Should Tech Bros Be Working with Tech Mums? | Prof Sue Black | TEDxDurham

Key Concepts

• Resilience & Overcoming Adversity: The speaker’s journey demonstrates overcoming significant trauma, including loss, abuse, and poverty, to achieve professional success.
• The Power of Education: Education, particularly in STEM fields, is presented as a transformative force for social mobility and personal empowerment.
• Women in Tech: The speaker’s advocacy for increasing female representation and support within the technology sector is a central theme.
• Social Impact & Giving Back: The narrative highlights the importance of using one’s skills and position to address societal challenges and support others.
• Bletchley Park & Hidden Histories: The story emphasizes the often-overlooked contributions of women during World War II, specifically at Bletchley Park.
• Techmoms & TechUp Women: These initiatives represent practical applications of the speaker’s commitment to empowering women through technology education.

From Mass Textbooks to Professorship: A Journey of Resilience and Empowerment

This presentation details the speaker’s remarkable life journey, from a childhood marked by tragedy and hardship to a successful career as a Professor of Computer Science at Durham University. The narrative is structured around personal experiences, highlighting the pivotal role of education, resilience, and a commitment to supporting women in technology.

Early Life & Trauma (Ages 12-16)

The speaker began by recalling a childhood fascination with mass textbooks, a sign of her early “geekiness.” However, this idyllic image was shattered by the sudden death of her mother at age 12. Her mother experienced a headache, was hospitalized, and passed away after life support was withdrawn a few days later. This loss was compounded by a difficult family dynamic following her father’s quick remarriage, leading to a period of depression, emotional and physical bullying between the ages of 13 and 16. Desperate to escape this environment, she secured a job at a local cafe and, with the support of a friend named Kate, moved into Kate’s family home at age 16. This provided stability, including adequate food, and a sense of normalcy, described as feeling “like I’m on a permanent holiday.”

Navigating Education & Early Adulthood (Ages 16-21)

Despite the improved living situation, financial constraints necessitated working as a waitress while attempting to complete her A-Levels. Falling asleep in class due to exhaustion led her to leave school and take a job with the local council. At 17, she moved to London, working in various roles – student nurse, refugee support worker, and at a record company – before marrying at 20 and having her first daughter at 21. Two years later, she found herself a mother of three children under two and a half years old.

Domestic Abuse & Seeking Refuge (Ages 21-24)

The speaker’s marriage deteriorated due to her ex-husband’s escalating violence. After he threatened to harm their children, she fled with her three children, seeking refuge at a women’s aid shelter. They spent six months in the refuge before securing a council flat in South London. Recognizing that employment income wouldn’t cover childcare costs, she decided to return to education.

Returning to Education & Career Path (Ages 24-Present)

Driven by a love for mathematics, she enrolled in a fast-track A-Level course, excelling despite feeling out of place in a predominantly male environment. She described her initial appearance – “massive bushy dyed black hair… a biker jacket, a mini skirt and DMs” – contrasting with the attire of her classmates. Her academic success allowed her to pursue a degree in Computer Science at Southbank University, motivated by the perceived financial opportunities in the tech sector. She graduated with a 2:1. Encouraged by her project supervisor, she embarked on a PhD in Software Engineering, a journey that took seven years. During her PhD, she secured a full-time lectureship, providing financial stability. She then progressed through academic ranks – Senior Lecturer, Principal Lecturer, Head of Department at the University of Westminster – before ultimately achieving her “dream job” as Professor of Computer Science at Durham University in 2018. She had previously applied for a lectureship at Durham in 2001 but was unsuccessful.

Advocacy for Women in Tech & Bletchley Park Campaign

The speaker emphasized the importance of networking, particularly for women in STEM. Her experience at a women in science conference in 1998 led her to establish the UK’s first online network for women in tech, BCS Women. A visit to Bletchley Park in 2003 revealed the significant, yet largely unrecognized, contributions of women during World War II. Discovering that over half of Bletchley Park’s workforce were women, and that this fact was not prominently displayed, motivated her to launch an oral history project to document their stories. When Bletchley Park faced closure due to funding shortages in 2008, she initiated a public campaign to save it, gaining media attention through BBC News and Radio 4’s Today program.

A pivotal moment in the campaign occurred when actor Stephen Fry tweeted a link to her blog, resulting in an overwhelming surge in traffic – she became the most retweeted person in the world on Twitter in 2009. The campaign ultimately secured £4.1 million in funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, ensuring Bletchley Park’s preservation.

Techmoms & TechUp Women: Empowering Through Technology

Inspired by the transformative power of education and technology in her own life, the speaker developed the “Techmoms” program to provide technology skills training to mothers, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. The program, which covered app design, web design, and social media, demonstrably improved participants’ confidence and self-esteem.

Building on this success, she co-created “TechUp Women” at Durham University, a program designed to train women from underserved communities for tech careers. The program partners with industry to address skill shortages and has trained nearly 600 women, with 52% previously unemployed and 50% securing technology jobs or pursuing further education. The average salary increase for participants was significant, from £23,000 to over £30,000 after just 12 weeks. A particularly moving anecdote involved a participant who was suicidal before joining the program and subsequently received two job offers. The speaker expressed a desire to expand TechUp Women nationally and internationally, with initial discussions underway with the Bangladesh High Commission.

Conclusion

The speaker concluded by reflecting on her extraordinary journey, emphasizing that her current success was unimaginable during her difficult teenage years. She attributed her transformation to perseverance, a commitment to her passions, and a desire to make a positive impact on others. She encouraged the audience to embrace their potential and make the most of their lives, stating, “If I can do that, so can you.” She highlighted that helping others had been instrumental in her own healing and personal growth.

Notable Quote:

“We only get one life. We need to make the most of it. And if I can do that, so can you.” – Speaker’s closing statement.

Technical Terms:

• PhD (Doctor of Philosophy): The highest academic degree awarded by universities.
• Lectureship/Senior Lectureship/Principal Lecturer/Professor: Academic ranks within a university system, denoting increasing levels of experience and responsibility.
• Bletchley Park: The central site for British codebreakers during World War II.
• Software Engineering: The application of engineering principles to the design, development, testing, and maintenance of software.
• Heritage Lottery Fund: A UK funding body that supports projects preserving and celebrating heritage.
• BCS (British Computer Society): A professional body for people in computing, information systems, and related fields.