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Uber partners with Girls Who Code to fight for greater diversity in tech

Uber partners with Girls Who Code to fight for greater diversity in tech

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And Bozoma Saint John’s going to help

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Russell Simmons' Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation Hosts 'Midnight At The Oasis' Annual Art For Life Benefit - Arrivals
Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images for Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation

Uber is announcing today a multi-year partnership with the nonprofit Girls Who Code. As part of the deal, Uber is donating $1.2 million to Girls Who Code over the next three years. The money will go towards growing more after school and immersion programs for young girls to learn tech at an earlier age and the organization estimates that 60,000 more girls will gain access to these programs as a result of the deal.

While this initiative and the timing reads as another attempt by Uber to try and get good press after a series of PR disasters, at least the money is going toward a good cause. Uber engineers are also going to volunteer at Girls Who Code local chapters to help set up coding workshops and mentorship programs. And Uber also has another $1.8 million left in its diversity fund for the next three years that it plans to spend on other organizations that are similar to Girls Who Code.

To ensure the deal goes smoothly, Uber’s Chief Branding Officer Bozoma Saint John is also joining Girls Who Code’s board of directors. Saint John, who was hired by Uber away from Apple only a month before Uber’s CEO Travis Kalanick stepped down, has been perceived by many as someone who might be able to help address Uber’s diversity problem, a problem that the entire tech industry faces as well. “Now more than ever it’s important to see strong female leadership in the tech industry,” Reshma Saujani, CEO & Founder of Girls Who Code, said. “Bozoma exemplifies this.”