Society has forced condescending messages onto girls for generations, with devastating consequences on their self-image and confidence. For generations brands have marketed toys to girls teaching them to be softer, more submissive and more domestic than their male peers: what every woman is “supposed” to be.

In a male-dominated field, women and young girls fight for respect and acknowledgment.

Growing up in St. Louis, senior Michelle Yang had always held the dubious honor of being one of the only girls in her math classes. The self-described “Hermione Granger, but 10 times worse” had always...