Seton Hall women who are interested in learning how to program in a low-stress, supportive environment can join Girls Who Code.
According to its website, Girls Who Code is a “national nonprofit organization working to close the gender gap in technology.” Through its various programs, the organization’s mission is to “educate, equip and inspire girls with the computing skills they’ll need to pursue 21st-century opportunities.”
Girls Who Code made its way to Seton Hall through the actions of Juliana Macias, a senior finance, marketing and IT major. Macias said she grew an interest in programming when she took an Intro to Programming class at the University last semester.
Macias said by doing her own research outside of class, she found Girls Who Code’s website and utilized its resources to further teach herself about technology. She said while doing so, she stumbled across the webpage on how to start your own college loop.
“I just researched how the process goes and what type of resources and opportunities [Girls Who Code] offers,” Macias said. “The moment I read it, I said, ‘This has to be done, especially at Seton Hall.’ I feel like it’s an industry and just an overall goal that I feel… lacks at Seton Hall—that support for women in tech.”
After receiving approval from Girls Who Code headquarters to start her own college loop, Macias said she reached out to her friends to help bring the club to fruition.
Macias serves as president on the executive board along with Amy Chin, a junior marketing and IT major, who serves as vice president. Anastasia Plank, a junior accounting and IT major, is secretary, and Hailee Hammond, a junior marketing and IT major, is the marketing director.
Park said the organization allows students to learn about programming and technology in a “very low pressure, low intensity and very supportive environment.” Chin added that it is not just for those looking to go into a career in technology.
“I think that technology is important for any career, so you could be literally any major,” Chin said. “Technology is going to change the way how we do our jobs, so Girls Who Code in its baseline would prepare you to embrace the technology of everyday life, but it can take you to the next level of, ‘I want a career in tech, I want to learn those specific skills and how to get there.’”
Despite that the club is still undergoing the process of getting officially approved by SGA, Macias said that they have already recruited over 25 members. Their goal is to recruit more throughout the year.
Girls Who Code has already held two events, one being its initial interest meeting and the other, “The Power of Breaking Barriers,” which the club co-hosted with Women in Business. Macias said that this event featured a panel of three female alumni that work at Microsoft, Google and TikTok. The panelists shared their workforce experiences and gave advice to student attendees.
The club’s next upcoming event takes place on Nov. 12, titled, “Programming 101 Workshop: The Basics.” Macias said that members at the event will be introduced to an overview of programming by IT professors from the Stillman School of Business to help them learn and improve their coding abilities to prepare for future club projects.
“I think the best way to learn programming is by doing it, so by offering this opportunity, we might be able to create something using all the basic knowledge gained in these workshops into an actual project that we can deliver as a chapter,” Macias said.
Brooke McCormick can be reached at brooke.mccormick@student.shu.edu.
