We’re gearing up for 2017—and there are some exciting new changes coming to Softec’s Women in Tech (WIT) group!
First off, we’re going to shake things up with new days, times, and venues for some of our monthly events. Here’s what we’ve got planned:
Breakfasts:
Breakfast will now be the first Wednesday of the month at Steynberg Gallery on Monterey St.
7:30-8:00 Networking/coffee
8:00-8:20 Program
8:20-8:45 Q&A/discussion
8:45-9:15 Networking
For our breakfast program, we’ll be interviewing local women in technology—focusing on relevant issues—so bring your questions. For our first meeting, we’ll be doing some group brainstorming around the topic of “What does it mean to be a woman in tech?”
WIT and Wine Happy Hour:
Our wine nights will be the second Tuesday of each month at Wine Shed.
This is a great opportunity to grab a glass of wine and network with our local women. We keep this program loose and informal—with just a few announcements. The rest goes wherever the conversation may take us.
Lunch:
Lunch will continue to be at noon on the third Thursday of the month at Shalimar.
Take a break from the workday and enjoy a casual lunch with your WIT friends. Informal networking happens over lunch.
Can’t make it?
We’ll miss you—but you can now follow us on our brand new Facebook Page! Stay up to date on our latest events, get audio files of anything you might have missed, and participate in polls so we can continue to bring you the discussion topics you care about most.
See you in 2017!
Tag: Events
Students make Robotics Great (Again)!
Last month over 700 people chose to invest in students instead of watching the presidential debates. Adults and kids alike enjoyed robotic creations and learned how to solve real world problems with technology – there was no accusations about 33,000 lost emails, missing tax returns, or negative jabs. Just passionate debates over battery technologies and construction materials.
From school robots to commercial drones, this event is designed to inspire creative technologies and encourage kids who have a talent for engineering. Grants are given to existing robotics teams and key connections and seed money provided to form new high school teams. Softec gave $7,500 in grants this year and $40,000 over the last 11 years.
From school robots to commercial drones, this event is designed to inspire creative technologies and encourage kids who have a talent for engineering. Grants are given to existing robotics teams and key connections and seed money provided to form new high school teams. Softec gave $7,500 in grants this year and $40,000 over the last 11 years.
Softec gave $7,500 in grants this year and $40,000 over the last 11 years.
Instead of going toe-to-toe on higher wages and better education, robotics clubs come face-to-face with real-world experience for our future engineers, business leaders and managers. Many teams have a marketing officer, treasurer, and HR director to account for the thousands of hours, ten of thousands of dollars, and relationships with sponsors. More than STEM – club robotics create opportunity for students of all talents teaching lessons more valuable than a typical child’s ‘first job’.
Instead of a debate on higher wages and better education, robotics clubs create a real-world experience for our future engineers, business leaders and managers.
Softec and our sponsors take direct action to invest in our local economy. As a local non-profit software and technology trade association, we work to build and promote local events for our sponsors, and we focus this annual event as an investment in our students – where we create a multi-generational experience for all ages. And that is the truth – no fact checkers needed! 😉
Softec Robotics Expo – a unique intersection of learning and fun!
Softec’s 8th Annual Student Robotics Expo is this Monday, Sept. 26th at 5:50pm. This free event has packed the house each year – full of learning opportunities and plenty of fun.
What is unique about this robotics expo is the student exposure to more advanced robotics leagues and applications in the commercial industry to provide a taste of what their future in robotics can look like. Truly a multi-generational experience, with LEGO robots, full-sized and underwater High School robots – and commercial bots from the SLO County Bomb Sqad and drones used in the Wine Industry, there is certain to be something for everyone.
This event has grown in every way; in order to bring in new activities this year, we have moved to the Alex Madonna Expo Center! Last year we offered a Drone Obstacle course for the first time. This year we have a drone arena, bigger than last year’s course and located in the Expo Building to make piloting easier. So bring your drone or quadcopter – and compete for the best time in your assigned class.
The community’s support to put on this event has been amazing! CalFire will be providing a pool for the underwater robotics teams and we already mentioned the Bomb bot from SLO Sheriff’s Dept. Cal Poly’s Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and staff from Experts Exchange have offered to volunteer to help with setup and running the Drone Course. We also have several food vendors lined up: The Pairing Knife, RibLine, What the Truck, Paradise Shaved Ice, and Coastal Peaks Coffee
Several Robotics Leagues will be Represented:
- FIRST – High School Robotics
- MATE – Marine Advanced Technology Education
- VEX – High school and Middle School Robotics
- VEXiq – Elementary School Robotics
- FIRST LEGO League – Elementary School Robotics
Agenda:
- 5:30PM – Food vendors start serving
- 6:00pm – The Robotics Expo Begins! Attendance is Free!
Startup Weekend – January 16-18 – Cal Poly
If you have never been involved with a startup weekend it is an experience that I highly recommend. A Startup weekend is a 54 hour event where creative people come together to pitch ideas and create Startups. This will be my sixth Startup Weekend and I can assure you that it is both exhilarating and exhausting. It is amazing to watch ideas gather teams than then morph into Startups that launch in our community. I know of at least a dozen businesses that have roots in prior Startup Weekends.
Finding this event can get a little tricky but here is a quick link for more information:
http://www.up.co/communities/usa/slo/startup-weekend/5156
And a video about the program:
http://vimeo.com/28872840