“We’re raising our girls to be perfect, and we’re raising our boys to be brave.”
Reshma Saujani is the Founder and CEO of Girls Who Code, the international nonprofit organization working to close the gender gap in technology and change the image of what a computer programmer looks like and does. Girls Who Code is leading the movement to inspire, educate, and equip young women with the computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities. Named Most Innovative Non-Profit in 2019 by Fast Company, the organization has reached over 185,000 girls across the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom.
In her three books — Brave, Not Perfect; Girls Who Code: Learn to Code and Change the World; and Women Who Don’t Wait in Line: Break the Mold, Lead the Way — Saujani advocates for a new model of female leadership focused on embracing risk and failure and promoting mentorship and sponsorship.
Her work on behalf of young women has earned her recognition on lists including Fortune World’s Greatest Leaders; Fortune 40 Under 40; WSJ Magazine Innovator of the Year; Forbes Most Powerful Women Changing the World; and Fast Company 100 Most Creative People. She is the winner of the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education.
She received her B.A. in political science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, her M.P.P. from Harvard University, and her J.D. from Yale Law School. She became the first Indian American woman to run for U.S. Congress and served as Deputy Public Advocate for New York City. Saujani currently serves on the Board of Overseers for the International Rescue Committee, which provides aid to refugees and those impacted by humanitarian crises.