Building Louder. Building for HER.

THIS ISSUE AT A GLANCE

• This Week's HERstory Maker: April Gittens → From the men's department at Neiman Marcus to leading Responsible AI at Microsoft. With two Python books, an MIT Reality Hack win, and a #75HER workshop along the way

• We're Heading to Diversitech 2026 → Philly, March 19–21. CreateHER Fest is an official community partner. Live roles from Intuit, Hershey, Zillow, and we can get you in!

• BuildHER Parade → It's live! Grab your IWD 2026 assets, update your profiles, share your builder story all month

• Blockchain Futurist Conference → CreateHER Fest returns as a community partner. Toronto, July 21–22. 25% off with code CHF25

• Upcoming Webinars with JPMorgan Chase → Business 201: Your Next Level Business, mindset, structure, and sustainable growth

• Resource Drop 📚 → Summer Fellowships, Latinas in Tech Chicago board call, Clorama Dorvilias' new XR podcast, April Gittens' AI Python tutorial… basically, a lot!

This Week’s HERstory Maker: April Gittens

This Week’s HERstory Maker is April Gittens! April didn't study computer science. She taught herself Python, on her own time, because she was curious.

Starting out working the men’s department at Neiman Marcus, April took that curiosity and built an amazing engineering career that led her to:

• Write two Python books with Wiley (Bite-Size Python and Visual Studio Code for Python Programmers)

• Build an MIT Reality Hack-winning XR app called Spell Bound — built to help children with dyslexia and dysgraphia, and it won in two categories​​

• Create a community brand, Vogue & Code, blending fashion instincts with developer culture​

• Build her project, Pretty Wired Builds, exploring hardware, IoT, and robotics from scratch​

• Succeed in her current role leading Responsible AI at Microsoft — where she helps developers build tech that with ethics and responsibility in mind!

• A YouTube series teaching Python one hour at a time — free and built for all skill levels

During our #75HER Challenge, she brought all of that into our community — facilitating a hands-on session on using language models to drive virtual avatar behavior. It was one of our favorites! Watch the recording here →

We're honored to highlight April's work — because her story is HERstory. Non-traditional paths to tech are still paths, and they can lead somewhere extraordinary.

Know someone making HERstory? Reply directly to nominate her today! →

We're Heading to Diversitech 2026 — And You're Invited

Philly, March 19–21. Three days of career-changing connections, hands-on tech workshops, and real hiring opportunities — and CreateHER Fest is an official community partner.

Diversitech, powered by Tribaja, is one of the largest inclusion-in-tech conferences on the East Coast, and it's happening at Rivers Casino Philadelphia. Their mission is to redefine economic mobility for Black and Latinx communities through skills training, inclusive employers, and community.

Companies are actively hiring! We're talking open roles at:

• Intuit — Software Engineer, iOS Staff Engineer, Staff Data Scientist, Director of Software Engineering, and more (California, New York, San Diego)​

• Hershey — Engineers, Analysts, Technicians, and Specialists across multiple disciplines (Pennsylvania)​

• Zillow — Senior ML Engineer, Conversational AI Manager, Senior iOS Engineer, Principal Product Manager, and more — with salaries ranging from $118K to $284K+ (Remote, USA & Mexico City)

These are live roles from companies that will be in the building!

Here's how to get your ticket through us: Just fill out this quick form and we'll get you in. That's it!

If you’re job hunting or networking, trust us, this is the place to be! Get your ticket today!

Have you joined the BuildHER Parade? 🎉

On March 8th, International Women’s Day, CreateHER Fest launched the BuildHER Parade as a month-long community celebration of your builder journey; along with your very own custom social graphics to personalize and share across your platforms.

Think about your HERstory through emerging tech discovery and building. What have you learned? What have you built? What’s surprised you? Who’s inspired you? This is your parade moment.

How to join: 

• Grab your custom BuildHER Parade assets from the IWD 2026 Kit

• Update your profiles with your new graphics

• Share your story using #IWD2026 #75HER #BuildHERParade #HERstory and tag @CreateHERFest — we'll be amplifying you all month!

We encourage everyone to support our builders who participated as well! See the projects, offer feedback on the projects Devpost or LinkedIn, and be apart of the Builder Parade!

See us in the future @ Blockchain Futurist! 🔮

CreateHER Fest is, once again, an official Community Partner of Blockchain Futurist Conference on July 21-22, 2026 in Toronto! 

🌟 Join us at Canada’s longest-running Web3 event, to explore the future of Web3, AI, DeFi, and more!

Get 25% off your tickets with code CHF25 at www.futuristconference.com 🎟️

Hope to see you there!

Business Basics w/ JPMorgan Chase

Join us Thursday for Business 201: Your Next Level Business Move beyond survival mode. This session helps you shift from running a business to thinking like an entrepreneur — building the mindset, structure, and people-first practices for sustainable growth. Includes a guided workbook.

COMMUNITY SURVEY

Enjoyed it? Share us with your network!

THIS WEEK’S RESOURCES

• The Takeoff Institute 2026 Summer Fellowship

  • This fellowship equips Black undergrad students with mentorship, resources, and financial literacy — and their 2026 Summer Fellowship is now open. 10 hrs/week over 8 weeks (June–Aug), compatible with internships or coursework, and alumni have gone on to Spotify, Meta, McKinsey, HBO, and more. Applications close March 30 at 11:59 PM ET.
    Learn More →

• Latinas in Tech | Chicago — Board Leadership Opportunity

  • The Latinas in Tech Chicago chapter is expanding its board and looking for passionate community builders who want to support, elevate, and connect Latinas in tech. If you're looking for more leadership opportunities and ready to lead, submit your interest today.

    Express Your Interest →

• "The Existential Crisis of a Tech Enthusiast" — New Podcast by Clorama Dorvilias

  • Former Google & Meta PM Clorama Dorvilias just launched a podcast tackling the big questions in XR and emerging tech — hype vs. reality, where the industry is headed, and what role builders play. Available on YouTube and Spotify.

    Listen Today →

• How I Built an AI Python Tutor with the GitHub Copilot SDK — April Gittens

  • Embodied AI Engineer April Gittens used the GitHub Copilot SDK to build an AI Python tutor that guides you to think — not just copy. If you're learning to code or building AI tools, this tutorial is a must-watch. Check it out on YouTube.
    Watch Now →

• Microsoft AI Agents Hackathon 

  • Free virtual, expert sessions April 8–24, hack submission deadline April 30. Microsoft Reactor 20+ expert-led sessions on frameworks like Semantic Kernel, Autogen, and Azure AI Agents SDK. GitHub Cash prizes up to $20K. Great next step for anyone who just finished #75HER. Register →

• Girl Geek X ELEVATE 2026 

  • Free virtual conference, April 21. Speakers from LinkedIn, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, Stripe, TikTok covering AI agents, sustainable leadership, and career resilience. 7,000+ women technologists from 42+ countries attend. Girl Geek X Totally free. Get Your Free Ticket →

• WomenHack Virtual Career Fair : March 31

  • Completely free for candidates. Companies pay to participate, which means their commitment to diversity hiring is backed by a real financial investment. WomenHack 5-minute rapid interviews with 15–20 hiring companies. Roles across engineering, data, product, design. Apply as Candidate →

• Her3 Pro Pass — Consensus Miami 2026 (Free, $1,199 Value)

  • Women in Web3, this one's for you. Her3 is offering 500 complimentary Pro Passes to Consensus Miami 2026 (May 5–7) — that's full access to all stages, summits, and the exhibition floor, plus an invite to Her3's private Telegram community and exclusive event perks. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Prices increase Friday, March 13 at 10AM ET — apply now while passes last.

    Apply Now →

Until next time,

Discover \ Design \ Deliver