Girls Garage is thrilled to have support from Craig Newmark Philanthropies, both financially and with their recognition of our commitment to serving the next generation of fearless female leaders in STEM and the trades through personalized support and community design/build projects.

With their women in tech initiative, Craig Newmark Philanthropies supports institutions that are working to solve the gender gap in technology. Newmark also emphasizes the need to follow through on commonly held values like equal access to opportunity and treating others fairly, saying that the people holding wealth should step up to actually deliver those ideals. These goals are manifested in donations to organizations including Girls Garage, Girls Who Code, and Women in Public Service Project. In concert with the priorities of Craig Newmark Philanthropies, Girls Garage is committed to increasing the representation of girls entering into and staying in fulfilling careers in STEM and the trades with long-term support from a network of female professionals and mentors.

The $60,000 grant will help underwrite instructor stipends, building materials, and program costs for our free educational programming for 9th-12th grade girls. Over the 2020-2021 cycle of free design and building programs—three weeks of the Young Women’s Design and Building Institute summer program and three seasons of after-school classes—Girls Garage will serve 100 high school girls who otherwise lack access to STEM and trade skill instruction.

2020 is our most ambitious year yet, with our forthcoming book, expanded free teen programming, an international trip with our Advanced Design/Build girls, and an increase in mentorship and career support for girls. Having support from a leader like Craig Newmark, with their enthusiasm for and confidence in our program, is a huge boon towards our fundraising goal, encouragement for other funders, and is another proof point of our success in helping girls reshape the future.