HackHer413 Recap: 300 Attend Second Annual Hackathon for Women and Non-Binary Students

On February 8–9, 300 students gathered at UMass Amherst for HackHer413, an all-women (cis and trans) and non-binary student hackathon. The hackathon, now in its second year, aims to increase diversity and inclusion in the technology industry, encouraging attendees “to learn and develop new technical skills, network with sponsor company representatives, and innovate with passion.”

The event was run by an all-student team that heavily featured College of Information and Computer Sciences (CICS) students, including director Disha Srivastava and team members Nila Abhirami Sadeeshkumar, Vindhya Rachur, Corinne Greene, Shreya Sawant, Victoria Okoro, Sarah Manlove, and Alicia Bochnak. CICS faculty, alumni, and staff also lent plenty of support, including workshops led by alumna Shiri Dori-Hacohen ‘15MS, ‘17PhD and faculty members Mohit Iyyer, Cameron Musco, and David Fisher on topics from machine learning to networking and negotiation. Alumna Renu Chipalkatti ‘87MS, former head of consumer product innovation and insight at Verizon, and member of the college's advisory board, gave the keynote address.

HackHer413 was founded in 2019 by Katie House ‘20MS with sustained support from CICS Dean Laura Haas and the college’s director of diversity and inclusive community development, Erika Dawson Head. Since its establishment last year, the project has grown; this year’s event attracted over 25 corporate sponsors.

The following CICS students were part of teams who received awards during the closing ceremony:

Best Pitch/Demonstration (sponsored by Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship):
Dhruvi Chauhan for “Vibe Alert” and Anjali Arigela for “H2Woah”

Best Beginner Hack (sponsored by BNY Mellon):
Grace Chang for “Bravo for Life”

Best Use of the Bose API (sponsored by Bose):
Catherine Huang and Kunjal Panchal for “Sound Clutch”

Best Use of Data Science (sponsored by the UMass Amherst Center for Data Science):
Anushree Jana for “Vital.AI”

Best Social Good Hack (sponsored by Echo & Co):
Prerna Agarwal, Karishma Jain, Dhrutiben Patel, and Aishwarya Rajasekaran for “Ladki”

Best User Experience Design Hack (sponsored by Facebook):
Srimoyee Bhattacharyya and Hiba Ahsan for “Snap a Book”

Best Machine Learning Hack (sponsored by IDEXX):
Anushree Jana for “Vital.AI”

Best Domain Registered with Domain.com (sponsored by Major League Hacking):
Luna Phipps-Costin for “Take Your Damn Pills”

Best Use of Google Cloud (sponsored by Google Cloud):
Srimoyee Bhattacharyya and Hiba Ahsan for “Snap a Book
Rajasi Desai, Anushka Singh, and Maanya Mishra for “Have.It”

Best Use of MongoDB Atlas (sponsored by Major League Hacking):
Julie Bosworth, Abigail Elliott, and Ankita Kumar for “Toilet Tourist”

Best Sustainability Hack (sponsored by Massachusetts State Lottery):
Anjali Arigela for “H2Woah”

Best Use of Data Hack (sponsored by MassMutual):
Prerna Agarwal, Karishma Jain, Dhrutiben Patel, and Aishwarya Rajasekaran for “Ladki”

Best Hardware Hack (sponsored by Pololu Robotics & Electronics):
Luna Phipps-Costin for “Take Your Damn Pills”

Making Your Home Accessible (sponsored by Wayfair):
Catherine Huang and Kunjal Panchal for “Sound Clutch”

Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone who attended!

See photos from the event on Flickr.