Native Girls Code

Native Girls Code (NGC) is a Seattle-based program that focuses on providing computer coding skills with grounding in traditional Indigenous knowledge for Native American girls aged 12 to 18 through workshops, coaching, teaching and role modeling.[1][2]

Native Girls Code is organized by the nonprofit organization Na'ah Illahee Fund (Mother Earth in the Chinook language), in partnership with the University of Washington Information School[3] and the Washington NASA Space Consortium, as a way to support and perpetuate traditional knowledge, build leadership of women and encourage greater participation of Native American students in STEM fields.

The program was designed to give Native girls from tribes throughout the United States a place to develop a strong foundation in Native culture, Native science, and build the skills needed to use modern computer technologies, resulting in the creation of websites, online games and virtual worlds.[4] For example, NGC has organized workshops that combined traditional storytelling with robotics projects.[5][6]

Awards and grants

In 2016 NGC was awarded a grant through the City of Seattle's Technology Matching Fund, aimed at increasing digital equity among underrepresented Seattle citizens.[1] Google has been a major funder of the program and Facebook has donated laptops and filming equipment to NGC.[3]

In 2023, the Seattle Foundation awarded a grant to NGC through its Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N) program, which supported development of a digital kiosk about the history of the Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center in Seattle.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b McGrane, Clare (2016-08-18). "City of Seattle awards $320,000 to programs bringing tech to underserved communities". GeekWire. Retrieved 2017-03-04.
  2. ^ "Event to highlight work of Native Girls Code program". Queen Anne & Magnolia News. 2015-11-12. Retrieved 2025-01-04.
  3. ^ a b Lyke, Mary Lynn (July 20, 2016). "iSchool faculty, students help expose Native girls to tech". Information School at University of Washington. Retrieved 2017-03-04.
  4. ^ "Native Girls Code, helping diversify STEM". University of Washington Bothell. 2017-04-05. Retrieved 2025-01-05.
  5. ^ Cain, Sydney (2019-05-29). "Six ways Northwest Natives are using tech to save their languages". The Seattle Globalist. Retrieved 2025-01-05.
  6. ^ Tzou, Carrie; Starks, Elizabeth; Meixi; Rambayon, Amanda; Ortiz, Sara Marie; Peterson, Shawn; Gladstone, Paradise; Tail, Ellie; Chang, Arianna; Andrew, Elise; Nevarez, Xochitl; Braun, Ashley; Bang, Megan (2020-07-01). "Codesigning With Indigenous Families and Educators: Creating Robotics Education That Contributes to Indigenous Resurgence". Connected Science Learning. 2 (3). doi:10.1080/24758779.2020.12318741.
  7. ^ "Native Girls Code's Digital Kiosk". Na'ah Illahee Fund. 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2025-01-05.

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