"GIRLS WHO CODE" PSA
This April, I got to be in two PSA spots for the non-profit Girls Who Code. I got to work with a super cool (lady!) director, JJ Adler, who worked with us on solidifying our line delivery to be as "real" and ultimately ridiculous as possible. The shoot was filled with a lot of laughs and by far the most women I have ever seen on a set (!!) -- all of whom, including JJ, were not only a pleasure to work with, but direct examples of women being girl bosses in action on all sides of the industry.
Producing a campaign like this one, which encourages girls to code, is definitely one effective way to target the gender gap found in technology. But these satirical GWC spots aren't purely so much about just girls, coding, and technology... there's obviously a much bigger picture. The campaign is about empowering girls and women everywhere to become whoever they want to be (in whatever field they choose to go into), as well as to further create economic opportunities for ourselves, and do so successfully!
Time and time again, we've seen 1. jobs failing to provide women with equal amounts of opportunities due to the lack of available positions, and/or 2. society being taken aback by the revolutionary accomplishments that women achieve every day. Check these out:
In middle school, 74% of girls express interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), but when choosing a college major, just 0.4% of high school girls select computer science.
By 2020, the US Department of Labor predicts that 1.4 million jobs will be created in the computing related fields, but U.S. graduates are only on pace to filling 29% of them. At current rates, women educated in the US will fill just 3%.
[Girls Who Code: http://girlswhocode.com/2014launch/]
These two stats alone attest to the fact that women are capable of so much more than we're often given the chance to showcase and put into action! Educating our younger generations through projects like this one can inspire, if not only reiterate, to girls and young women in the world that we can be strong (physically, emotionally, spiritually, financially, etc.), and even all while shamelessly embracing our flaws, emotions, and femininity... it's all a part of our human nature.
Vulnerability is so often identified as being this embarrassing burden that causes self-worth and confidence, among many other things, to drop. But when it is welcomed, it can become such an empowering catalyst for self-discovery and growth!
So setting all gender-specific thoughts aside, there's no reason as to why any individual should be limited from achievements if there's potential involved, and I think there's always potential.
I hope you enjoy the spots if you check them out, and when in doubt, don't be afraid to embrace who you are and go against the flow!