communities
for girls ages 10-14. Zoey's Room was developed by an all-female non-profit,
Platform Shoes Forum, based in Rockland, Maine. And yes, braces
have nothing to do with technology, but that's not the point. The point is
that girls don't historically dive into subject matters such as this without
a little coaxing. They will, however, try something new when they're in a supportive,
comfortable environment. By chatting every day after school in a secure, collaborative
online community with 13-year-old Zoey - someone they can just talk to about
stuff - girls are seamlessly enticed into the challenging world of math, science
and technology. Since 2003, Zoey's Room has been offered as an after-school club and interactive website to public middle schools and libraries all around Maine. Now, with a newly minted website and customized features, Zoey's Room is launching nationally this fall, offering individual memberships to any tween-age girl who wants to be part of Zoey's unique community. Right now it is the only math, science and technology website for girls that requires a special verification process to ensure the identity of each girl, which is good news for parents and schools who are concerned about protecting their daughters online.
Within the first week of launching the website, the YWCA New England Regional Council (YWCA-NER) agreed to license Zoey's Room and offer it as an after-school program at YWCAs across New England. More than nine YWCA councils organizations and 200 girls have signed up for the program since.
"We are thrilled to be partnering with Zoey's Room to develop girls' interest and skills in these critical areas," noted Maryann Donahue, YWCA-NER Resource Development Specialist, at a recent Zoey's Room training. "The program is a perfect fit with the YWCA's mission to foster women's economic empowerment. It will help us promote girls' entry into careers that promise long-term financial success and stability."
Making the "hard skills" of math, science and technology appealing to adolescent girls has been a hot topic, as the majority of U.S. females continue to avoid courses and careers in these fields. According to the 2000 report done by the AAUW Educational Foundation Commission on Technology, Gender, and Teacher Education, Report "Media, teachers, and other adults need to make the public face of women in computing correspond to the reality rather than the stereotype. Girls tend to imagine that computer professionals or those who work heavily with information technology live in a solitary, antisocial world. This is an alienating and incorrect perception."
Zoey's Room's mission is to engage girls, ages 10 to 14 in these careers as a lifetime track into high-paying jobs. "Currently only 24% of women hold positions in these fields, though women account for nearly 50% of the workforce," said Erin Reilly, Co-ffounder and Executive Producer. "We want to narrow that gap in the workplace and make sure that girls aren't left behind."
Zoey's Room delivers what girls want: a tight online collaborative community, a daily personal connection to Zoey after school, Fab Female role model online chats, and story-based math, science and tech challenges, which not only motivate girls to earn enough points to win big prizes such as those donated from Logitech, a Fremont, California-based device manufacturer, but give them an opportunity to showcase their creative work online. To this end, every challenge girls complete in Zoey's Room, encourages and inspires to further tinker, design and build other projects.
Ultimately this is what Zoey's Room is about: providing opportunities for girls to express their technological imaginations. And it all starts with a bit of breezy, silly chat.
Girls who are interested in becoming part of Zoey's Room's online community, can visit www.zoeysroom.com.