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T wo decades ago, many academic and industry professionals had given little thought to the gender or racial composition of their classrooms or offices. In the early 2000s, that perspective shifted dramatically. The dotcom bubble burst and, with that, the computing field seemed to lose its luster with prospective students and employees. Some, however, recognized that computer science and engineering would remain critical to our nation's economy and would, in fact, grow in importance. They also recognized that a lack of diversity in the field is not only an equity problem, it is problematic for innovation and workforce development. These forward-thinking individuals and entities focused on the need for women to be a much greater part of the equation as the field moved into its next phase.

Since Google's revelation about the lack of gender and racial diversity in their payroll, a harsh truth in the startup community has come to light. Women, and especially women of color, are disproportionately underrepresented in the technology industry. And as the sector grows to 6.7 million jobs this year, it is now more important than ever to understand why there simply aren't enough women in tech. In 2013, The Muse, in association with Women in Tech, published a report reflecting the huge potential of female entrepreneurs and employees.

The tech industry doesn't just have a diversity problem. It has a results problem. Major tech companies pour millions of dollars into recruiting, but there remain significant, quantifiable discrepancies - in workforce diversity, in gender equity among people of color, and in representation among top leadership. Even the industry's annual diversity reports, a crucial step towards transparency, can hide vital information and nuance. Tech companies have been disclosing their diversity numbers semi-annually since 2014.

Perennial stories about the lack of women working in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) often revolve around why women are not studying these subjects, and when they do, why they don't make their careers in these areas. The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in the Media asks a different question. Are women not working in science because there are very few women portrayed in films and on TV who are working in science? Academy Award-winning actress, Geena Davis, founded the institute that bears her name to educate, advocate and influence the media and entertainment industry to encourage more diverse representations of women and girls. Over the past eight years it has provided quantitative research that exposes the unconscious gender biases in casting, screen writing and story-telling.

On the second day of the celebration, GHC 16 attendees from around the world crowded around the our booth to see the speaker who had just arrived. The crowd grew so large that she had to stand on a couch to address everyone who eagerly circled her. This popular figure was the Chief Technology Officer of the United States, Megan Smith, who had come to talk with the Anita Borg Institute (ABI) community. The topic of Megan's speech? How technologists are changing governments around the globe and the need for women to be part of the movement. The inclusion of women and other underrepresented groups is a topic near and dear to the Grace Hopper Celebration attendees. Women leave the tech industry at twice the rate as menwhile Hispanic and Blacks hold between only 2 to 8 percent and 1 to 7 percent of technical roles respectively. For GHC attendees, Megan's message was a refreshing reminder that everyonebelongs in the tech field, no matter what their background.

For many women in tech, being one of the few women in the room is a common occurrence. Women earn 57 percent of bachelor degrees, yet only make up 18 percent of computer science degrees. And while women make up 59 percent of overall labor force participants, the number of women in computer and mathematical jobs actually fell from 35 percent to 26 percent from 1990 to 2013. The statistics for women holding specifically technical roles - such as product development - in high-profile companies are even lower. According to a 2015 report by CNET, companies such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Twitter have less then 20 percent women in technical roles, with women making up only 10 percent of Twitter's technical staff. While there are a growing number of initiatives to get more women into tech, the problem extends beyond lack of representation. A survey of more than 200 women working in Silicon Valley revealed that 84 percent of women had been called ''too aggressive,'' 88 percent have experienced clients or colleagues ask male colleagues questions that should have been addressed to them, and 60 percent reported experiencing unwanted sexual advances.

Despite widespread recognition that women are paid less than men for the same jobs, the gender pay gap lives on. It exists in virtually all occupations, even among teachers and nurses, where women dominate the field. Careers site Glassdoor used its salary data to put a spotlight on the U.S. technology industry and understand differences by job title. It analyzed more than 505,000 salaries and statistically controlled for - in other words, removed the impact of - differences in age, education, years of experience and job title.

MARGARET HAMILTON WASN'T supposed to invent the modern concept of software and land men on the moon. It was 1960, not a time when women were encouraged to seek out high-powered technical work. Hamilton, a 24-year-old with an undergrad degree in mathematics, had gotten a job as a programmer at MIT, and the plan was for her to support her husband through his three-year stint at Harvard Law. After that, it would be her turn - she wanted a graduate degree in math. But the Apollo space program came along. And Hamilton stayed in the lab to lead an epic feat of engineering that would help change the future of what was humanly-and digitally-possible. As a working mother in the 1960s, Hamilton was unusual; but as a spaceship programmer, Hamilton was positively radical. Hamilton would bring her daughter Lauren by the lab on weekends and evenings. While 4-year-old Lauren slept on the floor of the office overlooking the Charles River, her mother programmed away, creating routines that would ultimately be added to the Apollo's command module computer.

HIDDEN FIGURES is the incredible untold story of Katherine G. Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae)-brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation's confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.