Forty students at Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy (CGLA) began speaking the language of computer programming with the help of TN Code Academy - 100 Girls of Code.
Launched in the Summer of 2014, 100 Girls of Code began conducting workshops across Tennessee to raise awareness among girls ages 12 to 18 about careers in computer science. Two of those workshops were held today for CGLA students.
Of the STEM fields, computer science and computer engineering have the highest median earnings for recent college graduates without advanced degrees, and only around 12% are women. TN Code Academy wants to change that trend. Two female instructors, Katy and Mandy, guided the girls through the interactive experience of learning coding for video game.
TN Code Academy Program Director Sammy Lowdermilk says students who started creating design projects in today’s workshop may continue working on them or start new ones with the knowledge they gained in the workshop. He added that there’s the possibility of holding additional workshops in the future for more advanced training.