STEM
Tech @ TYWLS of Astoria
We are proud to be the 2021 AP CSA Female Diversity Award Recipients!
Research shows that female students who take AP computer science are more likely to major in computer science in college compared to female students of similar background and academic preparation who didn't take AP computer science courses. Through your leadership in diversifying computer science education, you’re preparing your female students for the high-paying, in-demand jobs of the future and giving them the opportunity to help solve some of society's most challenging problems.
WHO WE ARE
The Young Women's Leadership School of Astoria (TYWLS of Astoria) is a Title I, public, all-girls school located in the heart of Queens, New York serving 600 young women in grades six through twelve. The majority of our graduates are the first females in their families to attend college, and we have over 66 different cultures represented within our school’s diverse community.
We have been recognized as an Apple Distinguished School since 2013, and we have been successfully implementing a 1:1 laptop program at both the middle and high school level since 2016. We have received grants from companies such as Verizon and Cisco and partnered with organizations such as Technolochicas, Girls Who Code, NCWIT, nfty, Games4Change, FIRST Robotics, PLTW, the Processing Foundation and CS4ALL.
OPPORTUNITIES TO COLLABORATE
Here are some of the programs we are currently working on. We would love to find ways to collaborate on any of these opportunities!
CODING EXCHANGE –
In 2019, two high school seniors created a new initiative called Coding Exchange whose mission is to bring computer science education to students in underrepresented countries. During the school year, they raised $17,000 to travel to Mendoza, Argentina in July. They spent 8 days at their first partner school teaching students there how to code using donated micro:bits and laptops. They hope to continue this project every year, and travel to new countries bringing coding education worldwide! Here is a link to a short documentary video.
OUR NEEDS: We’ve selected our next partner school in northern Zambia in April 2020 and have already begun fundraising! In addition to funding, we’re looking for companies that can donate used laptops and school supplies. Follow us @codingexchange.
DIGITAL DANCE –
For the past four years, 50 to 75 students have collaborated to create our Digital Dance — a project that blends coding, graphic design, animation, filmmaking, dance, and robotics into an integrated performance art piece. Each year students learn from their mistakes and successes, and challenge themselves to find innovative ways of incorporating new technology. This video documents the creative process.
OUR NEEDS: Our upcoming performance will be on May 28th and 29th. We’re always looking for experts who can help us with the creative process!
FIRST ROBOTICS –
In 2017 we partnered with Cornell Tech to form a FIRST Robotics team. Every Wednesday afternoon our high school team travels to Cornell’s maker space on Roosevelt Island to learn from experts and create their winning robot. Tania, one of the team’s captains, was recognized nationally for her leadership. Here is a short film about her experience.
OUR NEEDS: This season we’ve already won the Connect Award and qualified for Supper Qualifiers in February, but we’re currently looking for a corporate sponsor to help us buy parts and grow our outreach! Our next competition is January 11th. Follow us @tywlsrobotics.
HACKATHON –
Our entire middle school and about 50 high school students participate in our annual hackathon. Students spend a full day identifying a problem within our community and developing a tech solution. In 2019 our winning middle school and high school teams both went on to compete in the Queens Borough Wide Competition, and our middle school team came in first place City Wide. Here is a documentary of the process.
OUR NEEDS: This year’s hackathon will take place on December 6th. We’re currently looking for judges and swag for our winners!
SOFTWARE ENGINEERING PROGRAM (SEP) –
We offer a seven-year computer science track. Students in this track take classes in scratch, physical computing micro:bit web development (HTML / CSS / JS), Python, P5.js, and Java. We are also hoping to expand and offer app development with Swift.
OUR NEEDS: Students in this track are always looking for internship opportunities, experience solving industry problems, mentors, and other work based learning activities. We’d love to find ways to bring you into our classrooms and us to you!
TECH EXPLORERS –
An annual three-week summer technology-intensive program that empowers girls to develop a business inspired by their interests and passions. Each day, we visit a different company where professionals mentor our students in the basics of code, graphic design, filmmaking, and marketing. Here is a link to the one pager about the program. This program is sponsored by our Student Leadership Network and includes students from all five of our sister schools.
OUR NEEDS: A company to visit for a day between July 6th - July 24th.
TYWLS ARCADE –
We found an old arcade console that we’re looking to fix up and refurbish!
OUR NEEDS: Experts who can help us fix the hardware and code games!