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University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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Illinois Senator Barack Obama mentions ChicTech at a meeting of the National Center for Women & Information Technology in Washington, D.C. in May, 2006.

ChicTech (pronounced "sheek-tek") is a grass-roots initiative to generate interest in computer science among Illinois high school girls. It is a collaborative effort between the department, UIUC alumni, and the volunteers in ChicTech as well as a joint endeavor between UIUC and other colleges within the state of Illinois.

Treating girls across the state to pizza luncheons, the all-volunteer ChicTech team travels to Illinois high schools explaining and demystifying the field. They give girls a glimpse of life as a student in CS and explore the exciting and challenging career options open to graduates. Their presentation also confronts stereotypes of the male-dominated field-debunking myths, citing success stories and sharing personal experiences. The presentation is designed to resonate with the younger girls, sparking their interest and moving them toward further exploration. The presentations also promote the Technical Ambassadors Competition.

ChicTech visits are supported by a grant from NSF entitled Building Communities (grant CNS-04-20505). Related activities, such as TAC, have received additional support from Morgan Stanley, State Farm Foundation, Microsoft, Boeing, Lockheed-Martin, and Electronic Arts.


2007/2008 High School Visits

School Visited by Visit Date School Official
Central High School WCS 9.7.2007 Diane Ecker
Plainfield South High School Rich Miller, Alumnus 10.23.2007 Robert Hillegonds
Plainfield North High School Rich Miller, Alumnus 10.25.2007 Vicki Morrow
Von Steuben High School Pam Marino, Alumna 10.25.2007 Susan Kwan
Bartlett High School WCS 11.02.2007 Mary VanSlyck
Downers Grove - South High School Carole Long, Alumna 11.02.2007 Diane Ignash
University Laboratory High School WCS 11.09.2007 Vivianne Vil/Sam Smith
Oak Park and River Forest High Schools David Burns, Alumnus 11.16.2007 Mary Howie/Doug Allee
University Laboratory High School WCS 11.16.2007 Kathleen Booth
Neuqua Valley High School - Blue Campus Rich Miller, Alumnus/Liwei Wang 12.7.2007 Darcy Hutzler/Susan Janes
Urbana High School WCS 12.14.2007 Paula Rogers/Glenna Rogers


ChicTech presentation

  • 2007/2008 ChicTech Visit Presentation: [PPT]
  • 2007/2008 ChicTech Visit Presentation - Co-ed: [PPT]


Related links and contacts


Promotional Materials


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Last Modified December 17 2007 12:46:47.

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Department of Computer Science, Thomas M. Siebel Center for Computer Science, 201 N Goodwin Ave,
Urbana, IL 61801-2302. The Department is part of the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Contact academic@cs.uiuc.edu with academic questions
or webmaster@cs.uiuc.edu with questions or comments on this page.