Saturdays Each Month at 3 PM
Hour of Code – Free
Each month we offer three different free Hour of Code events. Each for a different skill level and age. Find the event that is appropriate for your age and skill. All kids welcome. If you are a Girl Scout, learn how to earn your Coding for Good badge with Boolean Girl by attending an Hour of Code. Participation limited to 30 kids.
You can join with any computer that has a browser and internet access.
Introduction to Coding – Hour of Code – Free – Ages 7+
Get an introduction to programming in Scratch a drag and drop programming language designed by MIT to teach kids to code. Follow along with our live instructor and create a program in Scratch. On your Boolean Box, click the Scratch the Cat icon. On other computers, go to https://scratch.mit.edu/
For Girl Scouts this HOC is for brownies.
Coding Basics – Hour of Code – Free – 8+ with some experience with Scratch
Work with a live Boolean Girl instructor (no videos) to write a more advanced Scratch program using coding concepts like loops and conditional statements.
Girl Scout Juniors who also attend one of our free Ambassador sessions will earn their Coding Basics Badge. On your Boolean Box, click the Scratch the Cat icon. On other computers, go to https://scratch.mit.edu/
Intro to Python – Hour of Code – Free – 10+
Never coded in Python or just want to sharpen your skills? In this hour, work with a Boolean Girl instructor to write a Python program.
Girl Scout Cadettes who also attend one of our free Ambassador sessions will earn their Coding Basics Badge. You must install Python and Thonny on your computer before the event starts.
Saturday, November 4th at 5 PM ET/2 pm PT meet Boolean Girl Ambassador – Gretchen Hein and learn why ducks don’t get cold feet!
Dr. Gretchen Hein teaches engineering classes at Michigan Technological University. Her classes are Thermodynamics (where energy goes), Fluid Mechanics (where water goes), and Heat Transfer (how stuff warms up and cools down).
She has three engineering degrees: a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering, a Master’s in Civil Engineering, and a Doctorate in Environmental Engineering. This means that she enjoys engineering so much that she keeps exploring different types. Prior to teaching engineering, she worked for a company that made helicopter engines. She has not only designed parts of those engines, but she has also taken a helicopter engine apart and put it back together.
She is the Society of Women Engineers adviser at Michigan Tech, and advises, along with her SWE college members, a SWENext Club where the focus is on national science competitions.
Her family has a farm where they grow vegetables and fruit. They also have goats, sheep, alpacas, chickens, ducks, rabbits, dogs, cats and bees.
Click to see Ambassadors from 2020 and 2021
Saturday, January 22nd at 5 PM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Monica Puerto a Data Scientist
Monica Puerto is a Data Scientist who has worked with large media companies, such as National Geographic and Discovery Communications, in addition to startups and nonprofits. She holds a Master’s in Data Science from American University. She was a volunteer director for the DC Chapter of Women Who Code. An avid speaker on Data Science in the Washington, DC area, Monica is passionate about making technology more inclusive and diverse.
Saturday, February 19th at 5 PM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Stephanie Sanchez A Chemical Engineer at Geosyntec Consultants
Stephanie Sanchez has a Master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of South Carolina. She earned an Associates’ degree in chemical engineering at the Universidad Simon Bolivar in Columbia before coming to the United States to complete her degree at Drew University.
She currently works as a Senior Staff Professional at Geosyntec Consultants a company that strives to keep our groundwater safe from chemical contamination. As a graduate research assistant, she worked on a study funded by the National Science Foundation on the discovery and design of catalytic materials that can be used to effectively convert biomass into useful chemicals.
Stephanie is a member of the Society of Women Engineers and she also volunteers as a FemStem day speaker!
Saturday, April 23rd at 5 PM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Nadia Carlsten, PHD, Head of Product at the AWS Center for Quantum Computing.
Nadia Carlsten is Head of Product at the AWS Center for Quantum Computing. Nadia has spent the last decade bringing emerging technologies to market, working with product development teams in startups as well as large organizations innovating in quantum, cybersecurity, and machine learning. Using her expertise in deep tech and Open Innovation, she also advises industry and government organizations on technology investments and intellectual property commercialization. Prior to Amazon, she was Director of Commercialization at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security where she led innovation initiatives and managed a technology accelerator program that successfully launched several startups and brought new cybersecurity technologies to market.
She holds a Ph.D. in engineering from UC Berkeley and degrees in Chemistry and Physics from the University of Virginia.
Friday, July 15 at 11 AM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Dr. Souto studies the processes that have shaped the evolution of life over millions of years. To do so, she integrates data from Zoology, Marine Biology, and Paleobiology. Her research is focused primarily on echinoderms, especially sea urchins and sea cucumbers.
Dr. Souto believes that Interpreting the complexities of life and evolution into simple yet awe-inspiring snippets of information can inspire current and future generations to become stewards of the environment. As an educator and leader, she is particularly motivated to inspire students and the public to think critically about our evolutionary history so that we can collectively improve the world.
Friday, July 22 at 11 AM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Hope McIntyre, Lead Software Engineer, Data Science (ML/AI) at Disney Streaming
Hope McIntyre is a Lead Software Engineer, Data Science, Machine Learning(ML)/Artificial Intelligence (AI) at Disney Streaming. Hope uses her engineering and data science background to implement machine learning solutions to deliver business impact. She is a big-picture thinker who loves writing code and training models, but who also finds joy in shaping a company’s long-term data strategy and advocating for ML and AI ideas to drive the future of the business.
“I could go by many names – data scientist, applied machine learning scientist, search engineer. It doesn’t matter what you call me, I am at my best when I am transforming large amounts of data into meaningful insights and delightful product features that generate wins for companies and their users.”
Friday, July 29 at 11 AM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Marguerite Toscano, Coastal Geologist at the Smithsonian
Research Geologist, Department of Paleobiology, Smithsonian Institution
Dr. Toscano is a coastal geologist, writer, and journal editor specializing in global climate changes and their impacts. Her research has focused on late Quaternary coastal studies, including Caribbean geology and oceanography, coral reef and mangrove environments, paleoclimatology, Pleistocene and Holocene sea-level change reconstructed from Caribbean fossil reefs and wetland deposits, modern sea level instrumental monitoring and analysis, and effects of predicted climate warming and rising sea levels on coastal systems, shallow marine ecosystems and coastal environmental management.
Friday, Aug 5 at 11 AM meet Boolean Girl Ambassador
Rachelle Duvall, Research Physical Scientist,at the EPA
Dr. Duvall research at the Environmental Protection Agency focuses on measuring air pollutants in the ambient air and near sources, such as roadways and industrial facilities, using a variety of innovative equipment and approaches. Air pollutants can cause harmful impacts on human health and the environment so knowing the types of pollutants and how much of them are in the environment is important. The EPA’s mission is to protect human health and the environment. The science I conduct matters as it contributes to EPA’s important mission while also engaging the public in collecting data to better understand air quality.