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Calling all developers: Celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8 by joining Flock, a Denver-based company that provides female-fueled networking opportunities and tools for women in the tech industry, at a four-hour hackathon. The event is in partnership with Humanwire, a Boulder nonprofit that connects donors directly to refugees across the globe. Hackers will assist the organization by building solutions to the organization’s most-pressing problems.
The event activities are dependent on a developer’s skill level—junior, mid-level, senior, designers, or data scientist—but attendees will assist with such projects as building an aggregate of refugee news; making forms simpler to fill out; developing a solution for transferring money overseas; and helping to redesign the Humanwire website. But the event won’t just be about work—there will also be food, drinks, and mingling.
Flock was launched in late January with a celebration that included more than 200 attendees and 17 companies. Founded by Kate Catlin, Flock works to celebrate and support gender diversity in the tech realm by providing a mentor program that matches individuals who are new to the industry with more experienced developers, building a community with lunches and events, and connecting job-seekers with clients and employment opportunities.
Catlin started her career as a junior java developer in Detroit and quickly realized she was surrounded by men. Instead of being discouraged by the gaping hole for female support in the industry, she was inspired; three years later, she founded Flock. “Fifty-six percent of women in tech will leave the industry mid-career,” Catlin says. “Almost all the women who leave, stay working. The reason they’re leaving is because of unfriendly culture, not really feeling like they belong.”
Flock promises to not just be a place where women can feel like they belong, but also thrive.
If You Go: International Women’s Day Hack Night takes place on March 8 from 5:30–9:30 p.m. at Galvanize Boulder, 1023 Walnut St., Boulder. The event is free, but registration is encouraged.