SLHS Seniors Participate in White House Event

Four seniors from South Lakes High School took part this week in a "codethon" organized by the White House Council on Women and Girls.

Tatevik Markaryan, Becky Oswalt, Nicole Rappaport and Abby Studen were among the 30 Washington-area middle- and high-school girls who were invited to the White House to take part in the Equal Futures App Challenge.  

South Lakes students were invited to represent the Mid-Atlantic Girls Collaborative (MAGiC) and the National Girls Collaborative Project at the White House Codeathon.

The project links the girls with with professional developers and coders to develop an app. The South Lakes students worked on an app to link girls to female role models.

Representatives from organizations advocating for female political leadership kicked off the event by describing the challenges women leaders face in running for office.

“We need girls at the leadership table and we need to support them early and often,” said Jessica Grounds, Executive Director of Running Start.

Rappaport, SLHS' senior class president, said: "it was inspiring hearing from White House staffers and other professionals who are so passionate about making changes to help girls participate."

The Equal Futures Partnership launched by President Barack Obama in September 2011 at the United Nations General Assembly. More than a dozen countries have signed on to the international effort.