III 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 124 

Designating March 24th, 2023, as ‘‘National Women of Color in Tech Day’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 23, 2023 

Ms. ROSEN (for herself, Mr. WICKER, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Ms. HIRONO, Ms. 

CORTEZ MASTO, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. HEINRICH, and Mr. PADILLA) 

submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 

on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Designating March 24th, 2023, as ‘‘National Women of 

Color in Tech Day’’. 

Whereas National Women of Color in Tech Day acknowledges 

the challenges many women of color face in the field of 

technology (referred to in this preamble as ‘‘tech’’) and 

recognizes and emphasizes the importance of women of 

color in tech in the United States, including— 

(1) Katherine Johnson, a former engineer at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; 

(2) Marie Van Brittan Brown, who invented the first 

home security system; and 

(3) Patricia Bath, who invented the Laserphaco 

Probe for the removal of cataracts; 


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•SRES 124 IS 

Whereas evidence suggests that structural and social barriers 

in tech education, tech workforce development, the tech 

workforce, and venture capital investment in tech can 

disproportionately and negatively affect women of color; 

Whereas women are underrepresented in tech and women of 

color often face additional systemic barriers in the tech 

ecosystem specifically and in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (referred to in this preamble as 

‘‘STEM’’) fields generally; 

Whereas underrepresented minority students often face an 

opportunity gap in STEM education in the United 

States; 

Whereas women and girls of color often face an achievement 

gap in science and engineering education; 

Whereas women and girls overall often face a large opportunity gap in computer science; 

Whereas the competitiveness of the United States in the 

21st-century global economy largely depends on developing STEM-literate citizens; 

Whereas the demand for professionals in tech and computing 

fields is expected to increase substantially over the next 

decade; 

Whereas, as of March 2023, data showed there were more 

than 750,000 open and unfilled cybersecurity jobs in the 

United States; 

Whereas increasing the number of women of color in tech will 

be critical to building and maintaining a competitive tech 

workforce; 


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•SRES 124 IS 

Whereas women of color currently make up 39 percent of the 

female population in the United States and are projected 

to make up the majority of women by 2060; 

Whereas, according to a 2018 study by the Women of Color 

in Computing Research Collaborative, women of color in 

the United States earn less than 10 percent of the bachelor’s degrees in computing and less than 5 percent of 

doctorates in computer science; 

Whereas the low number of women of color in tech positions 

who have not received a bachelor’s degree, or who earn 

certificates, demonstrates that women of color may not 

be taking sufficient advantage of alternative pathways for 

reskilling in computing-related areas or may not have 

adequate access or exposure to these pathways; 

Whereas increasing the inclusion of women of color in the 

science and tech sectors can provide role models who can 

inspire students of all backgrounds and identities, including young girls of color; 

Whereas diversity in any field incorporates different experiences and ideas that can ultimately lead to more creative 

and pioneering solutions to the current and future problems of the United States; 

Whereas, a May 2020, study by McKinsey and Company 

shows that companies with a diverse workforce often perform better, hire more qualified employees, have more engaged employees, and are better at retaining workers 

than companies that do not prioritize diversity; 

Whereas communities of color are underrepresented in corporate leadership roles, including in the tech sector; and 

Whereas a pipeline of qualified tech candidates of color is 

critical for future growth, particularly as the tech indusVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:42 Mar 24, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR124.IS SR124

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•SRES 124 IS 

try works to improve the recruiting, hiring, and retaining 

of candidates and employees of color: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates March 24, 2023, as ‘‘National 

3 Women of Color in Tech Day’’; 

4 (2) recognizes the celebration of National 

5 Women of Color in Tech Day as a time to reflect on 

6 the many notable contributions that women of color 

7 have made to the field of technology in the United 

8 States; 

9 (3) urges the people of the United States to ob10 serve National Women of Color in Tech Day with 

11 appropriate programs and activities; 

12 (4) pledges to work to increase diversity and in13 clusion in the technology sector, including through 

14 robust plans to ensure recruitment, training, and re15 tention of underrepresented minorities at all levels; 

16 (5) commits to working to eliminate barriers to 

17 entering the technology sector faced by women of 

18 color and individuals from other underrepresented 

19 groups; 

20 (6) reaffirms the commitment of the Senate to 

21 ensuring that all students have access to science, 

22 technology, engineering, and mathematics (referred 

23 to in this resolution as ‘‘STEM’’) education for a 


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•SRES 124 IS 

1 21st-century economy, including computer science 

2 education in particular; 

3 (7) supports efforts to strengthen investments 

4 in, and collaborations with, educational institutions, 

5 including community colleges, historically Black col6 leges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, 

7 Asian-American, Native-American, and Pacific Is8 lander-serving institutions, Tribal Colleges and Uni9 versities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-serv10 ing institutions, and other minority-serving institu11 tions, to sustain a pipeline of diverse STEM grad12 uates ready to enter the technology sector; and 

13 (8) urges the President to work with Congress 

14 to improve data collection, data disaggregation, and 

15 dissemination of information for greater under16 standing and transparency of diversity in STEM 

17 education and across the workforce of the United 

18 States. 

Æ 


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