The 2012 Grace Hopper Celebration

By Telle Whitney, President and CEO

October 3-6 was our twelfth (!) Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing conference, held at the Baltimore Convention Center.   This year the conference included 3659 attendees from 209 companies, and 345 academic institutions.  There were attendees from 42 countries. Of the attendees, 1505 were students. The largest number of students was from Harvey Mudd College, who brought 58 students.

The numbers give you a sense of the size, but what was more impactful was the experience. I had the chance to talk to hundreds of students, and hear  their stories about why the Grace Hopper conference makes a difference to them. I had dinner with five students from the University of Utah, and friend Al Davis who is now chair of the department. Listening to what is important to the young women who attend helps me to understand how ABI can make a difference.

We also had almost 80 executives attend the Technical Executive forum. These are executives who have large technical work forces in their organization, who want to understand how to develop a culture that is welcoming to women.

It was inspiring!