Northwest Early College High School in the Canutillo Independent School District was recognized as a member of the inaugural Accelerating Women’s Success and Mastery (AWSM) in Computer Science Honor Roll at the 2022 WeTeach_CS Summit.
Northwest achieved this award because young women made up at least 50 percent of computer science (CS) course enrollment in the 2020-21 school year. The statewide average is just 27 percent.
This limited exposure to computer science for young women in high school contributes to underrepresentation in the workforce as well. In the UnitedStates, only 27 percent of all computing jobs are held by women. In Texas alone there are almost 65,000 open computing jobs available with an average salary of $94,779.
“We are proud of Northwest Early College and the administration there for making parity in computer science a priority,” said Superintendent Dr. Pedro Galaviz. “The recognition from the National Science Foundation is further indication that Canutillo ISD is the Best Small School District in Texas.”
Officials with the Texas Advanced Computer Center said Northwest is among an elite group of schools in the state making gender equity in science a priority.
“TACC is proud to recognize Northwest Early College as an inaugural member of the AWSM in CS Honor Roll,” said Carol Fletcher, TACC’s director of Expanding Pathways in Computing at the University of Texas at Austin. “Thanks to your efforts, Northwest is one of less than 100 secondary schools in the state to reach gender parity in CS. Thank you for your awesome leadership and for bringing these opportunities to the young women in your community.”
AWSM in CS is a National Science Foundation-funded project
focused on increasing access and participation of young women in computing courses.
To see the full list of AWSM in CS Honor Roll schools,
click here.