A Conversation with Kimberly Bryant, Electrical Engineer; Founder, Black Girls CODE
Kimberly Bryant is the Founder and Executive Director of Black Girls CODE, a non-profit organization dedicated to introducing young and teenage girls of color to the field of technology and computer science, with a concentration on entrepreneurial concepts. Bryant was inspired to launch Black Girls CODE after her daughter expressed an interest in computer programming and attended a summer camp that consisted primarily of boys. Black Girls CODE has expanded to 10 cities across the U.S. and has a chapter in Johannesburg, South Africa.
On her path to engineering and finding a role model in college
“For me, it was serendipitous. I had been tracked from grades 1 through 12 in an accelerated program in the public school system in Memphis, and had done well in math and science classes. When I was getting ready for college, my guidance counselors suggested I look into engineering. I had originally wanted to be a lawyer. Even when I went to college and majored in engineering, I still thought I’d get a law degree. Then I started taking electrical engineering classes where I saw some of the innovation happening around computers and solid-state technology in the mid ‘80s. I experienced a lot of pushback. I grew up in a close-knit community where I was expected to excel, and it was a different experience when I got to the university. There were very few students of color, and those numbers were extremely low in the school of engineering. In some cases, there were professors and students that were not welcoming of diversity in classrooms and study groups. But one of the things that saved me was that I just happened to run into an upperclassman, a woman of color who was also majoring in electrical engineering. We developed a friendship, and she’s still one of my closest friends. Making that connection to another woman of color who was on the same path I was, who had some of the same challenges, was a lifeline for me. She helped me in tangible ways, such as advice on specific classes, but it was the unspoken example she set that made me feel I could make it through.
On her inspiration to found Black Girls CODE
There were two things that were turning points for me that helped me decide to work on the issue of diversity and inclusion for girls of color. One was that I had left my corporate job to start on the path to founding a health technology startup. I was meeting a lot of people, and was finding that these networking events and conferences were not inclusive at all—no women, no people of color. At one panel I was watching someone being asked a question about women not being represented in the tech space, and the response was that women were just not going into engineering or computer science. I kept hearing this—we were just not there, and that we were not rising up to lead or found these companies. I vividly remember sitting in that room, thinking, ‘I have to do something, because I don’t want to hear anyone give that response again.’ It wasn’t until later in the year, when my daughter, Kai, was attending a summer computer camp that had lots of boys, very few girls, and no people of color except for her. I saw the same thing reflected in her experience I had seen professionally. I was horrified. I thought, ‘There’s no reason here in the Bay Area that there are not more girls in this camp.’ That’s when it all came together. I wanted to create a movement that would change the game for girls like Kai, and give them an opportunity to find their tribe, so to speak: a community of girls related in terms of culture and shared experiences. They would grow together and eventually become the next generation of innovators.
On the success of Black Girls CODE
We launched a six-week pilot program in San Francisco in 2011 and targeted 6-12-year-old girls. Our flagship model is a weekend program where classes take place from 10 a.m. to late afternoon. We also have summer camps and after-school programs. Girls are staying with the program for three to four years, and then enrolling in college in a STEM field. We’re also seeing girls develop things on their own—using their skills to create apps and become entrepreneurial. They’re being introduced to role models and mentors, and this makes them see STEM fields as a career possibility. An unexpected benefit is that these girls are developing confidence, self-advocacy, and strong leadership skills as a result of this affirmation that they are the leaders we’ve all been waiting for. We’re also seeing a transformative effect on the girls’ families. We’ve had parents asking us for a similar program for boys—they see their sisters building games and websites at home, and they feel like they’re missing out.
Source: vanityfair.com
