EAST BRUNSWICK — Although computer science is one of the fastest growing career areas, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that there is an alarming lack of women in the profession.
The number of women who work in computer science is less than 27 percent; computer science classes have similar demographics, according to information provided by the East Brunswick Public Library.
“I’ve had an interest in coding, but there were only two [other] girls in my class of 20,” said high school student Aishwarya Singh.
Along with her friends — and fellow coders — Kayla Leung and Chelsea Cheng, Aishwarya put together the Girls Can Code club at the East Brunswick Library in July.
“I was so impressed when they came to me with their idea to hold coding workshops for girls,” said Jessica Schneider, East Brunswick Public Library’s teen librarian. “Knowing that there is a serious lack of opportunities and encouragement for girls interested in computer science, I was excited that we could offer an outlet for girls who want to learn to code here at the library.”
The goal of the program is to give girls an opportunity to learn basic coding in a friendly environment where they would be instructed by their peers.
“I didn’t really have too many friends that were into this,” Kayla said. “Coding clubs would be dominated with boys, but I would feel too intimidated when asking questions.”
Taught by the three high school students, the Girls Can Code club met this summer to discuss HTML and CSS programming languages. By the end of the program, everyone had a website they were able to present.
The program is part of the library’s growing emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education.
“The library has been hosting successful Hour of Code events for the last two years, encouraging new and interested coders,” Schneider said.
The library also has the EBPlay media lab, which provides the community with access to five workstations for digital video and graphic design work. In addition, the classes on video editing and digital photography are also regularly offered.
For more information, visit www.ebpl.org.
