African American Innovators in Tech | Kimberly Bryant

Kimberly Bryant founded Black Girls CODE in 2011, an organization that focuses on teaching technology to Black girls. Before this, she practiced electrical engineering professionally and worked for pharmaceutical and biotech companies like Genentech, Merck, and Pfizer. Kimberly was inspired to establish this non-profit organization because of the bias against young females in the tech space.

One incident that prompted her vision was when her fifteen-year-old daughter attended a Computing camp. In the camp, girls were in the minority and were given less attention. Black Girls CODE is an organization dedicated to exposing girls of color (blacks and Latinos) between the age of 7 – 17 to computer programming, product development, and gaming.

Kimberly Bryant faced a lot of setbacks in this pioneering work, but her tenacity to make a difference eventually paid off. Kimberly has changed the tide by making the tech space more inclusive for women. In 2012, she received Jefferson’s award for Community service. Also, in 2013, she was listed by Business Insider as one of The 25 most influential African-Americans in Technology.

Today, Black Girls CODE has expanded from a local organization serving only the Bay Area to a thriving international presence. It currently has seven chapters in the U.S. and Johannesburg, South Africa. It has already trained over 3000 students. Which continues to grow as more girls are inspired to pursue careers in technology.

Kimberly Bryant’s legacy continues to inspire and empower young girls of color to pursue their passions in the tech industry. In addition, her work serves as a reminder of the impact that one can have when driven by a mission to make a difference.