Tekserve, a leader in technology solutions for retail and business, has announced the Tekserve Prize for Women in Technology (#WNTK) as part of the Dream It. Code It. Win It. Software Competition, launched January 9, by the MIT Club of New York, together with the MIT Enterprise Forum. The competition offers Computer Science students, age 18 and older, the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities to code useful applications to an audience of world-renowned industry executives, analysts, and investors.

The $5,000 Tekserve Prize is the only award geared specifically towards women in the $50,000 lineup of prizes offered by the Dream It. Code It. Win It. competition. "At Tekserve, it's important to us to support and highlight women in the tech world," says Jazmin Hupp, Director of Marketing at Tekserve. Hupp, who has also blogged for Women 2.0, acknowledges the gender gap in technology. "Working at Tekserve, which is a longstanding hub of technology in New York City, allows an overview of an industry that has not been particularly welcoming to women. But, it also gives us the opportunity to herald the work of women engineers and programmers, such as when we featured an art installation by artist/engineer Ingrid Gabor in our main window and held a Women's Maker's Fair in our store. We're delighted to join forces with a great institution such as MIT STEM to lend sponsorship to talented female technologists."

"Dream It. Code It. Win It. is moving beyond the traditional hack-a-thon coding exercise, offering something that could be better described as a create-a-thon," said Cristina Dolan, a board member of the MIT Enterprise Forum and Former President of the MIT Club of New York. "One of the main goals of the contest is to integrate new people, perspectives, and skill sets in programming. Tekserve has a strong track record supporting this goal, particularly in highlighting the great work of women in technology who traditionally have been underrepresented in this space. We are proud to have them as a sponsor partner in Dream It. Code It. Win It."

Tekserve, one of the first Apple retailers in the United States and the largest in New York City, has been, over their 25 year history, a leader in technology - from Business to Business (with clients in Broadcast, Publishing, Video and Audio Production, Advertising, Fashion, and more) to Retail. With the largest selection of Apple accessories in NYC for pros and consumers alike, Tekserve has been, for decades, a place where people, at all levels of skill and achievement, have gathered and shared their ideas, their challenges, and their work.

Visit the submission page for Dream It. Code It. Win It. to learn more and view rules and conditions.

About Dream It. Code It. Win It.:

The Dream it. Code it. Win it. competition is being organized by the MIT Club of New York, MIT Enterprise Forum NYC, NYCPromise, and TradingScreen to celebrate and reward the creative aspects of computer science through its first competition in New York City. Computer programming is used in many fields, and learning how to code can be a fun and exciting way to empower students to pursue their dreams. Learn more at www.dreamitcodeitwinit.org.

Tekserve media:
Tara Strahl, 212-460-5655
tara@meierbrand.com
or
Dream It. Code It. Win It. media:
David Zweifler, 212-359-4018
david.zweifler@tradingscreen.com