Reshma Saujani
Indian-American
Founder, Girls Who Code
Website: reshmasaujani.com
Instagram: @reshma_saujani
Given a 90-day deadline to leave Uganda by its political dictator in 1972, Reshma Saujani’s Indian parents became political refugees and sought asylum in the only country that would welcome them at the time – America.
Through life, Reshma would pull on inspiration from her parents, and would go on to graduate from Harvard University in 1999, then Yale Law School in 2002. By 2010, she was a career lawyer and activist, having worked in NYC for investment firms and a top law firm. This was also the year that Reshma’s life dream of entering politics came true – she became the first Indian-American woman to run for congress! But as life would have it, she turned her loss into becoming an advocate for female leadership focused on embracing risk and failure.
Her idea? To stay in public service, launching Girls Who Code in 2012 – a non-profit organization that teaches computer science to girls around the country who have no access to technology. Reshma’s ultimate goal is to close the gender gap in technology and prepare young women for jobs in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. Some of her accolades include being named to: Forbes’ Most Powerful Women Changing the World, Fortune’s 40 Under 40, Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People and Crain’s New York 40 Under 40.
Interesting fact: during Reshma’s 2010 race for a seat in congress, she visited local schools and witnessed the gender gap in computing classes. This is what sparked her idea to start Girls Who Code.