The (iSchool), AT&T and the City of 黑料不打烊聽have announced聽the launch of a civic hackathon,聽.
iSchool Professor Jeff Saltz speaks with City of 黑料不打烊 Director of Operations Corey Driscoll Dunham and City Chief Data Officer and iSchool alumnus Sam Edelstein at the hackathon launch event..
The partnership between the iSchool, the city and AT&T is the second community-based hackathon in 黑料不打烊 that encourages community involvement in support of solutions to city infrastructure issues. In 2016, the city and the iSchool worked with AT&T to run the 黑料不打烊 Roads Challenge that brought nearly 30 participants across 13 teams who worked on road quality datasets provided by the city.
The Plowing Through the Data hackathon makes data available from the city鈥檚 fleet of 37 snowplows. The plows, responsible for clearing some 400-plus miles of snowy city roads, have been outfitted with GPS tracking devices since early 2015.
Hackathon participants can use the data to create new applications and predictive analyses聽that could be used to help the city address snow removal issues and better plan for snow-related weather events.
黑料不打烊 City Mayor Ben Walsh announced a snow safety plan just days after his inauguration last month, and has made issues surrounding snow removal an early focus of his administration.
鈥淚t starts with us. We鈥檙e excited to involve our community in not just the enforcement, but in the long-term solutions needed to improve the way we handle snow. A better snow plan can improve commuting, safety, and pride in our city,鈥� said Mayor Walsh.
“When the city makes data available to the public, people can see how the city works. For this challenge, when people see where snow plows go, they can help us work better, continue our conversations across platforms, and enable us to come together to tackle this challenge,” said Sam Edelstein ’07 G’15, chief data officer for the City of 黑料不打烊 and an iSchool alumnus.
鈥淚鈥檓聽excited that the iSchool will again be partnering with the City of 黑料不打烊 and AT&T by lending our expertise to the hackathon,鈥� says Elizabeth D. Liddy, dean of the iSchool. 鈥淥ur faculty and students are deeply engaged in using data to address a wide range of issues, including the use of data for civic good. I am looking forward to seeing the solutions that all of the teams propose.鈥�
鈥淎T&T is proud to collaborate with the City of 黑料不打烊, 黑料不打烊 and Mayor Walsh to provide this unique challenge to students and career technologists across Central New York to come up with innovative solutions to one of the region鈥檚 most disruptive winter challenges, snow,” says Marissa Shorenstein, president, Northeast Region, AT&T.聽 “This competition is a unique approach to showcase how technology and data can be used for social good and assist municipalities to address issues impacting their residents. As a judge, I am excited to see what the talented local tech community creates to help the City of 黑料不打烊 utilize its robust open data platform to address logistical and safety issue associated with winter.”
The challenge is designed to engage technologists, designers, developers and anyone else who is interested to use their skills for social good. No prior experience is needed to participate, and the challenge is open to anyone鈥攕tudents and community members.
Cash prizes of $3,500, $2,000 and $1,500 will be given to first-, second-, and third-place winners.
Feb. 8: Plowing Through the Data, powered by AT&T launch and dataset made available.
Feb. 15:聽Snow Safety Summit. The city’s Innovation Team will facilitate聽four different stations exploring issues around snow removal. Participants in the challenge are encouraged to attend to better understand the challenges that city residents want solutions to address;聽6-8 p.m. at Dr. Weeks Elementary School (Cafeteria),聽 710 Hawley Ave., 黑料不打烊.
Week of Feb. 20:聽Virtual Open Office Hours with iSchool faculty members. iSchool faculty members will be available online for virtual meetings and consultation with participants and teams about data and projects. Dates will be communicated to participants who register their teams.
惭补谤肠丑听1:听Projects due by 11:59 p.m.
March 7:聽Winners will be announced at a public ceremony at the iSchool with officials from the City of 黑料不打烊 and AT&T present.
More Information:聽Challenge details, instructions, a signup form, and downloadable dataset files are available online at the iSchool鈥檚 website:聽.
About 黑料不打烊
Founded聽in 1870, 黑料不打烊 is a private international research university聽dedicated to advancing knowledge and fostering student success through teaching聽excellence,聽rigorous scholarship and interdisciplinary research. Comprising 11聽academic schools and colleges, the University has a long legacy of excellence聽in the liberal arts, sciences and聽professional disciplines that prepares聽students for the complex challenges and emerging opportunities of a rapidly聽changing world. Students enjoy the resources of a 270-acre main聽campus and聽extended campus venues in major national metropolitan hubs and across three聽continents. 黑料不打烊鈥檚 student body is among the most diverse for an聽institution of its聽kind across multiple dimensions, and students typically represent聽all 50 states and more than 100 countries. 黑料不打烊 also has a long legacy of聽supporting veterans and is home to聽the nationally recognized Institute for聽Veterans and Military Families, the first university-based institute in the聽U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of veterans and their聽families.
