Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Canceled Two Weeks Out – AnitaB.org Says Registrations Dropped and Sponsorships to Cover Costs

This year’s Grace Hopper Celebration (GHC) in Anaheim, a conference for women in computing, was canceled just two weeks before it was scheduled to start. Brenda Darden Wilkerson, president and CEO of AnitaB.org, the nonprofit that manages the convention, said in a press release that “both individual registrations and sponsorship commitments fell significantly below our expectations,” leaving GHC with insufficient cash to cover its operating costs. The circumstances behind the cancellation also hurt AnitaB.org’s finances, and it is now considering strategic alternatives and looking at what programming it will offer in the future.

With the event cancelled, participants were told to cancel their own travel and accommodation arrangements (which are with the participant). Already paid costs have not been addressed, and depend on the nonprofit getting a clearer picture of its finances. Sponsors and exhibitors are handled directly through contacts, but no information on refunds was available at the time of posting. Meanwhile, AnitaB.org is asking employers with scheduled career fair interviews to hold those conversations directly “if possible” — but with no guarantees.