Trailblazing women in STEAM
We are thrilled at the momentum and positive energy the concept of STEAM education has gained in the past five years! We’ve said before in our celebration of the women who have led us here: we have a LOT of people to thank as we continue our work in advancing women in technology. Today, we are rounding out our series featuring a dozen amazing women in technology. Allow us to introduce four more women in this amazing world we choose to call work. In this edition, we put special focus on trailblazing women who bring a creative and artistic lens to technology.
Melanie Perkins — CEO and Co-Founder of Canva (Design)
Melanie Perkins is one of the youngest female CEOs, who started her Unicorn (worth more than $1 billion) design software startup company, Canva, at the age of 22. This well-known, open-source online design tool was initially developed to assist students in creating their yearbooks. Today Canva is used for both corporate and personal designing because of its minimal aesthetic and simplicity of usage.
Tammarrian Rogers — Director of Engineering at Snap Inc. (Augmented Reality)
Tammarrian Rogers has more than 30 years of experience in the development of both hardware and software. She currently manages the design and enhancement of code quality at Snap Inc. Tammarrian was one of the first Black women to work for tech titans like Microsoft and Apple, opening some heavy and intimidating doors for other women of color in the field.
Bobbie Racette, Founder of Virtual Gurus (Diversity Equity Inclusion – DEI)
Within the tech sector, Bobbie Racette has been successful in carving out a niche for herself with her firm that links people with virtual assistants from underrepresented and marginalized communities – Virtual Gurus. Bobbie is a Cree-Metis woman from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She recalls, “As an Indigenous woman, I’ve always battled to get a job. My experience was in administration, and despite my outstanding skill set, you could always sense that they were going to reject you.” The firm creates jobs regardless of skill level and enrolls candidates in their academy for remote work training.
Hosanna Hali – Tech influencer
This self-described “fairy tech mother” works as an Azure Specialist for Microsoft but still finds the time to mentor individuals looking to enter the IT industry, especially those without technical backgrounds or degrees. Hosanna has a YouTube channel where she answers frequently asked questions from newcomers and delves further into how more women and non-binary folks can break into the tech industry. She is the founder of her own platform, “The Tech Cornr” which serves the same mission.
These four women are inspiring trailblazers in technology – make sure the kids in your life know their names!
Women in tech are doing some amazing work. Missed the rest of our series? You’ll find the first 4 women in technology to celebrate here. Enjoyed reading this piece? Stay in touch and learn more about women in tech – https://www.linkedin.com/company/womenintechtribe