Santa Barbara High School junior Maria DeAngelis was among 35 students nationwide who won the Award for Aspirations in Computing from the National Center for Women & Technology (NCWIT). The winners were selected among 2,691 applicants across the country. Along with bragging rights, they will receive $500, a laptop computer, and two trophies — one to take home and another to keep at school.
A volunteer tutor and Robotics Club boardmember, DeAngelis has a busy schedule on top of three AP classes and a SBCC computer programming course. “I’m really excited to get the recognition,” DeAngelis said. “I’m in a class of guys and there are only a few girls.” According to district spokesperson Barbara Keyani, there are three girls in DeAngelis’s computer science class of 20.