International Girls in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Day

The first International Girls in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Day will be held on April 27th in West Michigan. Women are significantly underrepresented in ICT fields, and in hopes to counter this, sixty eighth-grade girls from seven Muskegon County schools are planned to attend this event.

Schools include Muskegon Heights Academy, Muskegon Middle School, Nellie B. Chisholm Middle School, Oakridge Middle School, Orchard View Middle School, Reeths-Puffer Middle School and Whitehall Middle School.

This event is hosted by our Muskegon campus and sponsored by area businesses, so it is free for attendees. Our Muskegon campus offers two bachelor’s degrees in information technology and security and in computer science, and an associate degree in information technology with specialties in Cisco and Microsoft.

Event speakers will be women who have excelled in ICT careers and a Baker College student earning a bachelor’s degree in information technology and security. The speakers will present and join the girls in groups to assemble, program and wirelessly control GoPiGo robotic minicars.  The girls will also take apart a PC and put it back together, and make a network cable.

Since employment is projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, we hope the girls attending this event will encourage girls to pursue careers in ICT fields.

We are excited to see these girls learn and grow in the field of ICT!