These Trailblazing Women Shaped Tech and so Can You

Flatiron School is proud to celebrate Women’s History Month. Every voice needs to be heard in tech. By launching diversity initiatives and enabling the pursuit of a better life through education, we’re changing tech and the world.

Tech would be very different, and worse off, without women. Unfortunately, much of their work has gone unrecognized. Where would we be without Ada Lovelace, the English mathematician many consider to be the first computer programmer? She created one of the first algorithms and her work was a revolution in thought.

The word “computer” was once a term for human mathematicians. Men dominated the field, but a new wave of women computers helped changed the world. The “Harvard Computers” shaped our understanding of astronomy. Williamina Fleming, Annie Jump Cannon, Mary Anna Draper, and Antonia Maury were among the women who cataloged the stars and helped map the universe.

Grace Hopper was a pioneering computer programmer and helped develop the first commercial computer. Joan Clarke was a codebreaker who worked alongside Alan Turing to crack the Enigma Code.

Women at NASA made manned spaceflight a reality. Katherine Johnson’s calculations of orbital mechanics was used to launch manned missions. Margaret Hamilton developed the on-board flight software used in the Apollo missions.

More recently, women have shaped video game design, the internet, and programming languages. Women like Anita Borg were tireless champions for inclusion. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Flatiron School created an infographic to highlight a few of the many women who have changed tech. We’re proud to continue their legacy by developing an educational institution that welcomes everyone and empowers underrepresented groups to join tech.

We’ve tried to do our part to help women become software engineers, data scientists, and UX/UI designers since being founded in 2012. The Women Take Tech initiative has helped usher in even more women into the tech industry. Our online immersive programs have already achieved parity while our NYC immersive courses are above industry standards.

Our alumni have gone on to change their lives and the tech industry. Remmy was a lawyer from Sydney who’s now creating an impact as a software engineer. Patti retains her creative spirit while working with code. Flatiron School graduates have also gone on to jobs at Apple, Kickstarter, and the New York Times to name a few.

We want to do even more and that’s why we partnered with SeatGeek to launch the 50/50 Scholarship, a $200,000+ scholarship initiative to strengthen gender parity and empower women in tech.

From March 11 to March 31, women who apply to Flatiron School’s immersive Software Engineering, Data Science, or UX/UI Design courses are eligible to receive a $3,500 scholarship.

We have a long way to go to establish gender parity in tech. But, as history has shown, anything is possible when women are involved.

Disclaimer: The information in this blog is current as of March 11, 2019. Current policies, offerings, procedures, and programs may differ.