WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL ANNOUNCES 2007 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
Four Prestigious Leaders in Science and Technology Accepted Into WITI Hall of Fame
SANTA CLARA, CA – (MARKET WIRE) – 09/05/2007 – WITI (Women in Technology International), the nation's leading professional organization for tech-savvy women, is proud to announce the induction of four trailblazing professionals and thought leaders into its 2007 Hall of Fame program. These exceptional women will be celebrated on September 27, 2007 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Santa Clara, during an honorary awards ceremony and dinner.
This year's honorees are being acknowledged for their impressive work and accomplishments in areas of science and technology. Additionally, they have utilized their influential positions in top companies to advance diversity and acceptance for women in the workplace.
The 2007 WITI Hall of Fame inductees are:
-- Wanda M. Austin is senior vice president of the National Systems
Group at The Aerospace Corporation. Dr. Austin joined The
Aerospace Corporation as a Member of the Technical Staff in 1979.
During her tenure, she has made significant contributions to
systems engineering and simulation, satellite and payload
integration, and launch readiness and mission success on several
national security space systems. She has been instrumental in
realizing the full potential of advanced space technology on these
programs. As a result of her recent promotion to President and
CEO, she has shattered the glass ceiling and has opened a path for
aerospace industry women to reach new career heights.
-- Lucy Sanders is CEO and Co-founder of the National Center for
Women & Information Technology and also serves as Executive-
in-Residence for the ATLAS Institute at the University of Colorado
at Boulder. She has an extensive industry background, having
worked in R&D and executive positions at AT&T Bell Labs, Lucent
Bell Labs, and Avaya Labs for over 20 years, where she specialized
in systems-level software and solutions (multi-media communication
and customer relationship management). In 1996, Lucy was awarded
the Bell Labs Fellow Award, the highest technical accomplishment
bestowed at the company, and she has six patents in the
communications technology area. Lucy serves on several boards,
including the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI)
Board of Trustees at the University of California at Berkeley; the
Engineering Advisory Council at the University of Colorado at
Boulder; the Denver Public Schools Computer Magnet Advisory Board;
the Advisory Board for the Women's College Applied Computing
Program at the University of Denver; and several corporate boards.
In 2004, Lucy was awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award from the
Department of Engineering at CU. Lucy also is Conference Chair for
the 2007 Grace Hopper Conference, having served as Program Chair
for the conference in 2006. She is currently serving on the
Information Technology Research and Development Ecosystem
Commission for the National Academies. Lucy received her B.S. and
M.S. in Computer Science from Louisiana State University and the
University of Colorado at Boulder, respectively.
-- Helen Greiner is co-founder and chairman of iRobot Corp. While at
iRobot, Ms. Greiner has invented and sponsored the innovation of
technologies that help to improve the human condition. Under her
leadership, iRobot has succeeded in building robots that help
people complete dull, dirty and dangerous tasks with better
results. Today, more than 1,000 iRobot PackBot® Tactical Mobile
Robots are keeping soldiers out of harm's way, and more than
2 million iRobot Roomba® Vacuum Cleaning Robots are helping people
maintain cleaner homes. Additionally, Ms. Greiner is an innovator,
and has recently spearheaded the development of iRobot Create™,
a programmable robot designed for aspiring roboticists, advanced
high-school and college students, and serious robot developers.
Ms. Greiner is committed to giving back to the community and
supports causes directly related to the advancement of women in
business and science. For example, she has participated in the
Society of Women Engineer's Extraordinary Women Engineer's
project, which is designed to encourage women to embark on
engineering careers. Ms. Greiner also is a Trustee of the Boston
Museum of Science.
-- Padmasree Warrior is executive vice president and chief technology
officer at Motorola, Inc. Responsible for the company's $4.1
billion research and development investment, Ms. Warrior's charter
is to drive innovation, prioritize technology programs and
accelerate creative research to commercialization. Ms. Warrior
has been recognized for shaping the vision of "seamless
mobility" for next-generation communications and focusing
Motorola's technology strategy to provide easy, uninterrupted
access to everything people want in an "always on" mobile world.
Ms. Warrior is an active leader in the global effort to "connect
the unconnected" -- bringing affordable wireless broadband
technology to previously underserved communities. Ms. Warrior is
revitalizing innovation at Motorola, transforming its intellectual
property portfolio and bringing an almost ten-fold increase in
labs technologies to market while reducing time to market by fifty
percent. Under Ms. Warrior's leadership, Motorola was awarded the
2004 National Medal of Technology by the President of the United
States -- the highest recognition of American innovation.
"These brilliant women are excellent leaders, and role models for young women eagerly seeking an academic or career path in a technology or science field," said Carolyn Leighton, CEO, chairwoman and founder of WITI. "Their accomplishments surpass the greatest of our expectations, and provide inspiration and encouragement to us all."
Individual tickets and tables are available for the Hall of Fame Awards Ceremony and Gala, which will take place at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara on Thursday, September 27 2007 at 6:00 pm, as part of the "Women and Technology Summit," a three-day professional educational and networking conference.
This is the 12th anniversary of WITI's Hall of Fame ceremony, which is sponsored by the Women in Technology Foundation. The WITI Hall of Fame award is considered the most prestigious recognition for women in technology and science. This event was designed to recognize innovative women across different fields of technology, and, to encourage young girls and women to become more technology literate and pursue careers in these fields.
For more information, or to register, visit: http://www.witi.com/center/conferences/2007/siliconvalley/index.php
About WITI
WITI is the nation's leading trade association for professional, tech-savvy women committed to using technology, resources and connections to advance women worldwide. With a global network of smart, talented women and a market reach exceeding 2 million, WITI has established powerful strategic alliances and programs to provide connections, resources, and opportunities within a supportive environment of women committed to helping each other. WITI's mission is to empower women worldwide to achieve unimagined possibilities and transformations through technology, leadership and economic prosperity.
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Media Contacts:
Megan Neal
Ruder Finn, Inc. (On behalf of WITI)
nealm@ruderfinn.com
212-583-2791
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