The 2009 Google Australia and New Zealand Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship The 2009 Google Australia and New Zealand Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship
Anita Borg believed that technology affects all aspects of our economic, political, social and personal lives. A technology rebel with a cause, in her life she fought tirelessly to ensure that technology’s impact would be a positive one. It was this vision that inspired Anita in 1997 to found the Institute for Women and Technology. Today this organization continues on her legacy and bears her name, The Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology (www.anitaborg.org).
Her capacity to mix technical expertise and a relentless vision inspired, motivated and moved women to embrace technology instead of avoiding or ignoring it. She has touched and changed the lives of countless women in the computing fields and beyond. She is responsible for including women in the technological revolution – not as bystanders, but as active participants and leaders. In 1987, prior to founding the Institute, Anita began an email online community called Systers which today has 3,000 members from all over the world. In 1994, Anita co-founded the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference. The Grace Hopper Celebration has grown to become the largest gathering of women in computing in the world. The Anita Borg Institute is the umbrella organization for both of these ongoing programs as well as the Virtual Development Center, TechLeaders and a host of other dynamic partnerships and collaborations that embrace Anita’s ongoing vision.
During her life, Anita’s commitment to her vision and expertise in the field gained her significant recognition. In 1999 President Clinton appointed her to the Commission on the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering, and Technology. In 2002, she received the Heinz Award for Technology, the Economy, and Employment.
Born Anita Borg Naffz on January 17th, 1949 in Chicago, Illinois, She grew up in Palatine, Illinois, Kaneohe, Hawaii, and Mukilteo, Washington. Anita found her way to a computer keyboard in her mid-20s. She received a Ph.D. in computer science from the Courant Institute at New York University in 1981. She then embarked on a brilliant research career for some of industry’s commercial giants including, Nixdorf, Digital/Compaq’s Western Research Lab and Xerox PARC.
Dr. Anita Borg (1949-2003) devoted her adult life to revolutionising the way we think about technology and dismantling barriers that keep women and minorities from entering computing and technology fields. Her combination of technical expertise and fearless vision continues to inspire and motivate countless women to become active participants and leaders in creating technology.
As part of Google’s ongoing commitment to furthering Anita’s vision, we are pleased to announce the 2009 Google Australia and New Zealand Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship. Through the scholarship, we aim to encourage women to excel in computing and technology, and become active role models and leaders.
Scholarships will be awarded based on the strength of candidates’ academic background and demonstrated leadership. A group of female undergraduate and graduate student finalists will be chosen from the applicant pool. Each scholar recipient will receive a $5,000 scholarship towards the 2010 academic year. In addition all finalists and scholarship recipients will be invited to an expenses-paid networking retreat to be held at Google’s Sydney Engineering centre in September.
Applicants must satisfy all of the following criteria to be eligible:
Citizens, permanent residents, and international students are eligible to apply. Past applicants and finalists are also encouraged to re-apply. If you have any questions, please email anitaborgscholars.au@google.com.
Please complete the online application and submit all required documents online by June 1st, 2009. First-time users will be required to register and create an account.
You will be asked to submit:
Scholarship finalists and recipients will be notified in late August 2009.
Questions? Visit the Frequently Asked Questions page (FAQ) or email us at anitaborgscholars.au@google.com.
Every year scholarship finalists and scholars are invited to an all-expenses paid retreat held in Sydney in early October. You can find out more about the 2008 retreat through the photos and from the official Google Australia blog.
In addition to free time for sightseeing and socializing, the formal part of the retreat typically spans a Thursday and Friday and includes:
“I heard about Anita Borg at the 2006 Grace Hopper conference in San Diego. Her enthusiasm and courage was inspiring and made me believe that women in Computer Science can achieve great things. The Anita Borg Scholarship is a prestigious award that recognizes such efforts. I think all female Computer Science students that are ambitious about what they are doing should apply.” – Olena, University of Waikato, PhD in Computer Science
“I came away [from the retreat] with a lot to think about – whether my career plans would change, what skills should I focus on gaining now, what am I going to do? I left with a huge question mark over my previous career plans. In a way, it was a little mind-blowing.” – Magdalena, Swinburne University of Technology, Bachelors in Information Technology
“Being a 2008 ANZ Anita Borg Finalist has instilled in me a greater sense of pride of being a female in the computing world. It was humbling to be recognised as a finalist. The scholarship retreat was truly an amazing experience. I learnt so much from the technical talks and gained renewed motivation to get involved in more Women in IT programs and various other wonderful initiatives. It’s amazing to think in three days we went from being strangers to being able to forge some truly great friendships with other like-minded and inspiring women.” – Sarah, Queensland University of Technology, Bachelors in Information Technology and Business