Growing up I wished there was a place like Hogwarts’s where just about anything you imagined can be created using magic. Little did I know that magic comes in many different forms. That form for me was Girls Who Code. The Girls Who Code club or as I like to call it “Hogwarts’s School of Coders” is an organization on a mission to bridge the gender gap and increase the number of women working in technology. While sitting in one of my computer science classes, I was googling local tech meetup groups and one of my classmates, who unknowingly would be the person to change my tech trajectory in such an amazing way leaned over and asked, “are you looking to join a tech group? if so, I am apart of Girls Who Code and you should definitely join” and just like magic I became a Girls Who Code facilitator. I didn’t really know that much about the group prior to becoming a facilitator and the magic that it would allow me to create. Once I joined, I realized that magic does exist and I finally understood how Harry felt when he found his wand.
I realized that this was the best decision I have made thus far within my career. My experience with Girls Who Code has led me to understand the power of technology and all of the magic that it can do:
- Being a Creator and Innovator of Change: Being a facilitator, allows me to impart with my girls the key factors surrounding leadership and entrepreneurship, and with those characteristics, the girls inherently learn about self-love, confidence, problem-solving, and strength. Watching the girls express their interests and ideas about ways to enhance and improve their community makes me realize that our voice has the power to make us do extraordinary things.
- Trusting Yourself: Like Hermione, the girls taught me what it’s like to trust in myself and my capabilities in order to stand out in any room that I enter. Even when learning a new concept my girls were not afraid to ask questions as well as suggest new ideas. I saw how they commanded a room and I learned that no matter what type of room you are in, you are capable of standing out and being exceptional.
3. Sisterhood: When Harry was fighting all of his battles, he knew that his strength came from his tribe. His magic was always stronger when he had Hermione and Ron by his side. The same applies to my group of girls. Watching them help solve each other’s coding problems and collaborating together to help make their creations come to life shows how collectively strong they are together. Having a tribe of like-minded people helps in areas of your life.
This organization has been an extreme blessing for me and I look forward to the many more adventures and magical creations that we create.
