The future of technology is for everyone.

Throughout the history of STEM, people from all backgrounds and ethnicities have made extraordinary contributions, yet many have not always received the recognition they deserve. Women in particular have played a vital role in shaping the technology, science and space exploration we know today, often breaking barriers and succeeding in fields where they were historically under-represented.

Take three incredible pioneers:

💻 Annie Easley ... a computer scientist and programmer at NASA who began as a “human computer” before developing code for energy research and the Centaur rocket.

🔬 Mary W. Jackson ... mathematician and aerospace engineer who became NASA’s first Black female engineer, later helping other women and people of colour progress in STEM.

🚀 Katherine Johnson ... mathematician whose calculations helped determine the trajectories of early human spaceflight missions, including John Glenn’s orbital flight and Apollo 11 (and is included in our Moon Landing Coding Adventure!).

Their stories remind us that STEM has never been about one type of person or one particular career. It takes mathematicians, programmers, engineers, scientists, astronauts, problem-solvers, creators and curious minds.

That’s why representation matters at Get with the Program.

Throughout our coding adventures, we use diverse characters and positive role models to help children see that they have a place in technology, coding and STEM.

Because when children see people from different backgrounds making a difference, they can begin to imagine themselves doing it too.

🌟 Everyone has a role to play in shaping the future.