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Apple Celebrating International Women's Day With 'Girls Who Code' Partnership and More Throughout March

Thursday February 28, 2019 6:15 am PST by Joe Rossignol
International Women's Day is March 8, but Apple plans to celebrate women throughout the entire month of March with a new Girls Who Code partnership, special Today at Apple sessions at Apple Stores, an Activity Challenge, and more.


First, Apple is partnering with Girls Who Code to support new coding opportunities for girls and young women in the United States. Using Apple's Everyone Can Code curriculum, 90,000 girls and Girls Who Code Club facilitators in all 50 states will have the opportunity to learn Apple's programming language Swift.
Swift training will also be provided for club leaders to help expand the number and reach of coding clubs. Apple supports educational opportunities for students of all ages and backgrounds, and advocates for girls’ right to access the same learning opportunities as their male counterparts through its Developer Academies, Everyone Can Code curriculum and work with the Malala Fund and National Center for Women and Information Technology.
Second, in select Apple Stores around the world, visitors can attend over 60 Today at Apple sessions in a new "Made By Women" series throughout March. Sessions will be held in select stores in Singapore, Kyoto, Hong Kong, London, Milan, Paris, Dubai, San Francisco, Chicago, New York City, and Los Angeles.

Third, Apple Watch users around the world can earn an exclusive badge and iMessage stickers when they complete a walk, run, or wheelchair workout of a mile or longer on International Women's Day, which is Friday, March 8 this year.


Fourth, every App of the Day featured in the App Store in March in the United States will highlight an app founded, developed, or led by a woman, including Bumble, TheSkimm, and Stitch Fix. Apple will also be promoting women across Apple Music, iTunes, Beats 1, Apple Books, and Apple Podcasts.

Apple's environmental and social initiatives chief Lisa Jackson:
Women have earned the opportunity to have our ideas shape the future. We're excited to support Girls Who Code as they empower girls to be the developers and tech innovators of tomorrow.
Read more about Apple's International Women's Day initiatives on its Newsroom.


Tag: International Women's Day
[ 103 comments ]


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TomOSeven
12 weeks ago

As a computer teacher, this is great, because there is a large discrepancy between the amount of boys, compared to girls, involved in or taking an interest in coding/technology.


As the owner of a plumbing company, in the business since my parents founded it in 1968, 100% of our plumbers and 100% of our applicants have been men.

I do wonder why I've never seen a 'girls who plumb' initiative.

Or a 'boys who nurse' one, for that matter.
Rating: 33 Votes
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Marekul
12 weeks ago

Please don't find something to complain about here. This is a good thing.


it is positive discrimination and it doesn’t do women much good. Why have special classes for women? Do they have special needs?

Real female coders will have it hard to earn respect from colleagues cause it is hard to know if they were hired for skills and talent or for politics.
Rating: 24 Votes
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napabar
12 weeks ago

it is positive discrimination and it doesn’t do women much good. Why have special classes for women? Do they have special needs?

Real female coders will have it hard to earn respect from colleagues cause it is hard to know if they were hired for skills and talent or for politics.


Too much common sense for the hipster/Millennials in this thread.
Rating: 20 Votes
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Baymowe335
12 weeks ago
Please don't find something to complain about here. This is a good thing.
Rating: 19 Votes
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indychris
12 weeks ago

Please don't find something to complain about here. This is a good thing.


Can we go back to segregation and bussing, too? I'm assuming those must be 'good things' also now that we've discovered that balkanizing people into small identity groups is a positive thing again.
Rating: 17 Votes
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Marekul
12 weeks ago

As a computer teacher, this is great, because there is a large discrepancy between the amount of boys, compared to girls, involved in or taking an interest in coding/technology.


Yeah just like there is a large discrepancy bewteeen the amount of boys compared to girls, playing with barbie puppets and dressing in pink.
Is this a problem though?
Rating: 8 Votes
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cmaier
12 weeks ago

How did you come to the conclusion that women were just as interested as men?


By talking to women who were steered out of tech careers by teachers, parents and peers.
Rating: 8 Votes
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StellarVixen
12 weeks ago

Maybe they simply have less interest in such things as coding?


Or is it because they are taught from very early age "what is or girls" and "what is not for girls"?


Do you have any idea how powerful childhood programming is?
Rating: 8 Votes
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Deacon-Blues
12 weeks ago
This is awesome! Glad to see Apple making opportunities for young women to get involved in programming. So when is International Men's Day? My young son wants to learn as well and he’s looking forward to the same great promotion from Apple!
Rating: 7 Votes
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lunarworks
12 weeks ago

More men are interested because since the 1970s women have not received the same exposure in early childhood to computers as men, and have been discouraged from considering careers in technology. Prior to that most programmers were women.

The problem to be solved is simply to provide exposure to the girls and show them that it’s a legitimate option, then if they are still not interested nobody is forcing them to become coders.

What happened in the 1970s? Computer programming gained prestige and good pay, and men wanted those positions. The dirty secret that's regularly hidden is that prior to that programming was considered a menial job for women, like data entry.

By the way, here's the woman who helped man get to the moon:

Rating: 7 Votes

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