Freedom Machines, a documentary that will be airing this fall on PBS and is being shown as a pre-conference event Thursday evening, explores the remarkable power that technology has to transform the lives of people with disabilities. The Alliance for Technology Access (ATA) has been very involved in the development of this film, with an award winning crew and Oscar-nominated producer. Shot in nine locations around the U.S — including several ATA centers — with characters ranging from 7 to 92 years of age, Freedom Machines is not only a revelation but also a call to action. The film's web site www.freedommachines.com provides useful information to supplement the documentary both in educating people about disabilities and how technology and civil rights laws can bring us closer to a world that is more inclusive for everyone.]]> 2005-06-14T11:04:00Z 2005-06-14T07:04:00-05:00 tag:comtechreview.org,2005:/summer-2004//9.198 2005-06-14T11:04:00Z

Community technology, in a relatively short period of time, has emerged as a vital social force that impacts the ways we think about, and act upon, the issues affecting our society. This year's meeting affords us a chance to recount our successes, recognize the diversity and creativity within our programs, and challenge ourselves to better address local community needs as we harness the power of people and technology to build connected communities.

We should never lose sight of basic needs within the core of our missions: equity in technology access and opportunities to acquire and apply technology skills. There is still much work to be done to ensure that vital information and communications technology tools and resources are affordable, accessible, and applicable to all people. We hope to explore ways to sustain the momentum we have achieved while expanding the role for, and impact of, CTCs within the communities in which we work.

We're looking forward to seeing you in Seattle and discussing the future of our field!
--Kavita Singh, Executive Director]]> 2005-06-14T11:02:00Z 2005-06-14T07:02:00-05:00 tag:comtechreview.org,2005:/summer-2004//9.199 2005-06-14T11:02:00Z

In a moving presentation at the 12th Annual Conference in Washington, DC, the founder of the award, Tim Barclay, gave the award to Jenny Pierce, praising her dedication and commitment to her work. Jenny is Director of the AIDS Library and Critical Path Projects at Philadelphia FIGHT. These programs provide a continuum of services to people with HIV, those at high risk, and those living in communities at risk so that they are able to access the Internet, learn how to use this powerful tool to meet their own goals, and communicate with each other through personal email and discussion lists.

Previous recipients of the award are:

2002: Dee Albritton
Fast Forward
Columbia, SC

2001: Karen Chi Chung
Boat People S.O.S.
Camden, NJ

2000: Nancy Montana
La Plaza Telecommunity Foundation
Taos, NM

1998-1999 (joint winners):
Jackie Ziglar
Garfield F. Childs Memorial Fund
Richmond, VA
Bill Callahan
West Side Community Computer Center
Cleveland, OH

1997: Josh Merrow
El Puente Academy for Peace and Social Justice
Brooklyn, NY

1996: Marcia Snowden
New Beginnings Learning Center
Pittsburgh, PA

Access Aware: Making Your CTC Accessible to People with Disabilities

The Best of New & Old: Fundraising Strategies for CTCs

CTCs & Community Change: Tools & Strategies

The CTC VISTA Project: Supervisor Orientation & Training

ScienceQuest: Successful After-School Learning

Curriculum Development for Youth Technology Programs: the YouthLearn Method

Incorporating Youth Multimedia for Social Change in Your Community Technology Program

Freedom Machines, a documentary that will be airing this fall on PBS and is being shown as a pre-conference event Thursday evening, explores the remarkable power that technology has to transform the lives of people with disabilities. The Alliance for Technology Access (ATA) has been very involved in the development of this film, with an award-winning crew and Oscar-nominated producer. Shot in nine locations around the U.S--including several ATA centers--with characters ranging from 7 to 92 years of age, Freedom Machines is not only a revelation but also a call to action. The film's web site provides useful information to supplement the documentary both in educating people about disabilities and how technology and civil rights laws can bring us closer to a world that is more inclusive for everyone.

A new form of media convergence is rising at the grassroots level, empowering communities by giving people the tools to express themselves. Community technology centers, community media centers, telecenters, and independent media centers serve as agents of progressive social change, providing computer labs and digital media training to connect individuals, interest groups, and institutions with their neighborhoods, harnessing their shared strength and collective wisdom to create media that reflect the circumstances and experiences of real people. A team of leading media artists and educators is introducing workshop attendees to the exciting possibilities of this movement, offering strategies and practical advice on how to participate as national and international sites of civic expression and media production.

Spearheading this initiative is Fred Johnson, an Associate Professor at the University of Massachusetts-Boston's College of Public and Community Service, in the Community Media and Technology program. Johnson is a media artist, educator, documentary maker, policy analyst, and a consultant in communications and development. He has received a Fulbright Fellowship for the Television Arts, producing and directing documentaries for the BBC and for public television in the US. Johnson previously directed the Digital Directions project, a national planning process focused on the impact of digitization on the media arts, funded by the Ford Foundation, for the National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture (NAMAC). Johnson stresses that we are at a point in time when it is both possible and advisable to envision something other than a marginalized alternative media culture: "I can not let go of the idea that in this moment there may be an opportunity in the next few years to create the distribution systems, production and social practices and politics necessary for the creation of a much more robust, non-commercial media culture."

Other indy media leaders participating in this workshop include Nettrice Gaskins, Director of the Commonwealth Broadband Collaborative (CBC). Gaskins has over ten years experience in multimedia/digital media, education/training, leadership, and program development, most recently as the director of the Multimedia Center at Boston Neighborhood Network (BNN). She has been a member of the CBC steering committee since its inception, is on the national board of CTCNet, and has developed online community media and technology courses for UMass Boston/College for Public and Community Service. Gaskins states, "While new technologies such as wireless broadband and 'broadcatching' are emerging, convergence is creating virtual and actual environments where media makers are exploring ways to become more empowered."

In keeping with the theme of this year's Annual CTCNet Conference, this team is leading the way by showing how creative use of technology can help empower communities. Independent community media are a vital resource. At a time in which divergent and diffuse voices are being drowned out in mainstream media, the emergence of creative outlets and alternatives is crucial. CTCs can be leaders in this movement, by using the resources that they already have, creatively using new tools, and understanding the transformational power that they have at hand.

Lisa's specific areas of expertise include microenterprise development, the digital divide, and capacity-building for community-based organizations. Her work has been funded by the Open Society Institute, the Aspen Institute, the Ford Foundation, and the Fannie Mae Foundation. She spent much of 2002 as a Visiting Policy Fellow at PolicyLink. Servon is the author of two books: Bridging the Digital Divide: Technology, Community, and Public Policy (Blackwell, 2002), and Bootstrap Capital: Microenterprises and the American Poor (Brookings 1999). She lives in Manhattan with her husband, Alec; her daughter, C.C.; and her dog, Hoover.

In 2003, I was awarded a research grant from the Mandel Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Case Western Reserve University to study CTC staffing models. The Mandel Center, founded in 1984, is one of the nation's first comprehensive nonprofit management programs. The Center's Research Office offers grants to foster research on nonprofit topics of consequence to the community. Besides myself, the research team consisted of Professor John Yankey and Ann Lucas, Director of Professional Development Programs.

Project Background

The research focused on the staffing patterns of Cleveland's Community Technology Centers. The full findings provide CTC decision makers with an overview of their peers' staffing patterns and needs and will hopefully open the door to further inquiry.

According to Cleveland Digital Vision, a coalition of organizations working to eliminate the digital divide, the greater Cleveland area has approximately 74 sites where the public can access computer technology and the Internet. The sites include 24 neighborhood computer centers, 21 recreation centers, and 29 public libraries.

While time and available resources did not permit visiting each of Cleveland's CTCs, a sample of nine CTCs representative of the range of available programs and services was studied. The sample included CTCs operated by neighborhood groups, libraries, community development corporations, recreation centers, and churches, and centers with no outside affiliation. Each sample CTC was visited and surveyed regarding its approach to staffing. Full participation required following Case Western Reserve University's Institutional Review Board protocol. The findings are summarized below.

Research Findings

• On average, each CTC operates 47 hours each week (Monday-Sunday) with no significant "down time" beyond major holidays.
• 89% have at least one full-time staff person. Full-time is defined as an employee who works approximately 40 hours per week on either an hourly or salaried basis.
• 78% have part-time staff. Part-time is defined as a regularly employed person working less than 40 hours per week on either an hourly or salaried basis.
• 33% currently have volunteer support and 56% had volunteer support in the past. A volunteer is defined as a person who works at the CTC and is not financially compensated for their time.
• 22% currently have subsidized staff and 56% used subsidized staff in the past. A subsidized staff person is someone who is paid to work at the CTC but not by the CTC itself. Examples of subsidized staff found in the CTCs studied include: VISTA members, AmeriCorps members, persons doing social work field placements, and work-study students.

Staffing for Sustainability

Despite the small sample size, a trend was identified and can serve as the basis for inquiry beyond the predefined scope of the present research. According to the findings, CTCs used volunteers and subsidized staff in the past more than in the present. This trend might raise the question: "Why were volunteers and subsidized staff used more in the past than in the present?"

One possible answer is that, in the past, volunteers and subsidized staff were relied upon to "build" CTCsÑwriting curriculum, setting-up computers, building networks, and installing software. Volunteers and subsidized staff can fill other roles once a CTC is beyond the start-up phase. The valuable but low to no-cost work that volunteers and subsidized staff perform can help sustain a CTC. A few examples of sustaining roles played by volunteers and subsidized staff at Cleveland's CTCs include: updating curriculum, offering tutoring, lending expertise (such as an accountant offering e-filing during tax time), conducting marketing and outreach to bring people into a CTC, organizing community meetings, and assessing client satisfaction with programs.

Undoubtedly, other roles for volunteers and subsidized staff exist at CTCs. Developing a strategy to drive a CTC's mission with available resources is critical for long-term sustainability. The creative use of volunteers and subsidized staff is one way to help sustain a CTC by stretching available funding further while at the same time delivering outcomes that meet community need.

Nonprofit Good Practice Guide: Staff Development & Organizational Capacity
(Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership)

CTCNet Leadership Development Institutes

Idealist

Volunteer Match

The CTC VISTA Project

CompassPoint

Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management

Mercedes describes her work as follows:

"Through the Accelerator, we've provided hardware, software, cash grants, technical support, networking assistance, staff development, and assistance with evaluation to twenty-two nonprofit organizations in Cook County, IL. We've helped some organizations start new CTCs, and others enhance and expand services offered through existing CTCs. We've sponsored new CTCNet memberships and membership renewals for all of the organizations and conference registrations for our partner organizations."

Mercedes has served as a member of the national CTCNet Board of Directors and was a founding board member of the its regional chapter, CTCNet Chicago. The IT Resource Center is a nonprofit support organization and has been a member of CTCNet since 2000.

There are many good reasons to make an effort at engaging youth in these evaluation and community research projects. First and foremost, CTCs can provide a great service to young people in their communities by helping them build skills applicable to both academic performance and future employment. From research, analysis and communication, to databases, software and web development, there are plenty of areas in which young people can gain experience and prowess while providing a service to organizations. CTCs have the opportunity to offer the opportunity for young people in their communities to develop a proud sense of civic leadership and community participation, which will be of lasting benefit for life. Through evaluation and research projects with CTCs, young volunteers and their peers enhance their skills and self-esteem, and develop important relationships with professionals, researchers, and other adults.

Young people and organizations can form a mutually-beneficial relationship that promotes positive outcomes for everyone involved. For CTCs, there are definite rewards to be reaped from engaging young people in community research and program evaluation. Obviously, incorporating youth perspectives is of great importance to an organization that attempts to serve youth needs. Often young people can provide information and insight that help CTCs make sure they stay relevant, informed, and connected to their segment of the community. A healthy amount of diversity and intergenerational respect can be generated by involving young people in research, evaluation, and development. In sum, CTCs have the power to strengthen local youth and their own organizational culture at the same time.

As with any worthwhile process, there are challenges involved. Organizations that have engaged young people in research and evaluation projects have found that it involves a major investment of time, training, and support. It can be difficult for a CTC to arrange its organizational capacity, in terms of funding and staff time, to allow for the special support that young volunteers may need. In addition, combining rigorous research approaches with youth engagement is challenging and necessitates trusting young people to measure up to your organization's standards. Another challenge that may arise is ensuring that youth findings and recommendations are treated seriously. Youth-generated information may challenge established ideas and other findings, and organizations must make a special effort to address youth issues. Finding the right balance between positive youth development and a CTC's research is by no means a simple task, but there is plenty to make it a rewarding effort.