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The American educational system is extremely complex. American educational standards vary amongst more than 14,000 public school districts and more than 3,000 counties and county equivalents in 50 states and the District of Columbia. This has led to widely-divergent outcomes that have negatively affected America's standing as a world leader in education, particularly in science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math (STEAM).

 

Employers are challenged by what they perceive to be a lack of qualified candidates to fill open positions. For students, geographical location plays a central role in their ability to access "quality education", and thus their ability to access the few universities from which large tech companies tend to hire.

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Since these geographical patterns have their roots in Jim Crow-era segregation, they continue to perpetuate racial outcomes, which translates to a persistent lack of diversity in tech.