NEW YORK, NY - MAY 07: Founder and CEO of Girls Who Code, Reshma Saujani, speaks at the 2015 Town & Country Philanthropy Summit at New-York Historical Society on May 7, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)Photograph by Monica Schipper — Getty Images
- Age39
- TitleFounder and CEO
- CompanyGirls Who Code
After losing a bid for Congress in 2010, Saujani – who also served as New York City’s deputy public advocate – founded Girls Who Code to help underserved girls gain the skills to pursue careers in technology and engineering. Backed by giants like Google and Twitter, it has helped place 10,000 high school-age girls in 34 states in 57 immersion programs where they learn how to code, develop mobile apps, and receive mentoring from women in engineering at companies like Facebook, Goldman Sachs, and AT&T. Saujani raised $500,000 from corporations in 2012; this year that figure will grow to $16 million.