| San Joaquin County |
Lodi
Public Library
What is the mission of your host organization?
The Lodi Public Library seeks to provide all community members with: Informational
recourses and instructions in using them; A center for community-resource informational
and activities; and a meeting place for individuals. I feel that the mission
of the Computer Learning Center fulfills the over-all mission of the library
with the CLC’s more specific cause and restricted uses. The mission being:
All community members shall have the opportunity to learn to use a computer to
meet their informational, educational, and career needs.
What kind of technology opportunities will specifically support
the mission of your host organization? Please identify at least three realistic
and attainable ideas that are suitable for your organization. *
Sustainable Volunteer Base
The volunteers already have there own CLC advisory board containing a president,
community liaison, secretary, student/class coordinator, and volunteer supervisor.
As well as 2 library staff who help to over see the CLC Advisory Board.
Now with a little direction from me I hope to develop these positions into independent,
sustainable, well-defined roles that can be easily filled. Roles that are separately
distinct from the people who fill them now, so as to make them more sustainable.
* One Last Computer
There is one empty carousel space in the CLC. I would like to see it filled with
a brand new computer by the time my year is up. * Espanol
To have more Spanish speaking volunteers, tutors and instuctors available. They
will also be able to help me develop more Spanish curriculum. Most importantly
to do the outreach, so the Spanish community knows that these resources are available.
* Library integration
This is a two fold project. CLC in to the Library: The volunteers need to feel
welcomed in the other parts of the library, know the staff by name, have access
to the staff room, and other library resources. In this way they’ll feel
more valued as a working part of the library. As well the library staff will
see them as more of an essential part of the services that the library offers.
The second part is community outreach: Prior community outreach was done by one
person with out much connection to the library. The community needs to see outreach & community
contact from the CLC as also coming from the Library. The Lodi public library
needs support as well, for the CLC to survive. I plan to bring a library staff
member or the community liaison volunteer with me for all community outreach
activities.
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Charterhouse Center
for Families
What is the mission of your host organization? The Mission of Charterhouse
Center for Families is to provide culturally sensitive services that assist refugee,
immigrant and disadvantaged families in their pursuit of employment and self-sufficiency.
Our purpose and goals are to promote family values and stability; to foster self-sufficiency;
to help clients access public and private resources; to interface on behalf of
the client with public and private agencies; to use culturally appropriate means
of counseling for clients with barriers; to assist those who are the least able,
and to educate those who are the most able to succeed in their quest for self-sufficiency.
To improve the lives of at-risk families and individuals. Our programs are designed
to further the achievement of self-sufficiency of the members of our community.
What kind of technology opportunities will specifically support the mission of
your host organization? Please identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.Providing resume-writing
workshops and providing job-hunting websites will dramatically promote self-sufficiency
to our clients. Internet access and navigation through a Computer Learning Center
will allow clients to access both public and private resources. Additional Charterhouse
programs pertaining to job training can benefit from workshops about technology
resources and software.
* Skill development workshops for staff and volunteers
* Develop Point-of-Sale training materials for staff at the thrift store
* Develop a network of public internet access terminals at our partnership sites
to assist clients in improving their computer skills, write resumes, and search
for jobs
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| Stanislaus County |
Community
Casa NETProject
What is the mission of your host organization?
To make computer technology available and
accessible to people in the community. Equip people
with computer skills.
What kind of technology opportunities will specifically
support the mission of your host organization? Please
identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.
* Internet access
* Microsoft Word
* Microsoft Excel
* Win Way Resume Buiilder |
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| Fresno County |
Firebaugh
Computer Learning Center
What is the mission of your host organization?
Firebaugh Computer Learning Center’s mission is to provide
social, economic and educational advancement opportunities for residents
of Firebaugh and the surrounding rural area through technology training
and programs.
The Firebaugh Computer Learning Center is an emerging community technology center
in west Fresno County. We provide social, economic and educational advancement
opportunities to the low income residents of Firebaugh and the surrounding rural
area through technology training and programs.
There are just under 6,000 residents in the rural community of Firebaugh. Eighty
seven percent of Firebaugh residents are Latino.
What kind of technology opportunities will specifically support the mission of
your host organization? Please identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.
Some technology opportunities that will support our mission are as follows: 1.
Offer basic computer classes in Spanish and English for community residents with
limited or no computer knowledge. With help from Children’s Services Network
of Fresno we will be able to provide 24 Spanish computer classes to 10 interested
residents starting in April.
2. Offer specialized computer classes like Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint,
and Publisher. Starting next week, we will have Excel classes offered in English
for two adults looking to track inventory and other work-related tasks.
3. We hope to provide opportunities for our leadership group (Grupo Unido en
Acción) to learn and utilize the computers. We are in the beginning stages
of the organization, but once we progress, we would like them to start up email
accounts to communicate with one another. Also, maybe they could track their
progress similar to an online journal. Furthermore, finding jobs is one of the
main issues talked about at our meetings. Through computer usage, we could help
group members to access and scroll through job websites and to create resumes.
4. I would like to see an efficient and sustainable volunteer program at the
center. We have some volunteers but lack structure. It would be great to have
a training program and have volunteers partake in specific tasks relating to
technology.
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OASIS - Older Adult Social
Services
Connor Murphy: I am a CVDN VISTA working with OASIS
in Fresno. OASIS provides day care for clients who have dementia or Alzheimer's
disease. The day care program allows family care providers to work outside
of the home during the day. Research indicates that the progression of
dementia or Alzheimer's disease may slowed by having the afflicted perform
mental exercises that stimulate the thought processes. It is thought
that computer programs may be used to provide the mental stimulus people
with dementia or Alzheimer's disease need to exercise their minds.I am
researching assistive technology hardware and software that people with
dementia or Alzheimer's disease can use. My research generally depends
on questioning and observing people who have dementia or Alzheimer's
disease to learn from them the type of mental activity they most enjoy.
So far, I have found they like to make photo albums of their lives that
they can pass on to their children. I am also finding that some people
who find it difficult to write or type due to deteriorating eye hand
coordination, want to learn how to use voice recognition software that
will allow them to write letters and use the internet to communicate
with friends and family.Interestingly, people who have dementia or Alzheimer's
disease seem to quickly lose some mental faculties while retaining others,
unimpaired. They find themselves frustrated by the inability to exert
the unaffected parts of their minds because some other part can't recall
how the perform. For example, a person may be perfectly capable of profitably
playing the stock market, yet unable to make a trade because they have
lost the ability to direct the movement of a computer mouse. They may
know exactly what they want to do, but some part of them is unable to
carry out the order.During the rest of the year, I will be experimenting
with techniques to open up alternative pathways of communication using
Dragon Naturally Speaking, Photoshop, and an array of hardware including
a digital camera, scanner, photo-printer and a high-speed computer.Starting
in January, I will be taking courses in Microsoft Excel and Microsoft
Access so I can become proficient enough to pass the information on to
OASIS staff members. The plan is for me to relay the information to key
employees who will in turn see to it that everyone using the computers
will soon be able to work as a group using the same productivity software.I
am also looking at low cost alternatives to off-the-shelf computers and
expensive Microsoft proprietary software. So far, I have switched some
computers to free anti-virus program and a free word processing/spreadsheet
program. The free anti-virus program alone will save over $500 a year.
A discount "barebones white box" computer can be assembled
for as little as $240, a savings of fifty-percent.
CVDN: Connor Murphy is a CVDN VISTA with OASIS in Fresno. OASIS provides
day care programs for families who have seniors with Alzheimer’s. Connor
is researching software and assistive technology to create a model computer that
seniors with Alzheimer’s could use. He is talking with them on their interests,
successes, and challenges in using computers. Current research shows that individuals
with Alzheimer’s create stronger connections in the brain when using a
computer due to the active control of devices and stimulus of changing items
on the screen. Connor is creating a program where the seniors will be able to
use the computer and scan photos from their past. He will teach them how to create
digital stories and multimedia slide shows so each individual can share their
own life story.
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Empowerment Institute,
Inc.
What is the mission of your host organization?
To empower independence and change, moderate and
instill hope for disabled individuals.
What kind of technology opportunities will
specifically support the mission of your host organization?
Please identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.
* At least one main computer for the clients to
use that implements assistive technology. A computer
where they can type up and save resumes, play games
and search the Internet.
Most of the community that is served is Hmong. Empowerment
provides language and cultural support for them.
* If there were a “learn computers”
class in Hmong it would be very helpful.
* An easy to understand booklet that is in English
and Hmong, and that is in simple/easy to understand
language with many visual examples (like screen
shots) and large-print font.
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| Tulare County |
Boys
and Girls Club of Tulare County
What is the mission of your host organization?
The mission of the Boys & Girls Club of Tulare County is to inspire and assist
young people of Tulare County in developing the skills required to become responsible,
productive and caring citizens.
What kind of technology opportunities will specifically support the mission
of your host organization? Please identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.?
* Implement at least three of the BGCA national curriculum courses, i.e., skill
tech 1 and 2, Core Tech, Design Tech, Web Tech, Music Tech, Movie Tech, NetSmartz,
Career launch at the Visalia and Cutler-Orosi sites.
* Database, tracking, and planning system for volunteer coordination to assist
with recruitment strategies, follow up, monitoring numbers, skills, and recognition.
* Administratively utilizing network to provide all staff with onsite computer
access to programming materials and
email.
* Reinstate bar-coded membership cards and tracking system for all programs
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Visalia
YMCA
What is the mission of your host organization?
The Golden State YMCA is a fellowship of persons
devoted to the building of communities imbued with
healthy spirits, minds and bodies. Everything we
do will be done within the framework of the YMCA's
core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility.
The Golden State YMCA strives to be recognized as
the leader in character development programs that
build strong communities, to be a force for the
good in the lives of all those involved in YMCA
programs and to bring resources to bear on social
issues and concerns.
What kind of technology opportunities will
specifically support the mission of your host organization?
Please identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.
A Virtual Private Network between branch
sites allows the Golden State YMCA to become a “fellowship
of persons” by ensuring that each member of
the organization has access to organizational information
and resources. In order to build communities members
of our branch sites should take advantage of the
experience, knowledge and technological resources
of the Golden State Y home office.
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CSET:
Community Services & Employment
Training
What is the mission of your host organization?
The Mission of Community Services, Employment Training
(CSET) is to “seek to strengthen youth, families,
and communities through education, employment training,
youth development, mentoring, leadership building,
job creation, environmental stewardship and other
strategies that support self-reliant families and
caring communities.”
The Mission of the Goshen Planning Committee, which
is housed in CSET Goshen, is “to unify the
diverse community of Goshen, to achieve our vision
by active participation in all decisions that effect
the community, such as availability of medical resources,
affordable, livable housing, economic opportunities
and recreation.”
What kind of technology opportunities will
specifically support the mission of your host organization?
Please identify at least three realistic and attainable
ideas that are suitable for your organization.
Idea 1:
Create computer classes that rely on the assets
of the community to educate and to foster employability
among adults as well as youth development. Form
a committee to oversee class execution as a sub
committee of an already established board (The Goshen
Planning Committee). Ideally those who take classes
in the preliminary stages of the project will then
become teachers in the future, final stages of the
project.
Idea 2:
Unify/organize and/or strengthen community groups
such as churches through an online program or website
that allows community members to post articles,
events, and conduct discussions. (For this I can
use some software a professor I know developed)
Idea 3:
Research various educational software programs that
would allow community members unable to attend classes,
or those who learn better outside of the classroom
to also develop their skills. I would also apply
for grants and in-kind donations in order to obtain
software programs.
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