Float - Yale Women in Computer Science

Float (Yale Women and Gender Minorities in CS) was founded in 2013 by a group of Yale students who recognized a severe gender gap in the computer science community, and wanted to encourage students who might otherwise be daunted by coding to learn and develop technical skills. To that end, Float hosted a series of HTML and web development workshops on campus (all student-taught) in its first few years, which were very successful. Many Yalies wrote their first computer program through Float's events. In the time since then, Float has shifted its focus towards broader goals of encouraging students to explore computer science courses, retaining students in the major, and building community. We host study and support groups, teach free workshops, bring speakers to campus, organize lunches with professors, sponsor trips to conferences, coordinate dinners with women in the industry, liaise with the computer science department and alumni, and more. Most importantly, we enable students to build relationships with each other—and what naturally follows is a more welcoming, supportive and inclusive environment for students to succeed. Float celebrates all underrepresented gender minorities, including trans, gender-nonconforming, and nonbinary individuals.