Five women from Denison participated in a special gathering of computer scientists in Sandusky, Ohio, in February. Called the Ohio Celebration of Women in Computing (OCWiC) conference, there were almost 200 women and only a few men. In a field where women usually constitute less than 20 percent, this was a highly unusual situation, but much appreciated by the attendees. Some of the attendees commented:
“Seeing other women achieve so much helps me to positively see my future in the field, and what I can potentially do to impact it.”
As part of an upsurge in the women participating in computer science at Denison, our students came from the spectrum of experience and class years. Dana Myers is a senior computer science major from Winthrop Harbor, Ill., with a job lined up in industry. Taylor Kessler Faulkner, from Chapel Hill, N.C., and Paige Vosmik, from Cortland, Ohio, are junior majors with plans for graduate school and industry, respectively. Andi Scarcello, from Issaquah, Wash., is a major finishing her sophomore year and pursuing internships in the field for this summer. Emily Farrow is a first-year student from Wayne, Pa., in her second computer science class who is exploring her possibilities for the future. All five students were awarded scholarships to attend the conference.
The students represented Denison well, making contacts with peers, with faculty from other institutions, with representatives of graduate schools, and with representatives from industry sectors interested in promoting more women in the field.