MEMORANDUM
TO: G.A.M.E.S. Program Network and Interested Persons
FROM: Tayloe Washburn
DATE: August 28, 2013 RE: G.A.M.E.S. Program Overview
1. GOALS The G.A.M.E.S. Initiative program is a national effort to add a powerful new tool to the significant work by many organizations to increase the number of girls who choose science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers1. By all accounts, this number has been, and remains, very low in our nation (less than 20%).2 While there are some examples of good games that engage girls in certain specific academic areas, such as Math, past efforts to develop games that engage girls in considering a STEM career have not been successful. Given this, a broad coalition of people and organizations from across the country has come together to tackle this issue in our first initiative to develop 2-3 compelling and effective video games which, when played by middle school-aged girls, will result in more girls pursuing STEM careers. Our work will build upon what we know from existing research. By making these games accessible and attractive to middle school girls, we hope to dramatically increase the number of girls who will pursue STEM professions.3 Our overall mission is to, as part of the broader national STEM effort, use the medium of video games to increase the number of girls who pursue STEM careers. Our specific initiatives:
1. Develop 2-3 compelling and effective games that girls in middle school will want to play and that over time and in concert with other STEM efforts, will increase the number who opt to pursue STEM careers;
2. Develop tools to enable girls in middle school to get actively involved in design and making games, in order to increase the number of women over time in gaming and computer science careers; and
1 See page 6
2 See page 6
3 See page 6
1 3. Build a sustainable network of committed professionals and stakeholder organizations to develop, distribute and disseminate the games and related tools.
2. NEED The research tells us that 80% of girls in this nation have decided by Grade 9 that while they might have an interest in STEM subjects and may be very good at them in school, they do not wish to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering or math. Studies also confirm that girls (and boys) under 18 spend approximately two hours a day after school on some form of video device. Northeastern University conducted a seminar of Gaming CEOs at its Seattle campus this spring 2013 to better understand why Gaming companies did not devote more time to educational games. The CEOs in attendance stated: 1) business models are based on purely recreational games that sell in large numbers; and 2) most efforts to develop educational video games are funded largely by philanthropic groups and fail due to lack of sufficient resources to try and fail in their iterations in designing games. Experimentation and failure in early attempts, is a key part of the process. The Gaming CEOs indicated that development of compelling and popular video games for girls to interest them in pursuing STEM careers was achievable, provided these principles are kept in mind. 3. FOUNDING PARTNERS G.A.M.E.S. program is an ambitious Program, which requires the coordinated resources and efforts of many people to be successful. The Executive Committee (EC) is led by Tayloe Washburn, Dean and Regional CEO of Northeastern University’s Seattle Graduate Campus, Dana Riley-Black, Director of the Center for Inquiry Science at the Institute of Systems Biology (ISB), and Karen Peterson, Principal Investigator of the National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP) and CEO of the EdLab group. Together, these volunteers have begun the process of designing the overall approach. A large number of individuals have volunteered to help in one or more of the Working Groups (Research/Assessment, Gamers, Fundraisers & In Kind Services, and Networkers). We welcome additional members of these working groups who can add value. These working groups are a large part of the G.A.M.E.S. program brain-storming and strategy development (see below), and the implementation that will take place. Northeastern University serves as the fiscal home for collecting and distributing contributions to the G.A.M.E.S. effort.
4. ACCOMPLISHMENTS
JUNE 28, 2013, G.A.M.E.S. PROGRAM LAUNCH: Following preliminary discussions among leaders of Gaming, girl-serving organizations, STEM groups and corporate leaders, we conducted a two hour "launch" event of the G.A.M.E.S. initiative, with groups in Seattle (145), Charlotte (20) and Boston (20). The attached video captures the energy and excitement of the launch event. Attendees validated the importance of the overall issue, the opportunity the video game medium provides, and agreed that progress on this front would provide fulfilling new career choices for girls, and help our nation by bringing more women and their creative and intellectual input into STEM industry sectors. Attendees selected one or more of the four working groups to carry out our initiatives, each described below. Research/Assessment Working Group (21 members) – Led by Dana Riley-Black, ISB, and Professor Magy Seif El-Nasr, Northeastern’s Game User Experience and Design Research Lab. Key tasks are: Analyze existing research on girls and careers, how girls interact with games, and basic protocols to be factored into game plots developed; 2 Develop the assessment tools and coordinate the testing of these within the prototype games and, Supervise a longitudinal study to follow the education and career path of groups of girls who play the games developed to assess the long-term impact. Gamers Working Group (40 members) – Led by John Williamson, experienced game designer, developer and producer and Susan Gold, Northeastern University, founder, developer and president, Global Game Jam. Key tasks are: Organize the “Game Jam” process with hundreds of gamers and girls to develop ideas and plots for G.A.M.E.S. Program; Organize the Expert Gamers Panel to reduce the many game ideas to 20 prototype games for testing, and ultimately to the 2-3 to move forward to production; and Inform decisions on form and delivery approach the final production, marketing and distribution should adopt. Funders and In-Kind Services Working Group (18 members) – Led by Gail DeGulio, an experienced Gaming Company business executive and technology leader. Key tasks are: Develop and implement the effort to secure the funds and resources needed to accomplish the mission of the G.A.M.E.S. program; and Acquire data, ideas, and production services of for-profit gaming companies to inform and support G.A.M.E.S. program, a community and non-profit enterprise. Networkers Working Group (46 members) – Led by Tayloe Washburn. Key tasks are: Convene and connect people, companies, nonprofits, and others who share a commitment to the overall mission of G.A.M.E.S. program Align the interest with the needs of this initiative and constructively organize and leverage the support that is developed.
5. IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY – KEY ACTIVITIES AND TIMELINES The broad strategy outlined to date will become more detailed as the initiative moves forward. We plan to take this in measured steps, beginning with development of a Logic Model in September to map the desired outcomes, resources and assumptions. Gamers Working Group: Beginning in October, this group will address basic questions related to game development and platform delivery options. Funders/In Kind Working Group: Beginning in October, this group will inventory possible sources for funding and resources needed to move the initiative forward, including initial staffing. The next anticipated expenses will be those associated with implementing the Research and Game Jam process. The Preliminary Timeline below contains preliminary estimates of the larger financial support needed to carry out: 1) the foundational and ongoing research; 2) the development of 20 game prototypes and subsequent testing by girls; and 3) the cost of producing, marketing and servicing the 2-3 games envisioned for the primary objective. At this stage, most of the working groups will be focused on producing 2-3 popular and impactful games. Our secondary objective to support class and workshop activities to engage girls in designing games and the computer science skills required can, to some extent, be integrated with our primary goal as we plan to involve large numbers of girls from the outset. We are starting out with an estimate that up to $5,000,000 will
3 need to be raised to complete this mission. While partnership with a private or nonprofit entity could reduce this amount, we presently assume it may be best to raise these funds on our own, and have maximum control to assure our objectives are met and the games we develop are available to all girls on a free and as accessible basis. We will seek both private and public (e.g. federal grants) funding. Key Roles for Girls: To ensure success, we believe it will be important to engage and involve girls in the development of the plot/storyline, characters, graphics, audio/visual, in-game currencies or in game economies, telemetry and analytics, and platforms. They will inform attitudes and preference in the research phase. They will help shape the basic protocols that any game idea must include and will help vet the plots developed throughout the Game Jam process. A long-term study will follow the experience of many of these girls as they purse their careers. The National Girls Collaborative Project will serve as the primary recruitment tool for girls by utilizing its network of 40 states with programs and organizations serving more than 8 million girls. Interim Report: We anticipate developing an interim report and recommended next steps by December 1, 2013. G.A.M.E.S. Program Coalition Convening: On December 4, 2013 a G.A.M.E.S. program Summit will occur in part of a larger conference hosted by NGCP at the Microsoft Campus in Redmond, Washington. The goal of this Summit will be to review work progress and chart out the 2014-15 work-plans and identify expertise, people, and resources needed. The agenda and registration information will be distributed by the end of September, 2013 6. HOW CAN YOU BE INVOLVED? The G.A.M.E.S. Program is a community non-profit effort. We hope to make the video games developed through this process available to everyone at no cost, as we believe this is the most effective way to involve as many girls as possible and engage them in pursuing careers in STEM fields. To accomplish this will require significant and sustained support from foundations and philanthropic sources. Following development of a G.A.M.E.S. program Logic Model and related outreach strategy, we will begin the fund-raising component of this initiative. We welcome individuals and organizations that can help us move forward in this effort. If you have an interest in joining us, contact Tayloe Washburn ([email protected]), Dana Riley-Black ([email protected]), or Karen Peterson ([email protected]).
4 Timeline4 Task Staffing Funding5 Planning Meetings Level 1 June 28 Launch Event NU and ISB Staff By June 29, 2013 Level 2 Build the G.A.M.E.S. Put needed initial Secure funding for Initial EC meetings Jul - Aug 2013 program network staff in place. initial staffing Funders working (est. $2-300.000)
Funding Lift 1 Raise $ 1-2 million for Funding working TBD EC and working group meetings Jul 2013- Sep 2014 research, game group Dec 4, 2013 G.A.M.E.S. Summit prototype development and EC and ongoing evaluation Level 3 Conduct Research Research and TBD EC and working group meetings Sep 2013- Jun 2014 Design and prepare for gamers Dec 4, 2013 G.A.M.E.S. Summit Game Jam phase funding working group Level 4 Game Jam Gamers working TBD EC Jul- Aug 2014 group Games Production Manager Level 5 Experts pick 20 projects Expert Panel and TBD EC Sep 2014 for funding to Game Games working prototype group Level 6 20 games are brought to 20 game teams and TBD EC Sep 2014- Jun 2015 Game Prototypes games working group Level 7 Educators/ STEM groups TBD EC Jul - Dec 2015 assess whether 20 games move the needle in motivating girls to STEM careers Funding Lift 2 Raise $ 2-3 million for TBD EC Jul 2013- Dec 2015 game prototype development Level 8 Game experts pick Expert Panel TBD EC Jan- Mar 2016 top 3 games Level 9 Producer/ developer Gaming company(s) TBD EC Mar 2016 - Jun 2017 make and prepare games for marketing/distribution Summer 2017 Game goes to girls and EC long term monitoring starts
4 Timelines are initial rough estimates and will be revised as we proceed
5 Funding estimates are also preliminary and depend on future plan and design decisions before they are finalized
5 KEY G.A.M.E.S. STRATEGIES AND PRELIMINARY TIMELINE
Footnotes
Footnote 1, While the gender gap in STEM interest had remained relatively steady over the past two decades, it is now increasing at a significant rate. Male students are over three times more likely to be interested in STEM majors and careers, compared to female students. My College Options & STEMconnector (2013) Where Are the STEM Students? What are their Career Interests? Where are the STEM jobs? Lee’s Summit, MO and Washington DC: Authors: retrieved from: http://www.stemconnector.org/sites/default/files/store/STEM-Students-STEM-Jobs-Executive- Summary.pdf
Footnote 2, in 2008, the percentage of jobs held by women in computer science was 24% down from 36% in 1991. Ashcraft, C., & Blithe, S. (2009), Women in IT: The Facts. Boulder, CO: National Center for Women in Information Technology
Footnote 3, Many people argue that encouraging women and minorities in these fields will improve these professions, maximizing innovation to create products and services that are better representative of all users. Hill, C., Corbett, C., & St. Rose, A. (2010), Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, Washington, DC: AAUW
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