Afua Bruce

Afua Bruce is one of the women featured in the new If/Then Statue Exhibit. Displayed outside the Smithsonian in 2022, the Exhibit is a collection of 125 statues of prominent women in STEM.

Afua spent her childhood playing with and taking apart toys, solving problems that she created, and bonding with friends and family. For example, as a young girl, Afua once tested her sister’s “water- resistant” watch. After holding the watch under running water, Afua quickly learned the difference between water resistant and waterproof and had to replace her sister’s ruined watch. She’s loved STEM ever since.

She eventually channeled these skills into becoming a computer engineer and finding ways that technology could help strengthen communities. Afua’s career has taken her to the biggest stages – science and technology at the White House – and to unassuming places – small groups of people looking to make a difference in their neighborhood.

Afua has a B. S. in computer engineering from Purdue University and an MBA from the University of Michigan. She is the co-author of The Tech That Comes Next, a book about using technology to build a more just and equitable world (Wiley, 2022).

Growing up, Afua was bored by facts-only books about STEM professionals. Now that she has experienced this world firsthand, she has led STEM outreach programs and activities for children, exciting them about engineering and science. She aims to write engaging children’s books that inspire children – especially children of color and girls — to see the possibilities they can bring into the world through STEM. She is writing picture books as part of a two-book deal with Quill Tree/Harper Collins.

Twitter:   @afua_bruce
Instagram: @afua_bruce