Our Story and Timeline of Impact - Techbridge Girls

I first encountered Techbridge Girls through a hairdryer — literally. During a TBG training for educators, I was introduced to a hands-on activity where we dismantled old hairdryers and rebuilt them to work better. When I shared the experience with my students, they were all in — from taking the dryers apart to testing their work (and yes, fixing their hair afterward!). That exercise captured what I love about Techbridge Girls: our programs center students’ joy, curiosity, and lived experiences.
Years later, with the opportunity to lead this organization that I’ve long admired, I often feel that same spirit of joyful discovery. And as we mark our 25th anniversary, I’m reflecting on where we’ve been — and where we’re going.
From the start, Techbridge Girls has responded to the challenges of the moment with vision, heart, and purpose. In 2000, our founder Linda Kekelis saw how STEM programs in the Bay Area overlooked the potential of so many girls, so she created opportunities to connect their talent to the emerging tech landscape. In 2016, CEO Nikole Collins-Puri deepened our equity mission, embedding social and emotional learning into all aspects of our work and helping educators recognize and remove hidden barriers.
Today, I see a new challenge: artificial intelligence and data science are reshaping our world at breakneck speed. And as we step into this next chapter, I find myself asking: How do we ensure these technologies reflect the full spectrum of human experience? And how do we prepare students to be not just consumers of this technology, but authors of it?
From hairdryers to apps to breakthroughs we can’t yet imagine, Techbridge Girls will keep fostering creativity, curiosity, and confidence — equipping young people to lead with purpose and joy.
I’m honored to steward our next 25 years. Thank you for being part of the story we’re writing together.
Savita Raj Chief Executive Officer, Techbridge Girls
Techbridge evaluation data and research confirm that visits with trained role models and well supported field trips to worksites can have a significant and lasting impact in influencing girls’ academic choices and career paths.”
Use the arrow to the right of the timeline to see even more milestones.
Founder Linda Kekelis begins research on how unconscious biases and gender stereotypes affect educational outcomes for young children, particularly those with different abilities.
Linda Kekelis joins Chabot Space & Science Center to manage an NSF-funded youth education program, Females in Real Science and Technology (FIRST), supporting after-school programs for girls in elementary and middle schools in the Oakland Unified School District.
Chabot Space & Science Center is awarded an NSF planning grant to develop a STEM program for girls. Partners include Oakland Unified School District; California State University, Hayward; Community Resources for Science; the Lawrence Livermore National Lab; and the Autodesk Foundation.
Techbridge Girls is launched from The Bay Area.
With Google’s help, we developed a training model and resource guide called Get Involved & Make a Difference featuring diverse Role Models: A guide for Classroom Visits and Field Trips for K-12 students. Our systemic change takes hold.
Techbridge Girls programs, with NSF funding, help to increase gender equity in the Science Center’s programs (including summer programs in engineering and computer science, which typically enrolled mostly boys).
Mitsubishi Electric Foundation funds Techbridge programs at the California School for the Blind in Fremont, CA. This program, which started out for girls and eventually went co-ed, introduced students to activities including cow eye dissection, reverse engineering and designing toys for kids with visual impairments, and web design.
Funding from the S.D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation supports summer programs and new curriculum development and piloting. This is the beginning of a lasting partnership.
Techbridge Summer Institute launches and provides youth STEM opportunities in the summer.
Support from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation helps Techbridge explore business development models for long-term sustainability. TBG programs now support over 6,000 girls in nine school districts in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Techbridge Girls receives support from foundations, including The Gates, Chan Zuckerberg, Simons and Noyce Foundations and corporations like Chevron, Honda, General Motors, PepsiCo, Micron, Applied Materials, and the Golden State Warriors.
Girls Go Techbridge in partnership with Girls Scouts of Northern California and, expands to 12 councils and scales to 45, developing STEM kits and out-of-school curriculum innovation for girls
Our partnership with the Oakland Unified School District begins and long-term data reveals over years that TBG’s integration in out of school time helps grades, confidence, and additional AP classes for participants.
Family Science Guides are distributed at AT&T park and in Washington, DC, advocating for the role families play in girls’ STEM education
Techbridge Girls becomes an independent 501c3 organization.
Do you know the way to San Jose? Techbridge expands in California.
TBG programs launch in Seattle, Washington DC, and several sites in Texas with the help of a National Science Foundation grant.
Techbridge Girls founder Linda Kekelis retires.
Nikole Collins-Puri becomes the 2nd CEO for TBG.
TBG adds the San Francisco 49ers football team to its list of partners; TBG girls redesign the team's facemasks.
TBG launches “Inspire” curriculum, an replicable out-of-school time program in classrooms, museums, and community centers for girls and gender-expansive youth in grades 3 - 5, prompting inspiration, STEM skills with innovation, belonging, and creative problem solving built around the Engineering Design Process
With the acquisition of the Expanding Your Horizons program, TBG creates a bridge for our girls to explore career opportunities at universities acros