North Carolina Regional Aspirations in Computing Awards

April 29th, 2011

UNC Charlotte | Charlotte, NC

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Event Agenda

4:30 - 5:00 Check-in and Snag'em Registration

5:00 - 6:30 Lab tours

(Visualization, Future Computing, Games2Learn)

6:30 – 6:45 Group Picture

6:45 - 7:00 Dinner Buffet open

7:00 - 7:04 Introduction of special guests

7:04 - 7:10 Welcome - Dr. Yi Deng, Dean,

College of Computing and Informatics, UNC Charlotte

7:10 - 7:13 NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing Video

7:13 - 7:15

Introduction of Keynote Speaker - Dr. Tiffany Barnes, Associate Professor,

Computer Science Department, UNC Charlotte

7:15 - 7:30 Keynote - Samantha Finkelstein,

Senior Computer Science Major, UNC Charlotte

7:30 - 7:45 Presentation of Educator Award - Ruthe Farmer,

Director of Strategic Initiatives, NCWIT

7:45 - 8:30

Presentation of 2011 NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing NC Affiliate - Felesia Stukes,

Charlotte WISE Outreach Chair

8:30 - 8:45 Event Wrap up

(Please return your completed surveys to the registration table.)

North Carolina Affiliate Award

2011 North Carolina Affiliate Winners NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing

Kimberly Abrams

Pine Lake Preparatory Class of 2012

Kimberly learned she loved technology during the FIRST Robotics Competitions. She would like to continue her passion by attending MIT or NCSU, majoring in Chemical Engineering and Computer Programming and minoring in Spanish.

Victoria Davis

Harding University High School Class of 2013

Victoria attributes her interest in technology to her third grade teacher, Mr. Hicks. She would like to continue her aspiration by attending the University of Miami to study Neuroscience/ neurobiology. She aspires to become a pediatric neurologist.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Kamaria Delaney Phillip O. Berry Academy of

Technology Class of 2011

Kamaria was inspired by her freshman networking teacher, who taught her that computing and technology will help her be successful. She will be attending the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in the fall to study Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing. Kamaria is also an active member of the marching band and the color guard.

Kaitie Gay

Southern Lee High School Class of 2011

Using computer programs such as Autodesk Revit really spurred Kaitie’s interest in designing and drawing structures, from designing homes to building trebuchets. She is inspired by the combination of creativity and technical challenge. Kaitie will be attending North Carolina State University, where she will major in Architecture.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Ann Lyndon Griffin Charlotte Latin School

Class of 2012

Aside from dancing, Ann Lyndon loves being involved in the computing world. She can see herself creating new programs that would improve daily life. She will be attending college, and would like to design websites and any application which allows her to explore her own creativity.

Shuzhen Lin New Technology at Garinger

Class of 2011

Shuzhen became inspired during her Electronic Art class, where she learned to create animations. When Shuzhen is ready for college, she would like to study Chemical Engineering. She finds calculating chemicals fascinating, and wants to apply this knowledge to creating useful human tools.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Abria Harris Northern Vance High School

Class of 2011

When Abria isn’t making animations, videos, or editing photos, you can find Abria playing video games with her father, who inspired her to stay active in technology. Abria will be attending college at North Carolina State University starting this summer. She will be majoring in Animal Sciences and minoring in Game Design. She would like to find or start a group to do projects and work with animations and game designs.

Kelsey Killion Cuthbertson High School

Class of 2011

Kelsey was first inspired during the EDGE Camp, where she built toys for disabled children. Next year, Kelsey will be attending college. She plans to major in Engineering, possibly with a biomedical or environmental focus. During study breaks, you can find her knitting and crocheting.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Aardra Rajendran The Early College at Guilford

Class of 2012

Aardra stays busy with her volunteer work, tutoring, and serving in her clubs, but what she really loves is writing poetry. In fact, you can find her prose online and in print. Aardra will be travelling to college in 2012 to major in Biomedical engineering or a similar field, where she wants to study tissue and genetic engineering research.

Jordan Maddox

Hillside New Tech High School Class of 2012

Being the youngest in her class has not held Jordan back. She credits her father with peaking her interests in technology, especially designing websites. After high school, Jordan will be studying Computer Science or Engineering, and would like to continue her education at Gnomon School of Visual Effects.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Casey Moore C.E. Jordan High School

Class of 2013

Casey fell in love with technology during a FIRST Robotics event. As a senior Girl Scout, she is pursuing her Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a scout can receive. She is also a founding member of Project Refresh Jordan, which raises money to improve education. Casey wants to major in Computer Engineering at NCSU or Georgia Institute of Technology.

Brooke Ribelin West Davidson High School

Class of 2011

Brooke recently learned how to knit via YouTube, and is attempting to make and sell bracelets and other items for Japan Relief. She will be attending Pace University this fall, and plans to major in both Computer Science and Modern Languages and Cultures. Brooke enjoys both Spanish and French, and plans to study abroad. She also wants to continue with her Master’s degree in Computer Science.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Aleis Murphy Northern Guilford High School

Class of 2011

Aleis took an online AP Computer Science course her Sophomore year, and has cultivated her computing interests ever since. Last Summer, she participated in a project with Duke University, which is where she plans to attend in the Fall. Aleis has also been swimming competitively for 9 years.

Taylor Tippett Sun Valley High School

Class of 2011 Taylor was inspired by her photography teacher who showed her how to bring out the life in her pictures through Photoshop. She is passionate about running and is an active member of her church. Taylor will attend the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and pursue a

degree in Athletic Training.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

Stephanie Dey

Ralph L. Fike High School Class of 2011

Stephanie, a certified Microsoft Specialist, gives credit to her career technical education teachers for inspiring her to pursue technology. Stephanie hopes Lenoir-Rhyne University has a bowling team, where she will be double majoring in Information technology and Business Management next fall.

Congratulations to our 2011 Award Winners!

2011 North Carolina Affiliate Event Committee

Karen Bean

Diversity in Information Technology Institute

UNC Charlotte College of Computing and Informatics

Stephanie Landers

Diversity in Information Technology Institute

UNC Charlotte College of Computing and Informatics

Felesia Stukes

Information Technology Division

Central Piedmont Community College

Kay Read

Director Membership Development - Charlotte Region

North Carolina Technology Association (NCTA)

North Carolina Affiliate Award

2011 National Award Winner

Ivanna Gutierrez

Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology Class of 2011

Since kindergarten, Ivanna has been curious about technology and computing, which she attributes to her father. Her father’s encouragement led Ivanna to pursue programming courses in high school, where she learned to write her first “Hello World” program. Over the summer, Ivanna proudly served at an internship where she was responsible for repairing and configuring her school’s computers and network. One of her proudest accomplishments is a program she wrote to teach cultural information about Puerto Rico. Ivanna will be attending the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where she will study Computer Science. She plans to apply her knowledge to create applications for mobile phones, games, and websites.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

2011 North Carolina Affiliate Educator Award Winner

Terra Kennedy Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology

Charlotte, NC

For more than a decade, career educator and child advocate Terra Kennedy has been an integral part of our nation’s youngest and brightest educational stewards. Her philosophy on not only teaching, but also child nurturing has helped her achieve numerous accolades along her path towards reaching and touching the many lives of children inspired by her own personal experiences. Terra Kennedy graduated in 1999 from Winthrop University with a B.S. degree in Business Education. Shortly after, she started her lifelong dream as a teacher in the fall of 1999 at York Technical College. In 2000, Terra Kennedy was called upon to teach at Marie G. Davis Middle School in Charlotte, NC. The success at Castle Heights Middle School and her many accomplishments there showcased that she possessed the tools needed to serve a more diverse and larger population of students. During her years of service there,

she was promoted to department chair. Her innovative teaching methods as well as her assessment expertise drew her to organize tutorial programs for the North Carolina Computer Competency state exams in 2001 and 2002. Her involvement with Career and Technical Education (CTE) as well as VOCATS made it possible for her to transition to the next phase in her career, where in 2002 she became highly recruited as a Computer Applications teacher at a brand new technical vocational High School called Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology. The accolades didn’t stop there; in 2003 she was nominated by the Charlotte Advocates for Education as a candidate for the Harris Teacher of the Year. In 2006, Terra Kennedy was promoted to Academy of Information Technology Coordinator; a role that she has held until present. After only one year under her supervision, Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology was awarded Academy of the Year by the National Academy Foundation, whose mission is to prepare young people for college and career success. She has been called a “versatile educator”; a description given for her un-yielding willingness to be the parent, mentor, friend and teacher for every child that she touches. Terra Kennedy believes that all students must have an honest chance at learning through a rich academic education process. She believes that quality teachers are essential if those concerned in education are to allow students to develop mentally, socially and academically.

North Carolina Affiliate Award

National Award Sponsor

National Affiliate Sponsors

North Carolina Affiliate Award Sponsors

Additional Support Sponsors

Queen Associates Kathy Harris Felesia Stukes Carol Houle