Black Girls Code has announced a new initiative to get more young students excited about coding.
The nonprofit has teamed up with the superstar for the “Build a Beat Challenge with Ciara,” according to a press release.
For the contest, students ages 13 to 18 are to code their own song for the opportunity to receive a video call from the Grammy Award-winner.
In addition to virtually meeting Ciara, the grand prize winner will be awarded a Dell music production laptop, per Black Girls Code’s website.
The other tech prizes — totaling to $10,000 — include Apple AirPods Max for the two second-place winners and a Meta Quest 2 VR headset for the two third-place winners.
“I am proud to be supporting this initiative and empowering young people to take their passion for music and use it to develop technology skills that can give them a leg up in life,” Ciara shared, per the press release. “I’m excited to team up with Black Girls Code because their mission aligns so perfectly with the charitable work Russell and I do at our foundation, Why Not You, which lifts students out of poverty through education and inspires them to lead with a Why Not You attitude. I look forward to seeing the incredible submissions and meeting with the winner in February!”
Among the judges for the contest are MC Lyte, Craig King, The BoykinZ, Bosko Kante, and James Cuthbert. Additionally, it is sponsored by Infosys Foundation USA.
“Black Girls Code is for those who dare to build the world they imagine,” Black Girls Code CEO Cristina Jones. “The ‘Build a Beat Challenge with Ciara’ is a chance for Black girls and gender nonconforming youth of color to meet relatable role models and code something that is original and dope. This experience is about increasing learning and a sense of belonging. Solving for both will bring about more opportunities in tech for the girls we serve.”
To learn more about the “Build a Beat Challenge with Ciara” contest, click here.
