Girls In Tech

Where else would you have the chance to connect with the following individuals, all in one night?:

A Nobel winner, the owner of the San Francisco 49er’s,  fashion models and the executive producer of “Who Killed the Electric Car?”  They are actually all supporting the dream of Stanford graduate and “Lost Boy” of Sudan, Garang Akau.  And for one night, you can join them in sharing the entrepreneurial savvy of Silicon Valley with his community in Southern Sudan — at the New Scholars Gala.

Garang and his – Darius Golkar, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur, founded New Scholars to help rebuild Sudan by bringing Silicon Valley entrepreneurs to Africa to teach entrepreneurship.  The best African entrepreneurs who participate in these boot camps  are then selected for incubation.  Stanford economist and Nobel candidate and Paul Milgrom added: “Relief alone is not a long term solution. Training and investment are also essential for sustained development and New Scholars is addressing the latter.”

If you attend on June 2, you will be able to help their efforts, while mingling with the top minds  in the world.  Have you ever had coffee with a Nobel Prize winner, like Myron Scholes?  Dinner with the designer of the Stanford Prison experiment, Philip Zimbardo?  A writing lesson by a best-selling author, like Dave Eggars?  Do you know anyone who would love to have dance lessons directly from the Bachelor of New Zealand?  All of these will be on auction at the gala that night.

But the support does not finish in the intellectual world:  celebrities in sports will also make June 2nd an unforgettable night.  Jed York, owner of the San Francisco 49′ers tells us: “This gala is a great team effort to empower entrepreneurs in the newest country and I support it fully.” A premier auction item includes surfing lessons with Keala Kennelly, a champion woman big wave surfer in Hawaii.   To satisfy your passion for cars, the executive producer of Who Killed the Electric Car, Richard Titus, will offer a private tour of the Tesla factory, test drive included.

And if that isn’t enough to show what a great event and cause this is:  One of the entrepreneurs supported by New Scholars, Nicodemos, shares his story:
“At the age of 8, I was forced to flee my village an walk for 3 months without water or food, surviving on berries and sometimes rats.  After living in the refugee camp for years, I have decided that business is the only way to help my people back in Sudan.  Now I am starting a green house business growing tomatoes and other vegetables in an arid and impoverished area and new scholars is helping me achieve this dream.”

You can be a part of this magical night aimed at rebuilding the newest refueled country in the world. The gala chairs, Silvia Console Battilana (Stanford economist and past chair of the Samasource gala) and Robin Farmafarriad (Encore president and past chair of the San Francisco Ballet gala) will be on hand to celebrate the event. To be part of this Silicon Valley effort to rebuild in a night of elegance at the San Francisco University Club, register here: nsgala.eventbrite.com.  (If you would like to be a proxy bidder, contact silviacb@auctionomics.com.)

We wish the New Scholars best success at this event; and great success at your very important work you do to bring education and entrepreneurship to those who need it!  Bringing these women and men, together with technology, all for this common goal is a rare and sure to be valuable event & cause!

June 2nd, 2011, 7 o’clock p.m.

University Club
800 Powell St
San Francisco CA

(photo credit:  New Scholars)