<iridescent< strong=””>, a global STEM education nonprofit, announced its’ 2018 Technovation Alliance with Google’s Made with Code, Uber, Adobe Foundation, and Salesforce.org. Functioning as the globe’s largest technology entrepreneurship program for girls 10-18 years in age, Technovation and its partners strive to inspire and support female leaders in tech all over the world.</iridescent<>
Now in its ninth year, Technovation invites girls to pick out a problem in their community and solve it through the construction of a mobile app, with the support of mentors and Iridescent’s curriculum. Inspired by the principles behind design thinking, this curriculum takes the students through four stages needed to launch a mobile app startup, from identifying a problem, to developing a mobile app solution, to building a business to launch their app, and finally bringing their business to market.
“For over a decade Iridescent has offered, innovated, and scaled the Technovation program and we are excited to have more partners join this movement,” said Iridescent’s Founder and CEO, Tara Chklovski. “”Not only will these partners support this global phenomenon financially, their resources, mentors and strategic insights are invaluable for aspiring female tech entrepreneurs across the globe.”
Following participation in the Technovation program, Iridescent has found a dramatic increase in interest for STEM, Computer Science, Entrepreneurship and Business Leadership, specifically noting:
- 78% of students were more interested in Computer Science and 58% of alumnae enroll in subsequent Computer Science courses;
- 70% of students were more interested in Entrepreneurship
- 67% of students were more interested in Business Leadership
Technovation has impacted 15,000 girls worldwide, producing apps that tackle issues from women’s safety to food waste. The program produces meaningful results, both from the apps as well as an increase in entrepreneurship, business leadership, computer science, and STEM interest by participants.
