The University of Belize (UB) Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Student Chapter was officially chartered on September 3rd, 2019. This historic charter makes the UB ACM Student Chapter the second ACM Chapter in Central America.
Founded in 1947, the ACM is the world’s largest scientific and educational computing society, delivering resources that advance computing as a science and a profession. The Association provides its members and the computing profession with leading-edge publications, conferences, and career resources.
The UB ACM Student Chapter provides student members opportunities to play active roles in the association and its activities by organizing technical talks, learning forums, field trips, and programming contests which facilitate communication and collaboration within the university’s computer science community and with Belizean computing communities outside the institution. This enhances the University’s teaching and learning framework via the exchange of ideas among students and between students and established professionals.
Additionally, the UB ACM Student Chapter members will be able to take advantage of ACM activities and services that include the Distinguished Speakers Program, the International Collegiate Programming Contest, the Upsilon Pi Epsilon ACM Student Chapter Scholarship Award, the ACM Student Chapter Excellence Awards, Student Research Competition and get involved in the business world with workshops, resume assistance, and career-building initiatives.
According to I.T. lecturer and Faculty Sponsor –UB ACM Student Chapter, Mr. David Garcia, “Our UB students will now be able to seize the scientific and professional opportunities of this global community to ensure that they stay abreast with the ever-advancing world of technological creations and innovations because achieving and maintaining success in the dynamic field of computing requires that they stay immersed and active in the knowledge of current technological developments.”
Importantly, ACM Student members of the UB ACM Student Chapter are automatic members of the ACM Women’s Committee (ACM‐W) which through professional chapters, work to increase recruitment and retention of women in computing at the university level through professionals’ activities and projects that aim to improve the working and learning environments for women in computing.
