On Thursday, Google (GOOG) will launch Made with Code, a program meant to entice greater numbers of girls to learn how to write software.
GOOG is backing the initiative with $50 million. Google executives say the goal is to breakdown stereotypes that coding is a male-oriented pursuit and to demonstrate that writing code can be entertaining. A recent internal report showed that 70% of GOOG employees are male, USA TODAY notes.
Another motivation behind the push is to bolster the number of potential recruits for the tech industry. Programming-related jobs will hit 1.4 million in the U.S. by 2020. An industry group says the country will only produce about a quarter of the needed programmers.
“But there’s also the simple fact that supply and demand isn’t working,” commented Google Vice President Megan Smith. “There are millions of jobs out there going begging.”
GOOG stock slipped slightly in Thursday morning trading. Google stock closed at $553.37 on Wednresday.
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