ChickTech is a national nonprofit dedicated to engaging women and non-binary people of all ages in the technology industry while working to create a better technology culture for all. In our 10+ years of work, our events and programs have directly impacted tens of thousands of participants, bringing community and support to people of all genders.
ChickTech is dedicated to advancing diversity in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) by increasing retention and building the pipeline of underrepresented technologists, with a focus on women, girls, and non-binary people of all ages.
ChickTech envisions a future where all people—regardless of gender expression, racial identity, disability, age, or amount of experience in tech—feel welcome and empowered in an inclusive STEM community.
Since 2012, ChickTech has aimed to bring inclusive, free & low-cost, and empowering technology education and community connections to people of marginalized genders around the world. We believe that every girl, woman, and non-binary person of any age deserves access to high-quality programming that helps them realize their dreams in STEM.
ChickTech is proud to have served people of all genders in more than 25 cities, and more than 30 states across the U.S. And since the introduction of virtual programming in early 2020, we’ve expanded to serving participants in more than 15 countries, including Canada, Mexico, India, Germany, Nigeria, Australia, Japan, and Brazil.
ChickTech: High School, one of our signature programs, is targeted towards girls and non-binary youth who don’t think of themselves as technical but who have the aptitude to do well in it. The high school program includes events, conferences, an online Discord community, and mentorship opportunities, all of which build a sense of community and belonging while allowing our students to grow their confidence in STEM.
We find the students who aren’t opting into other STEM programs and young professionals at risk of exiting (or not entering) tech, and we change their idea of who they can be and who a technologist is. Most of our high school students have never coded or created a tech project before… but 2/3 of them go on to other tech opportunities after they’re part of ChickTech!
People of all genders are welcome to volunteer with any of our programs and attend all ACT-W (Advancing the Careers of Technical Women) events for adults. We believe all people—regardless of how technical they are—are valuable members of the tech community. If you’re in marketing, HR, legal, management, etc, we want you to be part of our community as both volunteers and attendees!
When ChickTech was founded, we chose ‘chick’ to reclaim the word, with the belief that women have the right to call themselves by whatever label they choose and that traditionally feminine women belong in tech.
Today, ChickTech continues to stand by our belief that all people, regardless of gender presentation or identity, have value and deserve respect. However, we understand and acknowledge that the word ‘chick’ does not represent all those we aim to serve.
As an organization whose mission is to empower women, girls, and non-binary people of all ages in STEM, we prioritize the continuous evolution of our brand, including our name, to ensure ChickTech is an empowering brand that reflects our diverse community and the greater technology industry.
Do you have suggestions for how we can continue to improve in regards to diversity, equity and inclusion? We’d love to hear from you. Reach out to us at [email protected].
Another question that we are often asked is around the color pink. We are often told that girls don’t have to like pink, which we absolutely agree on! However, we feel it’s also okay when girls *do* like pink. In our society, things that are traditionally feminine have often been viewed as “less than”–whether that’s enjoying makeup and dressing up, playing with dolls, or choosing a “helping” profession such as nursing.
ChickTech stands up for the rights of all people to choose who they will be, what they like, and how they represent themselves. And although we are sure not everyone who joins ChickTech will like pink, we hope that they agree with that statement!
PSU 2016 High School Kickoff. Photo by Wojtek Rajski.
