At a time when there is a huge increase in the number of jobs in STEM related fields, the number of women entering those fields remains stagnant. It is a problem that has educators perplexed. The Mattel toy company has even created a line of Barbie dolls designed to stimulate girls’ interest in pursuing a career in the sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics — but with mixed results.
On this edition of UWM Today, we talk to two women who are working on a solution. They have established a girls who code class at UWM. In the studio to talk about the program are Christine Cheng, associate professor of computer science at UWM’s College of Engineering and Applied Science, and Emily Berens, associate lecturer of Digital Studio Practice at the Peck School of the Arts on the UWM campus.
