Park Place Technologies joins transatlantic STEM initiative

CORK, IRELAND, Feb. 8, 2019 — Park Place Technologies, a leading global provider of data center hardware maintenance, is teaming with two prominent Ireland organizations, I Wish and IDA Ireland, to unveil a competition that will bring two female STEM university students from Ireland to the US, to experience a taste of a career in STEM.

I Wish (Inspiring Women In Stem) is an initiative to inspire, encourage and motivate young female students to pursue careers in STEM. IDA Ireland is the agency responsible for the attraction and retention of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) into Ireland.

The initiative is timed with Tanaiste and Ireland Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney announcing the launch of the I Wish Alumni Association, which will connect and support young Irish women aspiring to a career in STEM.

STEM students who attended the I Wish conference will now be able to join a growing network of like-minded, ambitious women to regularly meet up at events and mentor new generations of I Wish attendees.

Members of the new Alumni Association preparing for their final year in university can enter for the chance to win a visit to Park Place Technologies facilities at Boston, Massachusetts, and at its headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio, to engage with their American counterparts at the company’s locations.

The 10-day program will offer hands-on STEM work experience, engagement with expert mentors and the chance to learn about related career opportunities at the Park Place facilities.

Travel, accommodation, meals, spending money and sightseeing tours will all be provided for the winners.

I Wish Co-Founder Caroline O’Driscoll said: “In just a short time, I Wish has become Ireland’s largest STEM program, and the Alumni Association will ensure that the connections that the girls made at I Wish strengthen and flourish during their STEM careers. This competition with Park Place and the IDA is the first of many exciting initiatives planned for the I Wish Alumni as they explore a world of possibilities through STEM.”

“In just a short time, I Wish has become Ireland’s largest STEM program, and the Alumni Association will ensure that the connections that the girls made at I Wish strengthen and flourish during their STEM careers. This competition with Park Place and the IDA is the first of many exciting initiatives planned for the I Wish Alumni as they explore a world of possibilities through STEM.”

Chris Adams, President and CEO of Park Place Technologies, said, “Encouraging more women into STEM has long been close to our hearts at Park Place Technologies. Having opened our new Operations Centre in Cork in November, we’re delighted to be the first to partner with I Wish to offer female students in Ireland the chance to experience what a career in technology can truly offer them. We can’t wait to meet the competition winners and welcome them to our offices.”

“Encouraging more women into STEM has long been close to our hearts at Park Place Technologies. Having opened our new Operations Centre in Cork in November, we’re delighted to be the first to partner with I Wish to offer female students in Ireland the chance to experience what a career in technology can truly offer them. We can’t wait to meet the competition winners and welcome them to our offices.”

Launching the competition, Tanaiste Simon Coveney said, ‘I’m delighted to launch this innovative initiative that shows how serious Park Place and I Wish are about fostering STEM ambitions in Ireland’s young women. It’s true testament to the STEM industry’s commitment – alongside our government – to fostering a better gender balance in the STEM workplace’.

The winning students of the Park Place Internship will be announced this spring. Apply for the I Wish Irish Application here.

About Park Place Technologies:

Founded in 1991, Park Place Technologies provides a post-warranty alternative to storage, server and networking hardware maintenance for IT data centers. With 24/7 access to a global contact center, support from the industry’s most advanced engineers and a wide array of industry leading and award-winning services such as ParkView^TM, Park Place Technologies’ managed data center management services, empowers its customers to improve operational speed and maximize uptime. With more than 15,200 customers, including all tier-one OEMs, Park Place Technologies’ services are spread across 36,000 data centers in more than 141 countries.

About I Wish

I Wish (Inspiring Women In Stem) is an initiative to inspire, encourage and motivate young female students to pursue careers in STEM. I Wish has grown over the past five years, delivering the important message to a distinct audience about the value of careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to female transition year students. With support from the public and private partners, I Wish will reach thousands of girls from across Ireland, and their teachers, at events in Dublin and Cork in 2019. The Cork event takes place at City Hall on February 7th and 8th. The Dublin event runs at the RDS on the 11th and 12th of February. Students will hear keynote speeches and engage in panel discussions, interactive exhibits and demonstrations from premium names in the STEM industry. Dell EMC/VMWare, Accenture, Aer Lingus, Twitter and Google will all be there. Stryker, Johnson and Johnson, McAfee, Qualcomm and PepsiCo will have interactive exhibits. Arup, Tyndall and Xanadu are all participating again.