Joye Nettles (in blue T-shirt) during five weeks of training at ThoughtWorks University on July 11, 2015, in Pune, Maharashtra, IndiaCourtesy of Joye Nettles
Joye Nettles (in blue T-shirt) during five weeks of training at ThoughtWorks University on July 11, 2015, in Pune, Maharashtra, India
Courtesy of Joye Nettles

Joye Nettles is a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) star.

The 2016 Young Futurist first impressed us with her tech savvy and leadership skills as a student at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. A natural-born leader, the recent graduate continues to share her story with aspiring techies, particularly women and people of color.

“I swore up and down I was a website developer, because my MySpace page was always the bomb,” said Nettles at the September 2016 #ILookLikeADeveloper panel in Atlanta. The event, hosted by the General Assembly Atlanta, is part of a nationwide effort to get more and more women interested in coding and web development. Nettles was invited to join the conversation.

And when Nettles is not empowering and encouraging her peers, the rising star works as a junior associate consultant at ThoughtWorks, a global software-development firm in Dallas.

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Every year The Root selects 25 young people, ages 15 to 22, who excel in science, business, the arts, environmental work and social justice. Here is an update on Nettles, a 2016 Young Futurist.