Be Bold, Brave, and Badass: Breaking Boundaries like Tarika Barrett

This section is taken from our podcast, B The Way Forward, featuring host Brenda Darden Wilkerson and guest Tarika Barrett, Ph.D. , Girls Who Code CEO. In this episode, Tarika shares her inspiring journey and mission to close the gender gap in technology. For the full conversation, check out the link below!

My passion for this work started when I was a girl growing up in Brooklyn, New York, but also in Kingston, Jamaica. Living in two vastly different places at a young age profoundly shaped my understanding of opportunity, access, and equity.

I’m the proud daughter of Jamaican immigrants, and my mom instilled in me the importance of standing up for what’s right, advocating for equity, and always mentoring others. All of these values stayed with me and became the foundation for my career.

Early on, I knew that if we’re given a shot at disrupting the status quo, we have to seize it. I had the chance to work at the New York City Department of Education, where I led the team that launched the city’s first high school focused on software engineering.

There was an option to make it a screened school, which would limit access to only certain students, but I knew in my gut that wasn’t the right path. So, I fought for it to be an open school. I knew we had the opportunity to create a tech-focused education that included everyone—not just those who could pass a test.

That was a seminal moment for me, because it taught me how critical it is to stand at the intersection of bravery and opportunity.

When I look back now, I realize that leading that effort was about more than just launching a school. It was about challenging the notion of who gets to belong in tech. Today, that school is thriving, with 95% of its students graduating on time.

And because of that decision, we have more young people reimagining what a technologist looks like. It doesn’t have to be Bill Gates or Elon Musk. It can be a Black girl from Queens who has the vision to be the next tech entrepreneur. That’s the kind of change we need more of—where we expand the idea of who belongs in these spaces.

So much of this journey has been about being audacious, letting my light shine, and finding people who share the same vision. I’ve been blessed to have leaders around me who believed in that vision and gave me the room to pursue it.

When I reflect on my journey, I see how each step has built on the last. At every turn, I’ve carried with me the lessons from my childhood and the example my mother set for me. I’m here not just because of my passion but because I sought out opportunities to make a difference, and I want others to know they can do the same.

We have to be bold and fearless if we want to make real change.

Listen to the full episode with Tarika Barrett on Being Brave, Not Perfect.