First ever New Mexico Celebration of Women in Computing to be held this October

The New Mexico Celebration of Women in Computing (NMCWiC) will take place on 14-15 October 2010 at the University of New Mexico Centennial Engineering Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is the first of its kind in the Southwest. This inaugural Regional Celebration of Women in Computing, modeled after the highly successful Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing, is a landmark event for the state of New Mexico.

The goal of NMCWiC is to allow students, mentors, educators, faculty and professionals in New Mexico (and beyond!) to have the opportunity to focus on issues of women in computing, as well as experience networking and mentoring on a local level in a manner that is a hallmark of the Grace Hopper Celebration. In particular, NMCWiC will provide a unique opportunity for existing computing students, as well as students potentially interested in computing, to network with professionals in industry and academia, create new connections with one another, and foster future collaborations.

Due to the generosity of the NMCWiC sponsors, for this first year, the conference and hotel accomodations (Hyatt) in Albuquerque are free with confirmation of your registration. You must first register to secure your hotel room. Please visit the NMCWiC sponsors page for more information about who is making this Celebration possible. The poster presentations are open to students only and two students who present posters will win a full scholarship to attend Grace Hopper 2011. Be a part of history and register today!

The conference flyers and tri-fold brochure should be posted on the NMCWiC website within the next few days, but as there are limited spaces left for Lightning Talks, Posters, Panels, Workshops, and Presentations interested persons should register as soon as possible. The program includes speakers from Microsoft, Google, Anita Borg, NCWIT, as well as the 2009 NMNWSE IMPACT! Award winner Joan Woodard, so this is a great opportunity to network. Please visit the NMCWiC webpage www.nmcwic.org to register and find out more information.

If you have any questions, would like to volunteer and/or be more involved, or want to find out more information please do not hesitate to contact the conference organizers at (505) 750-8131 or via the contact form on the NMCWiC webpage. Please forward this information on to students who may be interested!

--Elizabeth Kallman
On behalf of the NMCWiC organizing Committee

YWCA Middle Rio Grande to hold Leadership and Diversity Institute this fall

The YWCA Middle Rio Grande 2010 Leadership and Diversity Institute is a series of six workshops to be held in Albuquerque on consecutive Thursday evenings during Oct 14-Nov 18, 2010 and designed to offer practical skills to empower women for success in today's workplace. The deadline to register is Oct. 7. See http://www.ywca-nm.org/Leadership_Institute_on_Diversity.aspx for more information and registration fees.