Increasing Participation of Females and Underrepresented Minorities in Computing.

The article discusses the "INSPIRED" program at Lamar University, which seeks to increase encourage women and underrepresented minorities to enter the field of computer science. In the U.S. women typically receive less than 20% of university computing degrees awarded annually, and the situation is worse for African Americans, Native Americans, and Hispanics. INSPIRED seeks to address this state of affairs through a number of initiatives including faculty mentoring, efforts at educating students about opportunities in computer science, and outreach programs targeted at children in kindergarten through grade 12.