Spotlighting the ABES ACM-W Student Chapter
Creating Lasting Change Through Community-Centered Technology Education
Written by Asegul “Ace” Hulus
Welcome back to the global ACM-W Chapter Tour! We are visiting the ABES ACM-W Student Chapter in India today, a student community dedicated to transforming how technology education reaches underrepresented groups. This chapter’s distinctiveness stems from its dedication to depth, continuity, and human-centered engagement, as evidenced by its impact on over 400 schoolgirls and 50 children from NGOs during the 2024 Hour of Code event.
An Evolving Mission
The ABES ACM-W Student Chapter is dedicated to cultivating an inclusive environment and providing women and girls with computing education, leadership opportunities, and ethical understanding of technology, irrespective of their backgrounds. Over the course of eight years, this initiative has progressed from awareness-focused engagement to sustained, impact-driven outreach, reaching schools in remote areas, NGOs, and orphanages where numerous students are exposed to technology for the first time.
Meet the Leaders
The chapter’s strength comes from diverse voices united by a common mission.
Faculty Sponsors
Ms. Disha Mohini Pathak: “Together, we lead, learn, and challenge stereotypes.” 
Ms. Laxmi Saraswat: “Growth begins where curiosity is supported, and voices are valued.”
Student Leadership Team:
Kunika Premi, Chair: “Creativity becomes powerful when paired with technology. As women in computing, our ideas, perspectives, and designs have the potential to shape the future of innovation.”
Parshvi Jain, Vice Chair: “A single girl empowered through technology can create changes far beyond herself.”
Jyoti Chaudhary, Treasurer: “Try anyway—growth comes from action, not certainty.”
Ishita Banshiwal, Secretary: “Whatever happens, happens for the best. Even during difficult times, believing in yourself can turn challenges into growth and setbacks into strength.”
Bulbul Singh, Web Master: “Tech grows on logic, but a community grows on feeling—on people who create, share, and rise together.”
Sirishti Garg, Outreach Lead: “Empower, inspire, and support each other—every small effort you make today can spark curiosity, confidence, and change in someone’s tomorrow.”
The Unique Aspects of ABES ACM-W
The chapter is distinguished by its emphasis on sustained involvement rather than episodic lparticipation, and it intentionally fosters learning, mentorship, and leadership across cohorts. Inclusion is achieved through active involvement, which extends engagement beyond traditional academic settings and into NGOs and orphanages where trust and consistency take precedence over visibility. Members assume responsibility from the start by making real decisions, with junior members involved in planning, mentoring, and execution.
The ABES ACM-W Student Chapter prioritizes concept-first and reflection-oriented learning, focusing on foundational understanding over exposure to trends, with reflection, articulation, and reasoning as essential components. This chapter integrates technical instruction with ethical considerations and social context, thereby incorporating responsibility into the educational framework rather than treating it as a supplementary element. ABES ACM-W Student Chapter serves as a sustained learning and leadership environment, rather than a function of events, assisting members at various developmental phases via peer learning, guidance, and cooperation.
Making Real Impact
A pivotal moment occurred during the Hour of Code 2024. The sessions were conducted in a patient, welcoming, and non-intimidating manner, involving over 400 school-aged girls and more than 50 children from NGOs. Initially hesitant, the children’s curiosity was piqued, prompting them to ask questions and envision possibilities. The chapter reflects that outreach has evolved beyond mere content distribution to encompass presence, trust, and continuity.
The Hour of AI 2025 was developed using this groundwork from 2024. An initial visit to an orphanage was surprisingly impactful, given the children’s first-ever interaction with laptops. The machine learning team in the chapter employed intuitive demonstrations, such as a project based on the Invisible Cloak from Harry Potter, to connect classroom learning with practical applications.
Other Notable Initiatives:
- ACPC 2K25: ICPC-style programming contest engaged over 400 undergraduate students annually across multiple branches, including a significant number of first-time competitive programmers, reducing intimidation around competitive programming and increasing awareness of ICPC pathways.
- ESP – Eminent Speaker Program: Each ESP session reached approximately 400 students, where industry and academic leaders contextualized AI, research, and ICPC preparation, helping students better understand real-world applications and long-term career pathways.
- SheSpeaks Project: The survey-based initiative for listening to experiences and barriers faced by girls in technology collected nearly 300 global survey responses. The project helped identify shared cultural and systemic barriers faced by girls in technology. These insights were translated into a publicly accessible data dashboard to encourage reflection, dialogue, and action.
Recognition & Success Stories
Chapter membership expanded significantly across technical, leadership, and creative roles, supported by large-scale events engaging over 450 students annually and outreach initiatives reaching more than 400 girls and underrepresented learners in the previous year alone. One success story involves an alumna who established a thriving startup, and now serves as a role model. Participants in outreach programs showed notable improvement in their communication, confidence, and leadership abilities as they instructed novice learners. Most notably, the ABES ACM-W Student Chapter received the 2022 ACM Community Services Award for its community outreach and service initiatives.
Mentorship & Role Models
Mentorship is implemented through ongoing collaboration with senior members, who provide guidance on technical discussions, event coordination, and reflective learning. Mentorship experiences were perceived as most impactful when mentors were introducing learners to new technologies, as this context heightened mentors’ sense of responsibility and empathy, shaping more meaningful and supportive mentor–mentee relationships.
Individuals identify role models such as Ada Lovelace (integrating logic and imagination), Dr. Sudha Murthy (exemplifying the synergy between technical education and social obligation), Radhia Kurdi and Dr. Rutvi Shah (ethical, research-oriented computing). The chapter’s work illustrates how growth can lead to real-world impact through the guidance of faculty sponsors, senior members, and alumni, with a special focus on an alumna who successfully launched a startup.
Looking Ahead:
ABES ACM-W Student Chapter plans further work on Smart ABES Hackathon (SAH) to encourage critical thinking about system design and real-world constraints in the Indian context. They will also continue their work on Hour of AI and complementary skill-focused learning initiatives.
Finally, they are commited to follow up on the SheSpeaks Project to create space for more discussion and practical reflection. Insights from the first run of SheSpeaks revealed that many girls experience fear, self-doubt, and hesitation toward technology despite strong interest and capability, often due to limited access to female role models and systemic cultural barriers. Notably, 53.9% of respondents reported feeling judged in technical spaces. These recurring emotional and cultural barriers were observed consistently across regions, highlighting the need to expand SheSpeaks beyond a chapter-level initiative into a broader platform focused on listening, mentorship, and shared learning. They found that expanding SheSpeaks is necessary to transform these insights into sustained impact by creating safe spaces for dialogue, connecting participants with mentors, and fostering a global community where women feel supported, confident, and empowered in technology.
Together, these initiatives demonstrate the chapter’s ability to combine scale, reflection, and measurable impact to foster inclusive participation and sustained engagement in computing.
Collaboration & Involvement
The ABES ACM-W Student Chapter encourages partnerships with other ACM and ACM-W chapters for collaborative events and educational programs. Members can engage through discussions, volunteering, and participation in research groups. This chapter prioritizes curiosity and consistency over previous experience. Participation is open to everyone.
The chapter promotes inclusivity by establishing safe learning environments that accommodate diverse backgrounds and individual learning spaces. The sessions prioritize conceptual understanding over costly tools, promoting accessibility in learning. Sustainability is best ensured through sustained efforts rather than through large-scale, isolated initiatives. Equity, transparency, and communal welfare are paramount through transparent communication and joint accountability.
Final Thoughts
The ABES ACM-W Student Chapter is a prime example of how student organizations can create a lasting impact by favoring depth over breadth, relationships over metrics, and understanding over trends. The results of their eight-year initiative show that technology education, when delivered with attentiveness and ethical sensitivity, enables environments of inclusion and self-belief for learners who often lack access and encouragement. This effect is summarized in the infographic below, which is followed by contact details for ABES ACM-W Student Chapter and ACM-W Chapters Committee.
Connect with the ABES ACM-W Student Chapter:
Website: https://website-halomanlodestars-projects.vercel.app/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/acm-w-abesec/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acm_abesec/
Discord: https://discord.com/invite/5mvTytHu
Connect with ACM-W chapters and the series editor, Asegul “Ace” Hulus
Email: acmw-chapters@acm.org
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/acm-w-acms-women-in-computing
Looking forward to seeing you all on the next tour! Your friendly guide is signing off.