Kimberly Bryant

“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 loved school, was an exceptional student, and found a passion for math and science that led me to Vanderbilt University, where I discovered the world of electrical engineering. I did well in college, loved the work I was doing, and soon found myself climbing the corporate ladder after graduation. I was one of the lucky ones.”

“I do believe that most startups who develop applications and digital products design 'towards the middle.' By this, I mean they design their products to reach the broadest consumer base possible, which is a sound strategy in some respects.”

“Technology is a ubiquitous part of our everyday lives, and the accompanying geeky lexicon has infiltrated every facet of our modern day society.”

“We understand bringing girls into the tech space is about giving them skills to create social impact and change in their community.”

“The images you see in media are vital to impacting not just what the world sees in terms of who can be a computer scientist, who can be techie, who can be a geek or who can be a creator; it also impacts the girls and what they internalize.”

“For me, as a woman in one of the less diverse fields - electrical engineering, which is what I studied in college - it was hard to persist and really build a career. Some of the things I experienced were really scary, and they weren't experiences that I wanted for my daughter.”

“We are not generally included in that narrative - people of color - definitely, women of color don't normally fit that narrative that has been built around the whole image and the whole story of the Silicon Valley.”

“It's critical for girls to see role models like myself that are in technical fields. Looking for ways to come in as speakers or do a career day, or just find a way to connect with students or invite students to their workplaces to shadow them for the day... is critically important.”

“While there should be collective efforts to increase tech inclusion overall, the industry must work to specifically attract and retain women of color.”

“My first introduction to computers and computer programming came during my freshman year of college. I majored in electrical engineering with a minor in computer science, so I learned during my required courses at Vanderbilt University.”

“Women are both talented and innovative thinkers and tend to use computer science as a tool to solve larger problems.”

“While there is still certainly much more work that needs to be done, Lyft actually believes in increasing diversity and inclusion within their workforce, and also, they believe in being a strong supporter of that in the community.”

“Technology can be biased in how it's developed if coders aren't careful. There are apps that are clearly made by companies with no people of color on their team.”

“I hope to literally change the world with Black Girls Code by changing the paradigm which produces the current monolithic ecosystem in technology.”

“If technology is designed mostly by white males, who make up roughly half our population, we're missing out on the innovation, solutions, and creativity that a broader pool of talent can bring to the table.”

“Gender is not central to coding.”

“We want to see companies making a good faith effort and putting some tangible initiatives behind their pledge for diversity.”

“We need to have women as role models, both inside and outside corporate America's leading tech companies, leading the path for other women.”

“Although we use a lot of technology and consume a lot of technology as people of color, we're usually not the ones at the tables doing the creating of it.”