The South Hills School of Business and Technology in Altoona hosted its first "Girls in Tech" event on Friday to encourage more girls to pursue tech careers. The event included panel discussions, networking and hands-on learning opportunities, including one session called "Let's Build a Computer!"
”See? Another perk of being a female in IT," one girl joked. "You have smaller fingers!”
There were also sessions about creating AI software, cybersecurity, and what work at the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center looks like.
About 25 girls from across central Pennsylvania attended the event, including Alana Sears. She’s graduating soon from Cambria Heights High School in nearby Cambria County.
“I'm actually coming to South Hills Altoona next year," Sears said. "I'm already accepted. I'm coming for software development.”
Sears said she competed in a tech competition for two years in high school.
“I was the only girl in my competitions both times," Sears said. "And it was just not the most fun. I end up having fun after I get comfortable, but being the only girl is definitely intimidating.”
Sears said she is nervous to potentially be only one of a few girls in school again, but she was encouraged after hearing from women at the event working in tech in nearby communities.
Alexa Spigelmyer is a technical account manager for VMware in State College. She was part of a panel discussion and Q&A at the event.
"Supporting women in tech is a huge passion of mine, obviously, as a woman who works in IT and who graduated from South Hills as the only girl in my class," Spigelmyer said. "It's really important to get women involved in technology and make them feel comfortable."
Spigelmyer said she's noticed a lot of prejudice against women in tech throughout her career.
"We're treated as less than," Spigelmyer said. "We have to perform at such a high level to be considered acceptable. Most of us I know are fairly overqualified for the jobs that we get."
South Hills instructors said they hope to make "Girls in Tech" a yearly event at the Altoona campus. According to The World Bank, women held only a third of tech jobs in the U.S. in 2023.
