Cadette Girl Scouts and sisters Adaidia and Fati watch intently as two tiny robots lurch and spin their way around a track, following cues left by bits of code the girls are writing. Through trial and error, they finally get the U-turn they have been working on, and their robot avoids plummeting off the edge of the table. Cheers go up around the room with their success.

Every Saturday, Adaidia and Fati and four other members of the Mount Airy robotics team meet to learn about circuitry, coding, and robotics. In December, the team will begin competing in local and regional robotics competitions.

"I never thought I'd say this, but coding isn't hard," Adaidia, aged 14, says. "It's all about recognizing patterns and solving problems."

"Sometimes I figure out the patterns and sometimes she does," Fati, aged 11 adds. "Working together, we always get it done."

Thanks to their experience on the robotics team, Adaidia and Fati are on a new path. Adaidia wants to work as a programmer. Fati wants to be a pediatrician. Adaidia loves computers and the creativity of coding. Fati says “coding will help me see patterns in the children I’m treating and help me become a better doctor.”

Jailen noticed that many young girls in underserved communities lack positive female mentors which holds them back from success in life. Having been supported by many role models herself, Jailen wanted to change this. For her Girl Scout Gold Award project, she created Growth Mentors, a mentoring program for girls at Lincoln Heights Elementary in Cincinnati.

Eight Growth Mentors pairs met each week, with an overwhelmingly positive impact on the girls in the program. Jailen is now in college in Louisiana, and Growth Mentors lives on at Lincoln Heights. Jailen is considering expanding to other schools, and hopes to include more students in the future.