Category: Press Releases

in advance of SXSW Interactive Hall of Fame Award next Tuesday

Girlstart launches its #GrowGirlstart campaign in advance of SXSW Interactive Hall of Fame Award next Tuesday

(AUSTIN) – Girlstart has launched a brand new campaign, #GrowGirlstart, in advance of Girlstart Executive Director Tamara Hudgins receiving the SXSW Interactive Hall of Fame Award at the festival’s Interactive Innovation Awards next Tuesday evening.

Girlstart has launched the campaign to highlight the upcoming expansion of Girlstart STEM education programs across Texas and across the nation. The campaign asks participants to declare, via social media channels, why they want to help Girlstart expand by using #GrowGirlstart in their posts. The campaign website page, which includes testimonials from young women who are on trajectories toward successful careers via their experiences in Girlstart programs, is viewable at www.girlstart.org/growgirlstart.

The web page for the campaign specifically notes plans for expansion to Dallas, Houston and the Rio Grande Valley, as well as plans for national expansion. Hudgins will make an initial announcement about those plans next Tuesday during the award ceremony, and Girlstart plans to provide regular updates on the organization’s growth. While Girlstart has taken summer programming throughout the nation in recent years, its after-school programming – which has grown to serve more than 1200 students at 50 different schools – is still principally concentrated in the Austin metro area.

“We’re looking forward to another SXSW Interactive Conference, and we’re honored that SXSW is making STEM education for girls part of this year’s conversation via this award,” said Hudgins. “The GrowGirlstart campaign we’ve launched is intended to show that there is a broad show of support for creating STEM education opportunities for girls. By reaching more girls, we have the opportunity to dramatically impact the STEM pipeline, which is how we’ll best achieve bringing more talented women into the STEM professional community.”

In addition to its presence at SXSW Interactive, Girlstart participated in the SXSWEdu Expo earlier this week, geared towards educators and school administrators, and SXSWCreate, geared toward what SXSW terms “hackers and DIYers.”
Girlstart, founded in 1997, is the only community-based informal STEM education nonprofit in the nation specifically dedicated to empowering and equipping girls in STEM through year-round programming that promotes girls’ early engagement and academic success in STEM, encourages girls’ aspirations and persistence in STEM education and careers, and incubates a talented and diverse STEM workforce.

Girlstart Executive Director Tamara Hudgins Named SXSW’s 2015 Interactive Hall of Fame Inductee

(AUSTIN) – Today,SXSW has announced that Girlstart Executive Director Tamara Hudgins has been named its Interactive Hall of Fame Inductee for 2015.

Hudgins, who has been with Girlstart since 2009, is being honored for work in helping to expand and develop the Austin-based non-profit organization. Girlstart, founded in 1997, is the only community-based informal STEM education nonprofit in the nation specifically dedicated to empowering and equipping girls in STEM, through year-round programming that promotes girls’ early engagement and academic success in STEM, encourages girls’ aspirations and persistence in STEM education and careers, and incubates a talented and diverse STEM workforce.

Specifically, since 2009, Girlstart’s impact has grown from reaching 1,500 girls, teachers, and family members each year to over 15,000. Additionally, the Girlstart After School has grown from 4 to 45 programs, has been recognized as the most robust program of its kind in the nation, and is now replicating regionally. Girlstart Summer Camp, the second core program, has expanded from 8 to 22 week-long programs each summer, with replication outside Austin as well as in six states nationwide. Both Girlstart After School and Girlstart Summer Camp have been recognized by Change the Equation in the STEMWorks database, with Girlstart Summer Camp further recognized as one of four “exemplary” and “highly scalable” STEM education programs in America.

More recently, the organization has expanded beyond its Central Texas roots to offer programming in the Bay Area, Seattle, Chicago, and other urban centers with sizable STEM professional communities, and has partnered with the likes of Dell, AMD, Freescale, Google, Motorola Solutions, National Instruments, and 3M to develop STEM education programs that are helping to address the gender inequity still prevalent in the nation’s STEM professional community.

“This is an honor that reflects the work of the entire Girlstart team, and shows the importance of programming that inspires girls to pursue STEM fields of study and STEM careers,” Hudgins said. “While we’ve come a long way as an organization in our first 18 years, we’re setting our sights on making even more of a difference in the years to come.”

The award ceremony will be held on Tuesday, March 17 as part of this year’s SXSW Interactive Conference, and will include an announcement regarding Girlstart’s plans for 2015 and beyond. Since the Hall of Fame was established in 2012, honorees include web design master and entrepreneur Jeffery Zeldman, social media expert and researcher danah boyd, and MIT Media Lab Director Joi Ito.

SXSW’s official announcement is viewable on the official SXSW website, at sxsw.com/interactive/news/2015/2015-interactive-hall-fame-inductee-tamara-hudgins-girlstart.

Raising $50,000 for STEM Education Programs

Girlstart Seeks Volunteers, Invites Runners to Participate in 3M Half Marathon on Jan. 25, Raising $50,000 for STEM Education Programs

Girlstart, named the beneficiary of the upcoming 2015 3M Half Marathon taking place on Jan. 25, is inviting runners to participate in what has become one of Austin’s most popular distance races, and is also seeking volunteers to help manage the Gear Check area that day.

The 3M Half Marathon, involving up to 6500 participants in this year’s edition of the race, will contribute $50,000 to Girlstart in support of the non-profit organization’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education programs for girls. Founded in 1997, Girlstart is committed to fostering STEM skills development, inspiring girls to pursue STEM education, and encouraging young women to pursue STEM careers after college. Though Girlstart has been growing steadily in recent years, Girlstart will initiate a new phase of significant expansion beginning in 2015.

“As studies released this year have shown, our afterschool STEM programs are making a positive impact on students’ math and science test scores,” said Tamara Hudgins, executive director of Girlstart. “3M’s support will allow us to continue helping students achieve academic success in the short-term, and address the ongoing gender gap in STEM careers over the long-term.”

Currently, only 24 percent of STEM professionals in the United States are women. Girlstart’s curriculum, which integrates cutting-edge technologies including video game design, 3D printing, and mobile app programming, is designed to engage girls in using STEM skills to solve problems and make discoveries.

Signups for volunteers will begin in early January on the Girlstart website at http://www.girlstart.org/volunteer/volunteer-opportunities, and race registrations are open at www.3mhalfmarathon.com/registration/.

ABOUT GIRLSTART
Girlstart, founded in Austin in 1997, is the only community-based informal STEM education nonprofit in the nation specifically dedicated to empowering and equipping girls in STEM, through year-round programming that promotes girls’ early engagement and academic success in STEM, encourages girls’ aspirations and persistence in STEM education and careers, and incubates a talented and diverse STEM workforce. Its innovative, nationally-recognized programs include after-school and summer camps for students, professional development for teachers, and community and online STEM education outreach programs. Girlstart cultivates a culture where risk is rewarded, curiosity is encouraged, and creativity is expected. As a result, Girlstart girls are connected, brave, and resilient. Girlstart makes girls more successful, and inspires them to take on the world’s greatest challenges.

FlowPlay Partnership Marks Girlstart’s First In-Game Fundraiser; Fuels Seattle-Area Summer Camp and Other National Programs

Seattle, Wash., and Austin, Texas – December 10, 2014 – FlowPlay, a leader in virtual world games and technology, today announced its partnership with Girlstart, a nonprofit that inspires girls interest and engagement in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) through innovative, nationally-recognized informal STEM education programs. As Girlstart’s first-ever in-game fundraising campaign, beginning now through Jan. 5, FlowPlay’s ourWorld or Vegas World players can raise money for Girlstart STEM programs by purchasing uniquely branded Girlstart virtual goods. One hundred percent of the proceeds will benefit Girlstart programs nationwide, including the entire funding of a Girlstart summer camp, taking place in Bellevue, Wash. in Summer 2015.

The U.S. faces a critical shortage of skilled STEM workers, and an even larger deficit of women in STEM. While more women than men enroll in college, women earn only 31% of total STEM degrees, only one in seven engineering degrees, and only 18% of computer science degrees. Furthermore, women hold only 24% of the nation’s STEM jobs. Girlstart programs engage girls in STEM education, empower them to continue these studies, and inspire them to pursue STEM careers, to ultimately help address workforce inequities, impact innovation, and build bright futures for girls and their families.

FlowPlay and Girlstart share a common focus on increasing girls interest in technology, a cause that has been traditionally underserved – particularly amongst the gaming community – and one that was an early motivator for FlowPlay’s flagship game. Currently, ourWorld boasts more than 800,000 active users, a majority of which are females (65%) under the age of 18 (80%).

Through Jan. 5, ourWorld players can use their in-world virtual currency, Gems, to purchase a ‘Rocket Science Girl,’ which will accompany their avatar throughout the game and enable them to gain Flow 100% faster, an aspect of the game that allows players to level-up and boost their in-game experience. Every purchase of the ‘Rocket Science Girl’ equates to a $5 donation to Girlstart. Players in FlowPlay’s social casino title, Vegas World, can also contribute through purchases of a Rocket Ship Charm, which will provide a $0.50 donation to Girlstart.

“Like Girlstart, FlowPlay and its games meet girls where they are, by connecting their interests in technology with their social activities,” said Julie Shannan, deputy director at Girlstart. “Part of our philosophy is that girls can be true to who they are and pursue STEM interests, and ourWorld provides an environment that fosters that same passion for individuality and technology. Our partnership with FlowPlay signifies our very first in-game fundraising effort, making this campaign a huge milestone for our technology-centric organization.”

“We wanted to support an organization that is addressing a cause deeply rooted in the genesis of our company and core audience, and one for which we can really make an impact,” said Derrick Morton, CEO of FlowPlay. “Girlstart is highly active, with programs that actually make a difference for elementary and middle-school aged girls. With this in-game donations campaign, ourWorld users have the opportunity to move the needle with an organization they can relate to, and see the tangible impact of their contributions.”

All proceeds will support Girlstart programs nationwide, with a special emphasis on Girlstart STEM summer camps. In 2013, the Girlstart Summer Camp program was recognized by Change the Equation as one of four “exemplary” and “highly scalable” innovative STEM education programs in the United States. Girlstart summer camps are weeklong learning experiences in STEM that introduce 4th-8th grade girls to the fun of STEM through innovative hands-on learning challenges.

Since 2011, Girlstart has provided free summer camp programming to high-need girls in Bellevue, Wash., but the organization is continually seeking financial, facilities and volunteer partners from surrounding Seattle Area businesses. Thanks to FlowPlay’s contributions, Girlstart will bring this award-winning weeklong camp back to the Bellevue community in Summer 2015.

For more information about Girlstart’s programs, visit www.girlstart.org.

About FlowPlay

FlowPlay, a developer of virtual environment and game technologies, make immersive worlds and massive multiplayer games possible with no software required beyond a basic browser. FlowPlay’s first consumer product, ourWorld, is played by over 35 million players and is one of the most popular teen virtual worlds. Vegas World, FlowPlay’s flagship social casino MMORPG, achieves industry-leading player monetization rates. In November 2013, FlowPlay introduced its social casino white-label platform, allowing businesses from any industry to quickly and easily bring their own uniquely branded social casino games to market. FlowPlay was founded in 2006 and is primarily funded by Intel Capital and the creators of Skype. For more information on FlowPlay, contact bizdev@flowplay.com.

About Girlstart

Founded in Austin, Texas, Girlstart is the largest and longest-running community-based informal STEM education nonprofit in the nation specifically dedicated to empowering and equipping girls in STEM through year-round STEM educational programming. Since 1997, Girlstart has served over 50,000 girls and 7,500 teachers and families with school-based programs, professional development for teachers, summer camps, STEM career conferences and expos, large-scale science events for families, and community STEM education outreach programs. Girlstart programs are open to girls K-16. We are focused on serving girls of diverse ethnicities, girls who live in low-income or nonurban environments, and/or are considered at-risk. For more information on Girlstart programs, volunteer opportunities, or for Girlstart activities to do at home or in the classroom, please visit http://www.girlstart.org/.

Contacts:

Lindsey Bradshaw
Barokas PR
Lindsey.Bradshaw@barokas.com
(206) 264-8220

Phil West
Orange Cone Agency
phil.west@orangeconeagency.com
(512) 769-3838