Community Sponsors

Information Session Update (as of January 19, 2013)

Technology and Community Speaker Series

February 19, 2013 at 7 pm to 8:30 pm 1111 Cambridge Community Center

Steve Ressler, Founder and President of GovLoop.com the “Knowledge Network for Government” which connects and fosters collaboration among over 60,000 members of the government community. He is also a mentor with the Code for America Accelerator Project.

Andrew Coy, Co-Executive Director at Digital Harbor Foundation (DHF), Baltimore, MD. DHF’s mission is to foster a culture of innovation, technological advancement, and entrepreunership through local and national educational initiatives.

March 7, 2013 at 7 pm to 8:30 pm Lounge, Anne Arundel Hall

Sharon Paley, Chief Operating Officer of gb.tc (formerly known as the Greater Baltimore Tech Council.) Its mission is to help build a better Baltimore by harnessing the creative and innovative power of technology.

Beth Blauer, Director of Socrata’s GovStatTM initiative. Ms. Blauer will help design and bring Socrata’s GovStat platform to federal, state, and local governments, in addition to non-profit organizations and international NGOs

Seema Iyer, Associate Director and Research Assistant Professor at the Jacob France Institute (JFI) in the University of Baltimore’s Merrick School of Business. The JFI serves as a leading source of statistical information and research covering the interaction of business, worker and government investment decisions

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COMMUNITY SPONSORS share the community perspective to provide insight into "Community Need".                

Jennifer Goold, Executive Director, Neighborhood Design Center (jgoold@ndc-md.org)

               

John Henderson, Manager, Maryland National Park and Planning Commission- Prince George's County Park and Recreation (John.Henderson@pgparks.com)

               

Lynette Washington, Division Chief, Baltimore Department of Planning (lynette.boswell@baltimorecity.gov)

In addition, two groups provided proposals for specific app development. They included:

Selma Iyers, Associate Director / Research Assistant Professor, University of Baltimore. (siyer@ubalt.edu). Download Open Source Neighborhood Data

Emily Apatov, Community Project Coordinator, Office of Community Engagement, UMD (eapatov@umd.edu). Download Community-Based Asset Mapping Web Application

Though the specific area of interest varied, community need was defined across three dimensions:

COMMUNITY DATA COLLECTION and the need for survey / audit instruments to help residents measure their community assets. Tree and Park audit/survey apps were mentioned.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT and the need for a way for the public to interact with their government. Apps to allow residents to communicate issues and concerns to different agencies were mentioned.

COMMUNITY VISUALIZATION and the need for tools to help communities visualize data being collected by local government

All are interested in realizing the potential of the University of Maryland as a partner in working with communities. All would be interested in discussion your projects in further detail.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Who are the Community Sponsors?
Community Sponsors will provide the community perspective.  Three individuals will initially speak to technological applications and community need. They are Jennifer Goold, Executive Director, Neighborhood Design Center; John Henderson, Manager, Prince George’s Park and Recreation; and Lynette Washington, Division Chief, Baltimore Department of Planning.  All three will be introduced at the October 30, 2012 Information Session. To the extent possible, they will describe the types of data to be integrated into an app.  All have extensive hands-on experience with working with communities.  All are interested in the development of mobile and web – based apps that:
                (1)          address the challenges facing communities.
                (2)          help community based organizations do a better job
                (3)          empower residents to help themselves
                (4)          leverage technology as a tool to improve the quality of life in neighborhoods
All are interested in realizing the potential of the University of Maryland as a partner in working with communities. 

What, where and when are “Meet the Community Sponsors” events?
Four evening meetings (7 pm)  with Community Sponsors will be scheduled in February and March, 2013.  Meeting places will be announced by January 21, 2013.  At this time, Community Sponsors as well as other interested individuals will meet with you to discuss your project.  These meetings provide an opportunity for teams to learn more about the challenges and opportunities in integrating technology into community life.  These meetings provide an opportunity for students to meet one- on-one with the Community Sponsors and gain first hand knowledge about working with communities.  Sponsors do not have the technical expertise to help in the programming, but can assess the progress of the app in the context of community need. 

Do I have to attend “Meet the Community Sponsors” events?
If you are receiving course or service learning credit for participation, your attendance is determined by the responsible faculty.  If you are not receiving credit, it is still highly encouraged and recommended that you attend these events to help strengthen your final product.  Refreshments will be served.