
Kimberly Bryant
STEM educator
A child of Civil Rights-era Memphis, Kimberly Bryant was born with activism in her blood. When she became an engineer, she expected to be an outsider. What she didn't expect was for black women & girls to still be outsiders 30 years later.
Inspired to make a difference for her daughter's generation, Bryant took her favorite Maya Angelou quote to heart {"I go forth alone, I stand as 10,000"} and started Black Girls CODE, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching tech skills to girls of color. Pairing hands-on training camps with parental workshops, BGC has reached thousands of girls already. Bryant's goal is 1 million by 2040.
known for
Black Girls CODE | "the Girl Scouts of coding" ~ a nonprofit dedicated to train girls of color, ages 7-17, in technology + computer programming
action | when her daughter Kai came home from computer camp and reported she was practically ignored as the only black girl, Kimberly decided it was time to help change the tides
1989 | graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering, at a time when women received nearly 40% of computer science degrees. They now receive around 12%. Women of color receive even less at 5%.
2011 | launched Black Girls CODE to address {increasing} inequality in the tech world
2013 | received White House Champion of Change for Tech Inclusion award
from | to
electrical engineer in biotech | award-winning founder + executive director of nonprofit Black Girls CODE
born on
January 14, 1967
born in
Memphis, Tennessee
citizen of
United States of America
educated at | studied with
Memphis Central High School
Vanderbilt University
~ B.E., Electrical Engineering {minor in math and CS} | 1989 ~
loved studying
literature {but good at math + science, so a high school guidance counselor recommended engineering}
mother of
Kia
~ "my motivation and my inspiration and my muse" ~
advocate for | influenced by
girls of color in computer science and technology | Maya Angelou + her daughter
in her spare time
golf
tweets @
6Gems
BlackGirlsCode
image credit
collapse bio bits"Instead of continuing to complain about the issue or gripe about it, I decided to found this organization and feed kids into that [technology] pipeline."
Black Girls Code | september 2012
"It will make a tremendous difference to see women in general, and also women of color, start to have seats at that table."
Kimberly Bryant - Vision for the world - Girls of color need to be included in technology | march 2013
"For our country to really become the innovative country that we have been in the past, we have to use all the skill sets available."
Kimberly Bryant - Vision for the world - Girls of color need to be included in technology | march 2013
"When you have a more diverse team, the product itself is more successful."
Kimberly Bryant - Vision for the world - Girls of color need to be included in technology | march 2013
"Try to find the power within you, and believe in it. You have so much power."
Message to my young self | march 2013
"Access to technology is the great economic equalizer of this century."
Platform Summit 2013 | july 2013
"The great economic equalizer of our generation, the great revolution of this generation, is indeed technology. And by embedding these skills and abilities in our youth today, we can change the nation—one girl, one woman and one generation at a time."
Black Girls Code | october 2013
"Learn how to become a 'creator' of technology and not just a 'consumer'."
Connecting kids from diverse backgrounds to tech skills | february 2014
"It makes me both proud and it also is very humbling to see these things play out in my daughter’s eyes. She really is my motivation and my inspiration and my muse for this work."
One with Farai | june 2014
"It is important to have more black tech founders in positions of influence so that minority students can find a role model with which they can identify."
with Kiratiana Feelon | july 2014
"Being able to push against that paradigm and push girls to the forefront, particularly girls of color, is going to make a tremendous difference in the industry in the years to come."
Kimberly Bryant Builds Futures with Black Girls Code | march 2015
"Women, in general, and black women have been involved in technology for ages . . . but they’re hidden. They’re not the stories that you hear about; they’re not the people that you see who are written about."
Kimberly Bryant Builds Futures with Black Girls Code | march 2015
"Not having that strong representation in the industry has really hurt in terms of attracting women into the field."
Kimberly Bryant Builds Futures with Black Girls Code | march 2015
for further reading about Kimberly Bryant:
curated with care by Meghan Miller Brawley {september 2014}
Black Girls CODE | founded 2011
In its flagship one-day workshops, girls work in small groups to create websites, apps and video games. The girls come up with their own topics and ideas, and women with tech jobs work with the girls to achieve their goals. Another key component of BGC is parent workshops, introducing parents to the concepts their girls are interested in and learning. BGC also includes mentorship programs + long-term talent nurturing.
Black Girls CODE
video | Vision for the world - Girls of color need to be included in technology
Kimberly Bryant's vision for the world in this interview with Girltank, a community for female social entrepreneurs.
Girltank
video | Message to my young self
Kimberly Bryant gives advice to her younger self in this interview with Girltank, a community for female social entrepreneurs.
Girltank