AMIT students from several schools were chosen to take part in a special program with Google Israel called “Mind the Gap,” which aims to encourage young women to develop an interest in computer science and increase the number of women in the tech industry.
Forty schools were accepted into the program out of 200 that applied, including AMIT Wasserman Torah, Arts and Sciences Junior High School for Girls in Ma’ale Adumim, AMIT Wasserman Junior and Senior High School in Beersheva, and AMIT Atidim in Or Akiva.
Each school selected two mentors, outstanding computer science students who also possess excellent leadership skills. They will be trained by Google Israel and will then guide the 9th-grade students in the initiative through workshops and other programs.
The mentors had their first meeting at Google Israel’s Tel Aviv office this past week, where they gained some of the tools they will need to help their younger peers.
“Mind the Gap” is a pre-university effort started by female engineers to address the dearth of women in Israel’s high-tech industry. Its goal is to change the way girls perceive computer science and encourage them to pursue it as a course of study in starting in high school.
This initiative is promoted as part of Google’s 20 percent time program, which encourages employees to use up to 20 percent of their work week at Google to pursue special projects.