By Keane Muraoka-Robertson

Elana Stroud ’13 received the 2011-2012 National Center for Women & Information Technology Award for Aspirations in Computing, a competition which recognizes achievements in technology and computing of female high school students.

Stroud, who began programming in ninth grade, is currently in Design and Data Structures Honors. She found out about the competition from computer science teacher Jacob Hazard.

“I noticed there aren’t a lot of girls who are really into computer science,” Stroud said. “I thought it was a great opportunity to meet more girls who are interested in the same thing.”

As one of 35 girls chosen to receive the award out of 1,177 applicants, Stroud received $500, a new laptop and a plaque as a prize.

She will also attend an awards ceremony in North Carolina, courtesy of NCWIT.

“It’s an awesome privilege to be selected,” Stroud said. “To see all the past winners and all the stuff they did, it’s really cool to think that the selectors thought I was in the same boat as them. It’s an honor.”

Molly Cinnamon ’14 was also recognized by NCWIT, earning runner-up honors in the competition.

Cinnamon created an application for Android, designed web pages, started a blog and created animations that have been featured in film festivals across the country.