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Home · 2014 ESSENCE Festival

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time

For the 20th Anniversary of the ESSENCE Festival, we're paying special attention to technology and its ever changing landscape. This year, ESSENCE Festival is incororporating a #YesWeCode initiative aimed at exposing the youth to computer science. We caught up with some young women from Girls Who Code and asked them them what inspired them to start coding.
By Shenequa A. Golding · Updated October 27, 2020
01
Audrey Smith, 16, Detroit, MI

“I started coding because I love the idea that with coding I have the opportunity to create an amazing app or website that can benefit others and to also show my peers that it doesn’t matter how old you are you are or your gender. All that truly matters is believing an applying yourself.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
Girls Who Code
02
Danielle Okezie, 18, Bloomfield Hills, MI

“Before I attended Girls Who Code, I wanted to major in chemical engineering, but after my introduction to the world of coding I felt at ease. It was my “aha” moment. I’m excited that I will be majoring in computer science at Harvard University this fall.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
03
Eva Cole, 17, Oakland, CA

“I grew to love the challenge of coding because despite the difficulty of debugging, in the end it results in a functoning program I can call my own. The computer science world has a vibe unlike any other work world I’ve had exposure to. As a result of Girls Who Code, I now want to major in computer science and neuroscience when I go to college next year.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
04
Joelle Robinson, 17, Queens, NY

“I’ve always been fascinated with seeing the world through the lens of math and science. But I also have a passion for design, so coding became a happy medium for me to utilize both my passsions.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
Jessica Scranton
05
Kafilah Muhammad, 16, Brooklyn, NY

“I started coding when I began Girls Who Code. The program was an amazing introduction to several aspects of computer science. Its creativity, analytical thinking and the determination to solve a problem and create something new.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
Jessica Scranton
06
Zaire Johnson, 16, Sacramento, CA

“The thought that I could create a program that hundreds of thousands of people could use motivated me.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
07
Benite Rutaganira, 16, Woodland, CA

“My brother tried to convince me for years that coding was fun and awesome, but I never listened. Once I learned how scientific fields, specifically austronomy, used coding and computer science to discover new things and solve problems, I took interest. My mother signed me up for Girls Who Code last summer, and I’ve loved coding ever since.”

Meet 7 Young Girls Changing the World, One Code at a Time
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