TechTogether Boston Annual Report

2020 Annual Report

Table of Contents 01

Message to our Stakeholders

02

Our Impact

04

Statistics

06

Hackathon in a Snapshot

08

What the TTB Community is Saying

Message to our Stakeholders Dear TechTogether Boston Stakeholders, Since I started this initiative two years ago, I’ve continued to be pleasantly surprised by the tremendous progress our community has achieved in such a short amount of time. What was once a one-time event called SheHacks is now a national organization that serves a thousand students through our events every year. This achievement would not have been possible without the support of our partners.

Earlier in 2020, the TechTogether Boston chapter had a successful event in creating a safe and empowering environment for students of all skill levels to experience the power of transforming an idea into a tangible project.

Your support and contributions made unique networking opportunities accessible to hackers. Thank you for helping TechTogether get closer to our goal of closing the hacker gender gap in technology.

I look forward to seeing you all again for another year of hacking!

Best, Fiona Whittington Executive Director, TechTogether

01

Our Impact

In 2019, Major League Hacking reported that under 25% of hackathon participants identified as women. At TechTogether, we believe in the power of hackathons as an agent of exploration and change. Our aim is to increase this percentage by equipping individuals with the resources, funding, and mentorship to host TechTogether hackathons around the globe.

The TechTogether Boston chapter, specifically, focuses on providing an educational experience for hackers by connecting them to Boston based tech companies. We have made our mark in the industry by partnering with organizations like Girls Who Code BU and Kode with Klossy and starting a YouTube mini-series starring women at Boston-based tech companies. Following the lines of educating hackers, this hackathon season, TechTogether Boston team is in contact with Upward Bound and The Possible Project to help us achieve our goal to reach new hackers and uncover technology as an attainable career path.

02

What’s next Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, TechTogether Boston’s next hackathon will be virtual!

In order to create the best experience for hackers, the organization decided to be at the forefront of recruiting season for companies and be at the prime time for high school seniors interested in applying Early Decision to colleges and universities.

TechTogether Boston is proud to announce “Dear Future Me” to be held from November 6-8th.

Goals 1. Continue to focus on high school outreach, specifically Boston Public Schools and under-resourced schools 2. Provide career-building opportunities to our hackers and organizers throughout the planning process 3. Build an active community on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Slack, allowing TechTogether Boston to be a go-to destination for advice and resource sharing among the gender-marginalized populations 4. Increase the racial diversity of our event by 15%. We plan to do this by providing computer and wifi access to primarily Black/Latinx communities.

03

Statistics

561

hackers attended TechTogether Boston 2020 On average, 80% of applications had attended last year’s event

210 hackers were high school students

With a global reach of hackers from...

31 STATES 10 COUNTRIES 04

144% increase!

“The culture is very supportive and collaborative at TechTogether Boston”

Social Media Milestones Crossed 1000 followers on Instagram Close to 800 followers on LinkedIn

05

Hackathon in a Snapshot

30

workshops

80% 30%

of hackers attended a workshop of hackers attended 5 or more

Hackers rated workshops 4/5 stars!

2 general networking events for hackers to meet sponsors 43% of hackers said this was one of the reasons they came to TTB

“I really loved that the mentors were walking around and actively introducing themselves/their area of expertise to teams. That was the first time I experienced that at a hackathon”

“As a somewhat newbie to CS and a relatively introverted person, having to take the initiative to approach mentors for help can be a barrier itself.

After talking to a mentor who approached my team, I felt much more comfortable asking for advice and later approached a different mentor myself!”

06

60% of hackers requested the help of a mentor

61% loved it!

38% liked it!

100% of hackers and volunteers would recommend TTB to a friend!

70% of hackers submitted a project

One of the main reasons hackers didn’t submit a project was become they came ONLY for the workshops - 50% of hackers’ favorite part of the event.

Also, hackers took on ambitious projects and ran out of time, but if given the resources and guidance would want to continue out their project to create aprofessional application.

Past Projects Aurora

Moodring

A multifaceted program that connects individuals in need of legal aid and guidance with those who share the tools and generosity to assist them. Assisting those who need their help the most, Aurora also has the ability to identify and reach out to local government officials to incite change.

Pools together the sentiment of the anonymous thoughts of everyone who uses it—no matter their language—to create a visual representation of the world’s honest emotions over the course of a day.

She Network

Safe Space

A platform for women in the tech field to be empowered and connect. We want young women to develop their passion for tech by turning their dreams into a reality--by growing their network.

A tool that helps tackle impostor syndrome and to create a more inclusive space and also provided resources or help to those victimized.

07

What the TTB Community is saying

“I decided to become an organizer because I wanted to join a local initiative that was making a positive, tangible impact in my community. The tech scene is important to me because I’ve seen and firsthand felt a lot of the struggles that newcomers experience. I attended TechTogether back in 2018 when it was called SheHacks and was in awe of the atmosphere that the organizers had created, and wanted to have the opportunity to create something similar for others. In addition, my TTB organizing team members have become some of my closest friends over the past couple of years!”

- Mounica Kamesam

08

“Inclusivity-focused hackathons such as TechTogether Boston are essential to growth within our community and TechTogether Boston went above and beyond this goal by having an abundance of sponsors and mentors willing to help hackers with their projects and internship searches.”

- Kamille Demir

Stay Connected info.boston@techtogether.io @techtogetherboston TechTogether Boston