We’ve also grounded our work in knowing that the students who most need to pursue a career in STEM are often the ones most lacking in resources, community, and care.
And so, 2021 – yet another tumultuous year – allowed us to do what we do best, and set the tone for our next ten years. Understanding that half of our students come from historically underrepresented groups, we overhauled our programming to fit our new reality. We had to ask our students questions we never thought to ask. Questions about reliable wifi, access to laptops, and quiet places to work. The responses we received gave us new ways to support our community, and grow in the process.
We proved that times of great challenges often inspire great innovation.In 2022, there are 115,000 Girls Who Code alumni who are college-aged or post-college aged—over 3x the number of women graduating with CS and related degrees in the US. We remain on track to reach our north star goal to close the gender gap in new, entry-level tech jobs by 2030.
Our flagship summer program expanded dramatically serving 200% more students in more cities around the country compared to last year. Our Clubs program offered additional support for our Facilitator community, ensuring that they had the tools they needed to run their clubs virtually, or in-person. When we learned that almost half of our college seniors were still searching for jobs, we piloted new programs, like our Hiring Summit, and Work Prep, and ended up serving thousands of young women.
None of this would be possible without the students in the Girls Who Code community. They show up every single day in spite of the challenges of this current moment, in spite of the frustration of spending their third year of school in a pandemic, in spite of caregiving responsibilities and part-time jobs. They do so because they believe in the need to fight hard for their own future. I became CEO of Girls Who Code, amid a global crisis, because I know that it’s our responsibility and privilege to fight for them, too.
With Love,
Tarika Barret
