- I was almost passed out, literally.
I was totally unprepared.
(upbeat instrumental music)
It was the summer of 2012,
and Black Girls Code started about six months before
as a hyper local organization in the Bay area,
and we were reaching consistently about 20 to 30 students
in our classrooms, and we had an idea.
This novel idea, that we could reach 200 students
if we take BGC on the road.
We selected Atlanta, Georgia, as our very first city of six.
And I traveled to Emory University,
by myself, literally expecting a class of 20, 30 students.
I was running a little late that morning to get to class
and was met by a long wrap around line of girls
and parents waiting for us to come into the building.
I don't often get startled, like deer in a headlights,
but that time I did, because I felt alone
and I felt like I had too much on my hands and my plate,
and I had a moment where I almost locked up a bit.
I was very surprised to find so many students.
And families even, that were there
and had an interest in what we were doing.
It was really those efforts of those very first volunteers
in Atlanta, even parents who were just there initially,
to drop the child off,
who jumped in and helped me do the registration
and get kids in the line, and to organize the lunch
that gave me a peace of mind.
That sense of community has been something
that has resonated with our organization
from that very first day.
That was a turning point for BGC as an organization,
because not only did we have an overwhelming response
in Atlanta, Georgia, when we went to Detroit, Michigan,
I made a mistake, quote unquote,
of going on the morning news show
that morning and talking about the workshop
we were gonna do that day at Wayne State.
And not only did we have another wrap around line
of students that were already registered,
people that were watching this morning show
that morning actually called in and showed up.
So we probably had another 50, 75 families coming
to get into that workshop as well.
And in each and every city that we traveled to that summer,
we had the same response.
And that was when we realized that we could take
Black Girls Code from this hyper local
community-based, really small organization
to a movement across the U.S., if not beyond.
And we created a chapter-based structure.
That would utilize this core technical
and non-technical volunteers in various cities
to help us elevate the movement.
Because at that time, we were only two people strong.
That volunteer core of supporters that pitched in
in that very first workshop in Atlanta,
became the model for what we call now
the Girl Scouts of Technology.
After that first Atlanta workshop,
we started to see some really rapid growth.
We've reached almost 10,000 students to date
all across the U.S., we have 14 chapters here in the U.S.,
and we have one chapter internationally
in Johannesburg, South Africa.
We had to address how do we maintain fidelity
in our model as we kind of handed it off
to others that may not necessarily
be working with us on a day-to-day basis.
So it took a leap of faith I think
on our effort to hand our baby,
and our vision over to others
that had a similar interest in making sure
that the industry would become more diverse.
As a founder and as a founding team,
you don't have to do it all.
You can do more and go further
by enlisting others in your singular vision.
And others will be there.
There's not going to be everyone
that agrees with what you're doing
and everyone's not going to be on your team.
But it's important to find your tribe
and utilize this tribe of individuals
that believe in what you're doing
to help you grow and help you move your vision forward.