This guest blog was written by Fatima Torres, a Girls Who Code participant. To learn more about her journey, check out NewBoCo: From Club to Hackathon – A Student’s Journey to Empower Peers Through Tech.
When I was a kid, I encountered the harsh discouragement of entering areas where people treated me as if I did not fit in. The computer science field, which felt unreachable, was unreasonable to me. The unspoken message was clear: I didn’t belong; it wasn’t “for me.”
I am the type of girl who loves fashion, makeup, and going shopping. I love surrounding myself with cute and pretty things. I love drinking tea out of fancy teacups with a floral design. So, where does computer science fit?
My parents got extremely confused when I told them I wanted to study computer science in college. It’s because they don’t understand it themselves and always saw me being a hairdresser or doing someone’s makeup because I spend a lot of time doing my own makeup and trying different hairstyles. I explained it to them; they accepted it, but to this day, they still nudge me to study cosmetology.
Every time I tell someone I am going into computer science, they are taken aback a bit. I think people fail to realize the possibilities and different fields computer science offers.
When I discovered my love for coding on my own. I felt ashamed about my limited coding knowledge, while my passion for it was extreme. I decided to dedicate my entire being to this passion. I decided that even while knowing that I have a lack of knowledge, some people wouldn’t understand.
After asking everyone I could, the only opportunity I discovered was Girls Who Code. The organization was thoughtfully designed, and the environment was filled with encouragement to try new things, and showed me that people still care about pushing each other to our fullest potential while encouraging young girls to enter a male-dominated field. I loved the sense of community in Girls Who Code!
This realization sparked a fire in me, a refusal to accept the status quo. If opportunities weren’t readily available, I would forge them, not just for myself but for others who felt excluded. I wanted to shatter the illusion that coding is some unattainable, terrifying realm. Initiatives like the All-Student-Run Hackathon and Coding Club are vital because they provide opportunities for people who are eager to learn more.
I created these clubs and events because I realized that computer science is an intimidating field, and there weren’t many opportunities to learn more. I want computer science to be a field people aren’t intimidated by, but a field that people are eager to learn more about.
I think Girls Who Code really created a community I felt I belonged in. Everything was so much fun, and it had such great vibes. Their organization is what I strive to be able to make because it really does help others out while teaching them more about computer science and the different possibilities a person can create with computer science knowledge.
