received the SIGCSE Award for Outstanding Contribution to Computer Science Education. Gal-Ezer played a major role in designing a computer science curriculum for high-schools in Israel. She currently serves as chair of the Professional CS Committee of the Israeli Ministry of Education. The recognition was awarded at the Association of Computing Machinery's (ACM) Special Interest Groups in Computer Science Education (SIGCSE) annual conference, held this year in Covington, Kentucky.
ACM has also announced that its A.M. Turing Award, viewed as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in computing, will be presented in June to Dr. Frances Allen, an IBM Fellow Emerita. She was recognized for her contributions to writing software programs for high performance computers that saved programming time and accelerated problem-solving in complicated fields like weather forecasting and genomic research. Allen retired from IBM Research four years ago, but she remains active in many organizations including the Computer Science Teachers Association, where she serves on their Advisory Council.
"It is incredibly heartening to see two women so dedicated to education and to the field of computing receive the field’s highest honors," said Chris Stephenson, executive director of the Computer Science Teachers Association, a membership organization that supports and promotes the teaching of computer science. "They serve not just as role models for young women, but for everyone who aspires to make a real contribution to society."
Despite these important awards, concerns remain about the declining numbers of women in computing. ACM data shows that only 26 percent of current information technology workers in the U.S. are women. Data from the National Center for Women in Technology reflects an 80 percent decline in the number of incoming undergraduate women who chose to major in computer science between 1996 and 2004.
"To remain competitive, we all know we need a workforce prepared to fill new positions in technological fields," said Stephenson. "But any strategy to increase the number of people going into computing fields to meet future needs must include outreach to girls and women. They are a vital piece of this puzzle."
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About CSTA
The Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) is a membership organization that supports and promotes the teaching of computer science and the other computing disciplines by providing opportunities for K-12 teachers and students to better understand the computing disciplines and to more successfully prepare themselves to teach and to learn. http://csta.acm.org. CSTA provides its over 400 members with resources, research, and professional development opportunities.
About ACM
ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, http://www.acm.org, is an educational and scientific society uniting the world’s computing educators, researchers and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources and address the field’s challenges. ACM strengthens the profession’s collective voice through strong leadership, promotion of the highest standards, and recognition of technical excellence. ACM supports the professional growth of its members by providing opportunities for life-long learning, career development and professional networking opportunities.
About SIGCSE
The ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education (SIGCSE), http://sigcse.org, provides a forum for educators to develop, implement and evaluate computing programs, curricula, and courses, as well as syllabi, laboratories, and other elements or teaching and pedagogy. SIGCSE features an annual technical symposium, sponsors or co-sponsors annual conferences outside the United States, and publishes the SIGCSE Bulletin quarterly.
