Black Girls Code comes to the Spelman campus

As the National Science Foundation reported in August 2022, black women make up only 1.8% of the engineering and science workforce.

Black Girls Code wants to change that.

From June 17th to Friday, June 28th, Spelman College hosted Black Girls Code as part of its summer camp program. The camp hosted 50 middle and high school students to give them a comprehensive look at STEM education and potential career paths. Each year, the camp has a different theme. This year, the students created their own pixel video games focused on AI and climate change.

Participants programmed their own sustainability-themed game using Microsoft MakeCode Arcade. Meeting in the second-floor corner classroom of the Spelman College Innovation Lab, the younger participants appeared excited as they moved from desk to desk, admiring each other’s work.

Suhailah Owuo-Hagood, a 15-year-old participant from West End, talked about her experience with Black Girls Code, which began when she first heard about it from her mother. Owuo-Hagood, who hadn’t been heavily involved in tech before, was skeptical at first, but her interest grew as she met other girls in the field. “I’m actually part of Girls of Excellence, so it kind of brought me here,” she explained. “This is my first year and I like it. The girls are pretty cool. We’ve done a lot of MakeCode Arcade. It’s cool to see a game take what the creator has done and then add their own twist to it.”

The 50 participating students were divided into two different groups, each group consisting of about 25 people. The camp is aimed at girls aged 11 to 17, divided into “little ones” (11-13 years) and “big ones” (14-17 years).

As for her future plans, Owuo-Hagood said, “I want to do some more advanced programming. Instead of arcade games, I’d like to work on smaller pixel games that look more realistic, like Fortnite.” Although she’s not sure about her career path yet, Owuo-Hagood appreciates the skills she’s gaining at camp. “These summer camps open my eyes to a lot of things. I met Professor Holmes, who was a project manager and now advises people on programming.”

Jael Crewe, 11, who attended the camp, first learned about Black Girls Code at age seven when her mother introduced her to the program. Crewe, who is now attending the camp at age 11, was introduced to coding by her mother, who introduced her to Scratch, a programming platform for creating interactive stories, games and animations.

“My mum showed me Scratch because I loved messing things up as a kid and was addicted to it. I saw that you could make games with code and I decided I wanted to be a software developer,” explains Crewe.

Crewe says her time at camp has fueled her interest in software development. “The courses here have prepared me well. Right now we’re making a game about ocean acidification,” Crewe said. When asked about ocean acidification, she explains, “It happens when carbon dioxide and oxygen get into the ocean. It’s really bad for the ocean, especially for the fish. It makes it harder for them to detect predators.”

This is the second year of the camp in Atlanta, after previously hosting it on the Georgia Tech campus in 2022. Cadence Patrick, a 21-year-old rising senior at Spelman College who is currently a summer mentor and a former student in her hometown of Oakland, California, where the program began, shared her thoughts on the transition from student to mentor: “It really feels like coming full circle,” Patrick said. “It’s been incredible watching them learn about game design and computer science. It’s so cool to be able to mentor them because I still remember what it was like to be at that coding camp.”

Patrick, who will graduate with a degree in computer science next year, says her participation in the program as a child has greatly influenced her academic and professional trajectory. “Participating in Black Girls Code Camp and these events inspired me to study computer science, and that’s why I decided to go to Spelman,” she explained.

This year marks a major milestone as Black Girls Code is hosting its first camp at a Historically Black College and University (HBCU). “I think it’s super cool that not only is it at Spelman College, a women’s HBCU, but that I get to participate and mentor these students,” Patrick said.

The organization’s programs have been conducted in 15 cities across the country. The program was founded in Oakland in 2011 by Kimberly Bryant and is now led by current CEO Cristina Jones, who assumed the position in October 2023. On the last day of camp, participants present their final projects to their fellow campers and participants.

Brittany Long, Black Girls Code’s program manager, is proud that the camp is taking place on an HBCU campus, namely Spelman College. “As a Howard University graduate, it’s heartwarming to see these girls on an HBCU campus, learning what it means and being surrounded by future leaders,” she said. “The number of girls wanting to attend Spelman College has gone from one to seven,” Long continued.

When Long reflects on her time at Black Girls Code, she appreciates the transformation the students have seen. “They come in as shy, timid girls, and by day three they’re best friends,” she said. “The friendships and community they build are my favorite part.”

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