Math teacher Mariah Green recalls feeling lonely as one of few girls in her high school computer science class. So, when Junior Maria House approached her with the idea of starting a chapter of Girls Who Code (GWC) at Wilson, she was more than happy to help. 

GWC is a nonprofit organization that aims to combat the shortage of women in STEM by exposing female students to the technology industry.

“It really allows girls to be themselves, express their dreams and concerns around entering the male-dominated tech field, and leverage their curiosity to create strong bonds with our sisterhood,” said Green, the teacher sponsor. 

So far, House has been very pleased with the direction the club is going. “Every meeting, we do a Women In Tech Spotlight, where we highlight a woman who works in tech. It’s helped me realize that we’re finally getting more representation in STEM, which means the work of GWC and others with the same goal is paying off,” she said.

The club takes place on Wednesdays at 3:45 via Microsoft Teams. Meetings generally last about 45 minutes to an hour. 

At the beginning of these meetings, students start with a question of the day where they are asked about the topic they will be covering. Additionally, the group discusses an influential woman in technology. According to Green, they also have a weekly sisterhood activity that helps the girls “develop better communication, teamwork, and innovation skills.”

“The best part of our meeting time is navigating tutorials in different programming languages like Scratch, Swift, and Python, so the girls can apply what they learn to complete a project,” Green said. 

 If you’re interested in joining Girls Who Code, email [email protected]. New members do not need any prior knowledge or experience with coding to join. 

“The whole purpose of GWC is to increase access to computer science opportunities in a judgment-free zone!” Green said.