Beaver Ridge Elementary School
.png)
IT Girls Foundation in Cumming, Georgia, expands program to Beaver Ridge Elementary School
CUMMING, GA – IT Girls Foundation—a nonprofit organization whose mission is to bring science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) awareness to 4th and 5th grade girls—is expanding to another Gwinnett County School.
The Board of Directors at the IT Girls Foundation announced that they are expanding to Beaver Ridge Elementary School (BRES). “We are so thrilled to have Beaver Ridge Elementary School joining our IT Girls family. Ms. Luna-Liranzo and Ms. Atkins represent the type of STEM advocates that we need to continue growing our mission and giving more students the opportunity to pursue their passion around these studies,” said co-Founder and CEO of IT Girls Foundation, Grant Shih.
“​We look forward to partnering with IT Girls to empower and encourage our young girls to pursue education and careers in STEM," commented Martina Luna-Liranzo. According to the Census Bureau, women are half of the workforce, but only 27% have careers in STEM. “We have spent the last few years perfecting the program to get to this point where we can expand into more schools” said Roxanne Seymour, IT Girls Foundation President.
​
As we continue to build our program with strong and immersive content, as well as a network of professional women who are in the STEM fields, we can only hope that we make a positive and lasting impact on these girls. Jennifer Atkins, STEM coordinator for BRES stated, “I’m so excited to start an IT Girls chapter at Beaver Ridge! I think it’s so important for young girls to know that the STEM/Computer Science world is not just for boys. I can tell my students every day that girls are able to code and work in the computer science field but unless they see it for themselves it doesn’t mean anything to them. Having women who currently work in the field come to the class each week is going to be such an eye opener for my girls. I hope that this program builds my students’ confidence, strengthens their problem-solving skills, and develops a love for STEM that can help them in their future careers.”
​
IT Girls Foundation
IT Girls Foundation, founded by Grant Shih and Katie Tucker, was created so that young female students who are interested in STEM fields have a structured extra-curricular program to explore and develop their interests and talents. We hope that this prepares them to have a competitive advantage in their academic and career interests and want to start by targeting 4th and 5th grade girls. This program is designed to guide them through project-based work, partnering with businesses, and involving guest speakers to provide real-world insight, inspiration, and guidance as well as to answer any questions the students may have on how these topics intersect.