Allison Matyus, a Chicago-based journalist for Lifewire, reports on all things tech. In this TechGirlz feature she shares the importance of our mission and how through our free programs we help young girls interested in tech find a sense of community. The full article was originally published April 22, 2021 on Lifewire.

Not enough young girls are confident in choosing a career path in tech, but TechGirlz is trying to change those statistics.

According to a study from the National Science Foundation, women only earn 18% of computer science bachelor’s degrees and only 20% of engineering degrees in the US. And, while women make up 50% of the college-educated workforce, they only hold 28% of science and engineering positions.

TechGirlz is a nonprofit giving young girls the tools and the confidence to enter into the tech workforce, whatever that may look like for them.

“Girls still have a preconceived idea of what working in tech means, and it involves sitting at a computer writing computer code all day,” Gloria Bell, the events and marketing manager at TechGirlz, told Lifewire over the phone.

“Too many girls still don’t understand the wide variety of opportunities in tech, and that no matter what their interests are, there is a place in tech for them.”

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“The mission behind TechGirlz is to try and help girls understand and break those preconceived notions.”

TechGirlz develops programs to educate and inspire young girls in all sorts of areas of technology. Bell said the organization creates the curriculum and the playbook, and anyone with knowledge of the covered areas can teach the programs to girls in their community.