Smart Chicago Collaborative had a very busy 2013 year. Here’s a look back.
Education
Smart Chicago Collaborative and the City’s Technology Plan
Earlier this month, Chicago Chief Technology Officer John Tolva unveiled the city’s very first technology plan. The plan was a result of a year-long process of research, brainstorming, and thinking about how to make all of Chicago competitive in the new digital economy.
This plan is a comprehensive framework for growing Chicago’s technology sector , getting broadband connectivity for everyone, and ensuring that Chicago remains a leader in open government data .
The plan also highlights the work that the civic technology community has been doing in Chicago. From the weekly OpenGov Hack Nights, the Smart Communities Program, and youth STEM programs; Chicago already enjoys a strong set of technology strengths and this plan will enable the city to advance even further.
Smart Chicago Collaborative is proud to have a key role in many of these initiatives and is dedicated to implementing this plan. Here’s a look at our role in the plan and the aspects of our existing work in this context.
Growing our own talent
Englewood Codes Demo Day
In recent months, we’ve highlighted several efforts to teach young people how to code and about technology. These efforts have included Englewood Codes, Civic Summer, and Adler Planetarium’s Youth Hackathon. Smart Chicago is proud to have supported these efforts and looks forward to supporting more STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) programs like these in the future.
It’s vital that Chicago grows its own talent. According to the US Department of Labor, STEM jobs are projected to grow 17% over the next decade.
Behind the scenes of the Go2School App
As a new school year begins in Chicago, there’s an app to help parents find directions to their new school called – appropriately enough – Go To School!
The app was built by Tom Kompare who initially wanted an easy way to determine when he needed to leave to get his daughter to school. When CPS announced that they intended to close a great number of schools, it added an extra impetus to create a tool to help parents find ways to get their kids to new schools.
Review of #CivicSummer 2013
#Civic Summer is an experimental summer jobs program for teens focused on civics, media, and technology. Our inaugural program ran from July through August of 2013 and included more than 140 Chicago teens trained to use the latest digital tools to organize themselves, amplify their voice, and take positive civic action.
Partners
This program, funded by Smart Chicago based on a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, was largely run by two Chicago organizations focused on serving youth:
- Mikva Challenge, which develops the next generation of civic leaders, activists, and policy-makers
- Free Spirit Media, which provides education, access, and opportunity in media production
The Chicago Community Trust provides significant support for the program as well.
#CivicSummer Session with Mikva Challenge Aldermanic Fellows at The Chicago Community Trust
Team & Locations
Jacqui Cheng was the lead instructor for Smart Chicago Collaborative. She and I teamed up to deliver four Friday #civicsummer sessions and custom sessions with each group.
Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy houses many #civicsummer sessions as well as the Mikva Juvenile Justice Council and the Free Spirit Media’s DocuMakers program.
Tribeca Flashpoint Cinema Lab 540a for Civic Innovation Summer
YOUMedia was the location for Mikva Digital Fellows, Mikva CPS Education Council, and Teen Health Council.
1871 was the location for one Friday #civicsummer session.
Devry was the location for the Mayoral Youth Commission.
Youth work
The youth worked in separate groups, each with their own themes, leadership, and advisors.
The Juvenile Justice Advisory Council theme was “improving the criminal justice system” and reducing youth incarceration rates. Their decision makers were Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and the Justice Advisory Council led by Juliana Stratton. Smart Chicago worked with this Council on CAPStagram, a proposed app that would allow residents to submit “Community Concerns” via the CLEARPath API.
The Teen Health Council theme was “how to improve the health of wellness for Chicago youth” and their decision makers were Dr. Bechara Choucair, Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, and Dr. Stephanie Whyte, Chicago Public Schools Chief Health Officer. Smart Chicago worked with this Council on Chicago Health Atlas, where you can view citywide information about health trends and take action near you to improve your own health.
The Mayoral Youth Commission theme was “making youth issues a top priority for the City of Chicago” and their decision makers were Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other City departments. Smart Chicago worked with this Council on the open data policies of the City as well as the data published to data.cityofchicago.org.
The Education Council theme was “how to improve school culture through increased use of youth voice” and their decision makers were Barbara Byrd Bennett, Chicago Public Schools CEO, and Chicago Public Schools Director of Youth Development and Positive Behavior Support. Smart Chicago wored with this Council on Go2School, a site that allows you to explore travel options to your Chicago Public School. Here’s the curriculum we used with this group:
Civic Innovation Summer Education Council Curriculum from Daniel X. O’Neil
The Mikva Government Fellows theme was “how government works and how it can work for youth” and their decision makers were City Aldermen. Smart Chicago worked with this Council on Chicago Works for You, which uses the City’s Open311 system to display information about city services. Here’s the curriculum we used for this group:
Civic Innovation Summer Aldermanic Interns Curriculum from Daniel X. O’Neil
The Free Spirit Media DocuMakers worked on media throughout the summer. Smart Chicago worked with this group on EveryBlock and the significance of citizen journalism, tutorials on using open-source data tools, and a review of Creative Commons and other useful tools you in youth reporting. Here’s the curriculum for this group:
Civic Innovation Summer Documakers Curriculum from Daniel X. O’Neil
Jacqui Cheng speaking to Free Spirit Media DocuMakers at Tribeca Flashpoint Academy for #civicsummer
Here’s a two-pager on the program:
Civic Innovation Summer from Daniel X. O’Neil
Here’s a nice writeup of a spot we did on Chicago Tonight. Keep tabs on existing #CivicSummer work on its project page.
Recap of #CivicSummer on Chicago Tonight
This evening Jacqui Cheng and I, along with a youth Kumari Mason from Free Spirit Media and Mickey Sharp from Mikva Challenge, did a segment Chicago Tonight program about our experimental #CivicSummer summer jobs program for teens focused on civics, media, and technology.
Here’s their take on the show and here’s an extended snip:
“I thought programmers were silent, awkward guys who sat in dark rooms and did nothing every day but write programs magically,” says Mickey Sharp, a junior at Lincoln Park High School. She was also part of Mikva Challenge’s summer program.
But after hearing guest lectures from tech entrepeneurs and professional programmers, Sharp learned about the people who create the web sites she visits every day.
“Now I know there are scripts you learn how to write to create these web pages,” she says. “It isn’t limited to a guy in a dark room playing Dungeons and Dragons…Now being a programmer seems like something I can do.”
Chicago High School for the Arts senior Kumari Mason was most impressed by several programmers leading the technology operations of President Obama’s re-election campaign.
“They had these piercings and they looked like real people. I thought they would have suits or something,” says Mason, who was also part of Free Spirit Media’s summer program. “I never thought they’d be working for President Obama.”
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why we get up in the morning.
The program, funded by Smart Chicago based on a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, is largely run by two Chicago organizations focused on serving youth:
- Mikva Challenge, which develops the next generation of civic leaders, activists, and policy-makers
- Free Spirit Media, which provides education, access, and opportunity in media production
The Chicago Community Trust provides significant support for the program as well.
