Oregon & SW Washington Region

Affiliate Award Celebration Sunday, March 6, 2011

Lewis and Clark College Templeton Center

"It is important that companies, especially those that count on

technological innovation to prosper, support the advancement of

information technology and computing. Vernier is honored to

acknowledge these young women’s achievements and to help them

reach the goals to which they aspire."

David Vernier, CEO of Vernier Software & Technology.

Guest Speakers

Welcome

Ruthe Farmer NCWIT National

Keynote

Women in Technology

What I Wish I’d Known Coming out of High School

Two Views

Amethyst O’Brien Google

Tamsen Galloway Via West

Arushi Raghuvanshi

Jesuit High School

Class of 2011

Portland, Or

I have to thank my dad for my interest in computer

engineering, because he was the one who first

encouraged me to join Lego Robotics. As a 9 year old, I

was a little nervous about being one of the only girls on

my team, but I soon realized how much I enjoyed

robotics and continued to follow my interests. I also have

to thank my teachers Prof. Marek Perkowski and Dr.

Gorman for everything that they have taught me. Without

Prof. Perkowski, I wouldn't have had the opportunities

that I have had to learn and work with robotics.

I am proud that I have written various papers that have

been published in journals and that I have presented at

various international conferences. Although I am proud of

these accomplishments, what I truly enjoy is the

challenge and the experience of research. I like playing

around with robots and quantum logic and the sense that

my work might make a difference in the world.

Future: Majoring in Computer Engineering or Biomedical

Engineering. I see myself continuing to pursue my

interests in engineering, research, cross country, service,

and dance.

I enjoy the fact that engineering, computers, and

technology can be used for very practical applications.

Some of the work that I have done, including developing

humanoid robots and using Image Processing and

Machine Learning for the diagnosis of melanoma cancer,

had very practical applications, and I enjoy the sense that

my work can make a difference in the world.

Interesting Facts: I have

traveled to 15 countries, and I

enjoy outdoor activities such as

rock climbing, scuba diving, and

backpacking

Ask me about: triathlons, Indian

dance, or Quantum robots.

2011 NCWIT National Award Winner for Oregon

Oregon & SW Washington Regional

Affiliate Award Celebration

2011 Oregon and SW Washington Winners

Penelope Biggs

Benson Polytechnic High

Class of 2012

Portland, Oregon

Karthy Chandra

Westview High School

Class of 2011

Portland, Oregon

The most influential people were my mother who urged me

to get into robotics and pursue what I am interested in. My

High School Benson has also been very influential in getting

me interested in technology. My robotics mentors,

specifically John Delacy, have been very helpful in

developing my skills in computing.

I am very proud of the shooting program that i wrote for

my sophomore year robot. I learned how to program that

year because all the programmers on the team had left.

Future: I intend to go to college and pursue a degree in

Engineering. I enjoy the design and analysis process as

much as the actual building of a robot or project.

Interesting Fact: I realized that my initials were the

atomic symbol for Lead before I made the connection

between "Pb" and "peanut butter".

Ask me about: My school or robots

My robotics coach, Venkatesh Chaya, has been extremely influential in recruiting me onto his robotics team and encouraging me to explore new aspects of computer science and engineering.

My greatest technical accomplishment is not one that I can claim to be my very own, but it is the robot that my team and I built for this year's FTC tournament. It took hours and hours of work to construct, but we are very proud of it and excited for it to compete in an upcoming tournament.

Future: In the future, I see myself pursuing a major in biomedical engineering and I eventually hope to work in the field of Healthcare Information Technology.

Interesting Fact: I was born in India, am a Canadian citizen, and live in the U.S

What I enjoy/ admire most about computers and technology is their widespread utility. It seems they have crawled into every niche and corner of our lives and life without them seems impossible!

Ask me about: women’s rights

Kimberly Goertzen

West Salem High School

Class of 2012

Salem, Oregon

Megan Goossens

Cottage Grove High

Class of 2011

Cottage Grove, Oregon

Kim has Greg Smith to thank for encouraging her in computer

science.

Her greatest technical achievement would be her selection as

co-webmaster of her school.

Future: She sees herself going to OSU and focusing on

science as a career.

An interesting fact: She lead a Toshiba ExploraVision team

to first place in nationals for the 2009 competition.

What she enjoys most about computers and technology is the

huge range of opportunity for advancement.

Ask me about: being on an MIT InvenTeam

The people who have influenced me the most in technology

have been my engineering technology teachers. Mr. Kaiser got

me started in engineering, and Mr. Medina kept me going, as

well as letting me use robots.

One technological achievement that I am proud of is installing

a new radio and speakers into my 1980 pickup truck.

Future: I plan on going to Oregon State University for

computer science, then hopefully getting a job programming

and working with robots.

An interesting fact: That I have almost every Star Wars

book written, and that the droids in Star Wars is what inspired

me to go into robotics.

What I most enjoy about computers and technology is the

things you can make them do. They can be useful, or just fun.

Ask Me About: Star Wars

Erica Hose

Centennial High School

Class of 2011

Gresham, Oregon

Houmin Huang

Oregon Episcopal School

Class of 2011

Portland, Oregon

My parents are the most influential people in my life because

they have supported me in my pursuit of robotics and

immersed me in the geeky culture of engineers.

My greatest technological accomplishment would be when I

taught myself how to program in StarLogo during an internship

with Dr. Christof Teuscher at Portland State. No one else in the

internship knew how to use it so I persevered and managed to

learn how to make a pretty good simulation.

Future: I plan to go on to study electrical engineering and

computer science with a specialization in robotics.

The thing that I enjoy most about computers and technology is

how everything evolves so fast that it is hard to predict what

people are going to come up with next and new ideas are

being born every day.

Ask me about: the diverse uses for robotics

The person I really appreciate is my Computer Science and

Engineering teacher Steve Decker. His method of teaching was

unlike any I had previously experienced. He emphasized

pragmatism and creativity through hands-on projects and

project challenges. From him, I realize that there will not

always be a teacher to swoop down like a guardian angel with

all answers.

My achievement is no matter what kind of difficulty I am

facing, I could always keep a positive attitude.

Future: I see myself work with people who have the same

passion as me, and turn our ideas into real-world businesses.

Preventing me from distracting by computer, our house didn’t

have a computer during my middle school and freshman year.

Ask me about: ANYTHING

Jessica King

Sweet Home High School

Class of 2011

Sweet Home, Oregon

Emma Knight

Sherwood High School

Class of 2011

Sherwood, Oregon

Emma has her engineering teacher Mr. Niebergall to thank for encouraging her in computer technology. From freshman year through senior year, he has always supported her and given her amazing opportunities for greatness.

She is most proud of being a part of her school’s first robotics team her junior year and then growing it into three teams by her senior year.

Future: Emma sees herself attending OSU to become a aeronautical engineer.

An interesting fact: Emma helped create a girls only engineering class at her high school. She loves being creative and seeing her ideas come to life.

Ask me about: golf or robotics.

Jessica has her technology teacher Michael Morrell to thank

for encouraging her in computer technology.

She really likes working in 3d graphics and is excited to see

her creations come to life on the screen.

She is proud of her contribution to the school game

development team for OGPC 3.0 and also her regular

contribution to the care and maintenance of computers in

her community.

She is currently working to redesign the school’s website.

Future: Jessica plans to study computer graphics and game

design and development and then work in the game

development industry.

Ask me about: gaming!

Savannah Loberger

Hillsboro High School

Class of 2013

Hillsboro, Oregon

Metrah Mohammad Nadar

David Douglas High

Class of 2011

Portland, Oregon

Savannah’s greatest influences for pursuing engineering are her parents and her tech teacher Mr. Domes. Savannah’s parents have been very supportive, especially her mom. Her mom has always told her that she can do anything. Savannah knows that her dad is proud of her no matter what and he will always be there for her. She would like to thank Mr. Domes for opening the field of engineering; without his classes she probably would not still be in robotics today. Her greatest technology achievement was in 7th grade when her FLL team won the Rookie award that allowed her team to go to state even though it was difficult being the only girl. She knew after that experience that robotics was what she wanted to do. Future: Savannah would like to attend MIT after high school. She is unsure of what field of study, possibly biomedical engineering. She wants to make a difference in the world and she knows that she can in engineering. Interesting fact: Savannah is the only girl on the robotics teams at her high school.

Ask me about... country music

I thank destiny for my interest in computer science. If I had

stayed in Afghanistan I would not have had the access to

computers, and as a girl my interest in computers would not have

been accepted in Afghan society. However, my parents’

perseverance and encouragement gave me inspiration to work

hard and get the most out of my life.

One of my greatest technical achievements has been repairing

Mac and PC computers of friends and neighbors. I enjoy working

on Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, etc. and designing different

websites. I have volunteered over 40 hours at Free Geek, a

nonprofit organization that provides free computers, repairs and

rebuilds them. Through Saturday Academy, apprenticeship in

Science and Engineering program, I worked as a software test

developer for CafeGive allowing me to discover and learn about

technologies.

Future: I see myself becoming a doctor with great computer

skills.

Iinteresting fact: I speak Farsi, Russian, Uzbek and English.

Ask me about: Digital Media/Graphic Design

Preksha Naik

Corvallis High School

Class of 2013

Corvallis, Oregon

Manali Paralkar

Tigard High School

Class of 2011

Tigard, Oregon

My father was probably the most influential in my interest in

computers as he himself is a computer programmer. In addition, I

have my school homework assignments to thank as well because

without them, I wouldn’t have had the chance to waste time and

spend as much time as I do not doing my assignments and

exploring various features and such.

I am proud of my accomplishments during a summer at Oregon

State University assisting in a research project dealing with

computer graphics.

Future: I see myself making the world a better place.

Interesting Fact: English is my third language.

I enjoy how useful computers and technology have become.

There are innumerable resources on the internet including

communication, education, entertainment, etc. and best of all, it is

accessible to almost anyone.

Ask me about: my love for tennis.

I have my parents to thank for encouraging me in my interest in

computer science. They have always been supportive no matter

what I choose to do. They introduced me to FIRST Lego League

(FLL) when I was in elementary school, and since then I have

been really interested in robotics and programming.

My greatest technical accomplishment is when I converted the

Mindstorm G programs into LabVIEW for my internship at Vernier

Software & Technology.

Future: A Bachelor’s Degree in Biomedical Engineering and then

getting my Master’s Degree.

Interesting fact: I created my first website in seventh grade.

I really enjoy learning about all different aspects of robotics.

Ask me about: Rubik’s Cubes

Roslyn Patrick-Sunnes

Hood River Valley High

Class of 2013

Hood River, Oregon

Lilly Paul

Hood River Valley High

Class of 2013

Hood River, Oregon

Roslyn has her teacher Mr. Blackman to thank for getting her so

involved in engineering and robotics. He taught her a lot about

engineering and more importantly made her enjoy it.

Some of Roslyn's greatest accomplishments were getting

involved in her robotics team and club this year. She learned a

ton about building robots and was one of the main

programmers for her team. Even though they were a rookie

team they came in first place in their qualifying competition and

the team is going on to state.

Future: Roslyn would like to pursue a career in engineering,

science or mathematics.

Interesting Facts: She was the winner of the American Math

Contest at her school. Roslyn loves is the swim team and LEOS

club.

Ask me about: Robots, Swimming, Music, and Awesomeness

The two people who were the most influential and encouraging

in my computing and technology interest would be my dad,

Barry Paul, and my engineering teacher, Jeff Blackman.

My greatest technical achievement occurred recently when I

competed as rookie team captain in F.T.C . My team and I

learned so much about building and programming robots. It

was a challenging and fun experience. We not only competed

but we won our qualifiers and are going to the state

championship! I am super excited. We won the tournament

and also an award for the best robot design.

Future: Going to college and becoming an engineer.

I love learning new things, like programming and building

robots, then actually having them work. It is so cool when I’m

driving the robot to think, “I made this!”

Interesting Fact: love being in the water, being on the swim

team, surfing, sailing, and especially windsurfing. During the

summer I work as a windsurfing instructor.

Ask me About: Robotics, swim team, windsurfing, movie

making

Rashele Raber

North Salem High School

Class of 2011

Salem, Oregon

Natalie Suderman

West Salem High School

Class of 2013

Salem, Oregon

That person would definitely have to be my computer science

teacher Mr. Kirkwood. If it wasn’t for him I never have gotten

into this amazing and field.

We had our first ever completely student run Tech Conference

last year. I was the person in charge of everything. It turned out

greater than I expected to with my limited experience. This year

I hope to have an even bigger turnout.

Future: Going to college and getting my degree in computer

software engineering. From there I hope to find a job doing

what I love.

Interesting Fact: I am a good writer and am currently writing

4 books. Two are my own. My best friend and I are writing one

and a group of my friends and I are writing another.

I enjoy the mind set and thinking process that comes along with

computer science. I have found that in my other classes I use

this to help me excel.

Ask me about: ANYTHING, I love to talk

My dad would probably be the most influential person in my computer/technical career, he started up a robotics team for me when I was little, and from then on I've never stopped loving programming or building robots

When I was in my first year of FLL robotics, at regional’s, the program that I had been having problems with worked perfectly, my arm/device worked smoothly and it was the best thing I have ever made/programmed since.

Future: I would love to keep doing what I'm doing; go to college, and get involved in some sort of robotics. However, my ideal career would be dealing with more of the programming side of robotics or, maybe video game design or programming. It sounds like fun.

Interesting Fact: I know 1600 digits of PI

I love the access modern technology gives us along with the opportunity to improve it and make something better. The people that I meet and the friends I make, like all the people in my Java class, are really close and so open with each other. I love walking into a room of friends, not just classmates.

Ask me about: robotics

Nicole Usselman

Cascade Senior High

Class of 2013

Turner, Oregon

Amy Wiegand

Riverdale High School

Class of 2012

Portland, Oregon

Nicole has her fourth and fifth grade teacher, Kathy Soderstrom, to

thank for getting her involved in Technology. She has her technology

teacher, Susan Lehner, and the technology director, Johan

Bloemhard and the other technology staff, Ray Charles and Michael

King to thank for facilitating her experiences and for teaching her

new things about computers.

Her greatest technical achievement is her ASE internship last

summer at Oregon State University under the guidance of Dr.

Margaret Burnett.

Future: Nicole sees herself employing her technology skills in her

job as a wildlife biologist.

Interesting Fact: Nicole was the first girl to take the Computer

Tech. class in her high school.

The part that she enjoys the most about technology is that there is

always something new to learn.

Ask me about: FFA or sports

Amy finds that encouragement from the many great people that she

has met through robotics deserve much of the credit for getting her

interested in technology.

Her first big accomplishment is going to the world finals in Atlanta,

Georgia with the FRC robotics team. Her second accomplishment is

sharing all that she has learned about robotics and programming with

others by teaching classes and mentoring .

Future: going to college to study either robotics, computer science,

artificial intelligence, or some sort of engineering. She also sees

herself continuing to teach classes and mentor my peers in robotics

and programming.

Interesting Facts: Amy fences at Northwest Fencing Center,

studies ASL (American Sign Language) at the local community

college, participates as a member of the Riverdale Science Club, and

volunteer at the local library.

She enjoys the mere challenge of solving new problems, learning

new facts, and the feeling of accomplishment when you share that

with others.

Ask her about: Robotics, ASL, and Fencing

Shannon Williams

Corvallis High School

Class of 2011

Corvallis, Oregon

Danning Yao

Crescent Valley High

Class of 2011

Corvallis, Oregon

My older sister Jamie has had the greatest influence on me, and it

was she who first encouraged me to enroll in the school’s computer

science class.

The technological accomplishment that I take the most pride in is

when I programmed the winning robot for the 2010 FIRST Oregon

Regional Competition, especially the reliable autonomous mode.

Future: BS in Computer Science with an emphasis in mathematics

and artificial intelligence. Then on to graduate school to research

advances in these areas.

Interesting fact: I play Unicycle Hockey every Monday on one of

about five teams in the United States.

What I enjoy about computers and technology is their potential to

create anything, even whole virtual worlds.

Ask her about: Unicycle Hockey

My robotics programming captain during freshman year inspired my

interest in computer science with his creative and challenging

coding projects.

My proudest technical achievement was coding a Geneva drive

scoring barrel for my FIRST robotics team.

Future: I see myself going to college and majoring in mathematics

or computer science.

Interesting fact: I am left handed but write with my right hand.

The thing I love the most about technology and computers is the

capability they have for changing the world.

Ask her about: epistemology, tautology, googlology

Jeff Blackman

Hood River Valley High School

Hood River, Oregon

NCWIT 2011 National Educator Awards

Jeff Blackman has focused his teaching on increasing student’s participation in technology and

engineering since 1999. As a teacher of mathematics and engineering Jeff believes that the best

education is a hands on approach to learning.

In his Engineering One class, students design, build and test projects from bridges to stirling

engines. Students explore different types of engineering including civil, mechanical and

electrical. The engineering process is reinforced throughout the year, and students learn from

both their failures and their successes.

Students proceed to Engineering Two, where they compete in the Electrathon America or First

Robotics FTC competition. Students’ learn the necessary skills to complete their projects such as

welding, fabricating, computer programming and design process. Students are required to

research colleges and universities for engineering, math or science.

Jeff also enjoys being a father and husband, Boy Scout leader, windsurfer, kite-boarder, skier,

and bicycler. He lives in Hood River, nature’s playground for kids and adults.

John Niebergall’s accomplishments on behalf of his students are many. Over the course of John’s 26-year

career in public education he has taught Engineering, Architecture, CAD/CAM, and Woodworking. In all of

these classes, John has focused on providing his students with hands-on, contextual, real-world learning

experiences.

In this context he has coached his students in robotics and taken them to the National competition where

they were national champions. He has made contacts in the community and raised over $100,000 through

grants and in-kind contributions, and with this money he has provided his students with a Fab-lab with

industry-standard software and state of the art prototyping equipment. Subsequently, this has led to a

student-run, school-based enterprise, thereby providing students with the experience of designing,

developing, manufacturing, and marketing a series of products used within the community of Sherwood.

Even this partial list of John’s accomplishments would seem to be enough to rest on, yet John became

aware of the underrepresentation of non-traditional students in the Career and Technical Education classes

at SHS and decided to address this. John developed a program in 2009-2010 and proposed it to the

administration in his building. The program would be a co-taught class in which girls would design,

develop, and produce a product following the template he had created in his other classes. The response

was overwhelming when the class was launched this year. Two sections were offered and both were

immediately filled and a waiting list was created.

Because of John’s efforts 60 girls are now studying Engineering and Construction with 60 more waiting to

take the course next trimester. After 26 years of highly successful teaching, John still asks questions of

himself and his program: What are the barriers keeping young women from taking STEM classes and what

can I do to address this? The results speak for themselves!

John Niebergall

Sherwood High School

Sherwood, Oregon

Thanks to our Oregon and SW Washington Affiliate Sponsors

Additional Support from:

Oregon Robotics & Tournament Outreach Program (ORTOP)

Saturday Academy Apprenticeships in Science and Engineering (ASE)

Math Engineering Science Achievement at PSU

Oregon 4-H

Science & Math Investigative Learning Experiences at OSU

The Award for Aspirations in Computing is the product of

National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT)

NCWIT is supported by the National Science Foundation, industry

and academic partners.

Regional Affiliate Planning Committee Organizations

Special Thanks to our community partners

who help get the word out and whose programs build interest