Austin Student Startup Crawl Launched by Austin Tech and STEM Ecosystem
Mouse and EdTech Austin are proud to announce the 5th Annual ATX Student Startup Crawl. It will take place Monday February 24th from 11am to 3pm in downtown Austin. The ATX Student Startup Crawl is an experiential field trip for high school students in the Austin Metro Area, to help them visualize their futures and introduce them to the many, various careers opportunities available in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and Technology fields. The goal of the event is to provide an opportunity for a diverse group of students - particularly those who are from backgrounds that are more likely to be underrepresented in the tech industry - to experience the rich and vibrant startup and tech community in downtown Austin, and see their future as part of it.
In 2019, the Austin Chamber of Commerce reported that there were more than 7,200 high tech employers in Austin, with tech jobs accounting for almost 16% of all jobs in the city. Austin also finished 2019 with venture funding that totaled $1.84 billion for the year and was No. 6 on CBRE’s list of Top 10 Tech Talent Markets in North America.
While the number of technology employers and jobs in Austin would otherwise be great news, data released by Google and Microsoft report that their share of US technical employees who are black or Latinx rose by less than a percentage point since 2014. Black technical workers at Apple account for only 6 percent of their workforce, in contrast with Black American’s 13 percent share of the US population. There are some gains being made, like at Facebook, where the technical workforce is 23 percent female, up from 15 percent in 2014, however, there is more work to be done.
With this in mind, local tech companies will show Austin students their workspaces, and designated representatives will talk about their career paths and experiences in their companies, as well as the technology industry in general. This year students are visiting Aceable, SchoolLinks, City of Austin, Galvanize, Proxlearn, Austin Code Academy, WP Engine, HEB, Sputnik ATX and A Cloud Guru. The keynote will be given by Stephen Elkins, the Chief Information Officer of the City of Austin
The Student Startup Crawl 2020 is being organized by local organizations with missions for social change and justice. Those organizing are: Mouse, EdTech Austin, CodeMonkey and Capital Factory, Zero to Career, and Moolah U.
Attendance is free and interested schools can sign up to register their student group at Mouse. A second Startup Crawl may be held later this year, based on demand,
Media representatives wishing to observe the event should report to Capital Factory no later than 10am on 2/24/2020.
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About Mouse
Mouse is a national youth development nonprofit that believes in technology as a force for good. We empower all youth and educators to engage with computer science and creative technology to solve real problems and make meaningful change in our world. We are committed to fostering greater diversity and humanity in STEM and empower youth -- and all those that educate them -- to access and amplify technology as a force for good. Visit us at Mouse.org
About EdTech Austin
EdTech Austin’s mission is to connect and support those driving innovation in education. By facilitating regular meetups, panels, mixers and hands-on learning experiences, we empower and promote meaningful collaboration in a thriving, dedicated community of educators, thought leaders and entrepreneurs, seeking to transform the education industry.
About Capital Factory
Capital Factory is the entrepreneurial center of gravity in Austin, Texas. Located in the middle of downtown, Capital Factory has 50,000 square feet full of startups and entrepreneurs, and is the ultimate space for entrepreneurs to learn, work and accelerate their companies.
About CodeMonkey
CodeMonkey is a fun and educational game-based environment where kids learn to code without any prior experience. After completing CodeMonkey's award-winning coding courses, kids will be able to navigate through the programming world with a sense of confidence and accomplishment.
Contact Julia Barraford-Temel, Mouse |
Contact Leena Saleh, Codemonkey & EdTech Austin |
Other Host Organizations
