Congratulations to team “Pentagen” from the Earl of March Secondary School, whose original mobile app came in first place at this year’s Technovation Challenge at Carleton University on April 30. The app, called Connectsitter, is designed to connect parents with babysitters in their community. The team of five young women will advance to the semi-finals, where their pitch, along with pitches from finalists from around the globe, will be virtually judged by a panel of technology experts in California.
Over the course of 12 weeks, the program taught 22 teams of up to five young women how to create and code an app that would solve a problem in their community. The program also taught them how to build a company, launch their app, and pitch their plan to experts in the field. The teams learned algorithmic thinking and programming, the societal impact of information and information technology, and how to present their ideas to others. The program is run by dedicated volunteers from the Ottawa Chapter of Women Power Technology.
The Embassy of the United States in Ottawa was proud to sponsor the program by providing a grant to the organization to purchase technical equipment for the challenge.
