Go_girl project pioneers Rosie and Chloe recruiting new participants in one of the youth clubs.
— By Anne Geniets —
The Go_girl: code+create project, which was funded in its first year by the University’s IT Innovation Challenges award, has secured funding from Goldman Sachs Gives.
Jo Hannaford, Partner at Goldman Sachs, said: ‘Providing young women from disadvantaged backgrounds with technical skills is an important mission and one that serves to level the playing field. Through taking part in the programme, these young women will gain highly sought after technical skills which we hope will empower them and open doors to greater opportunities.’
The interdisciplinary Go_girl project which originated at the University of Oxford’s Department of Education, complements existing programmes aimed at widening access to the University of Oxford, but tackles the problem in a fundamentally new way by using technology and by working in direct partnership with the Early Intervention Hub of the Oxfordshire County Council through youth worker Melanie Jewell.
Rosie and Chloe talking to a prospective new go_girl participant
The generous donation from Goldman Sachs Gives will allow the Go_girl project to progress, enabling the scheme to extend to a second cohort of participants and work to commence on producing a model to be rolled out across the UK.
Recruitment for the new cohort is already under way. Youth worker Mel said: ‘I am so excited about rolling out the Go_girl programme for another year. The Go Girls from the pilot have progressed so much over the last 12 months, and it has been an absolute pleasure working with them all. Watch this space!’
Some of the young women who completed the programme last year (the Go_girl: code+create ‘pioneers’) will act as mentors for the new participants and will share their experiences and their newly gained coding skills through peer-to-peer learning. The weekly sessions of the programme will start in May.
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For more infomration about the project and updates on activities and progress, please visit the Go_girl: code+create website http://www.gogirloxford.org