Belonging in Computing: The Contribution of Gender-based Community Building

The pressing need to produce more computer science graduates in the United States to meet the ever-growing number of open computing and technology jobs, and the lack of parity in gender representation necessitates identifying measures to help retain and support more seekers of computer science majors. Fostering a strong sense of belonging to the field of computing has been shown to increase persistence in the major, particularly for women and people of color. In this panel, we will discuss techniques for building community along with personal experiences regarding the impact of having and also lacking that community. Current research on belonging and its impact on persistence will also be presented.