CI Reflections

At GSLIS, an ever-present challenge is finding the balance between theory and practice. In the classroom, we learn fascinating ideas about providing access to information, empowering the public, engaging with the community, and more. We as students have amazing resources for finding work opportunities, as well as courses focused on service-learning, but sometimes it can still be tough to jump into the real world and apply these concepts, especially with all of the diverse areas we become passionate about.

For me, Spring Break in Puerto Rico was a wonderful opportunity to do just this—work together with some great people, collaboratively assess a wide variety of challenges faced by libraries and archives, and start to develop real solutions.

The first day or so, the task at hand seemed a bit daunting: we were working at the impressive, technologically-advanced setting of the Pedro Rosselló Gubernatorial Library and Museum at the Universidad del Turabo, and all of the staff was highly knowledgeable in their areas. But once we started conducting our interviews, it became evident that our own backgrounds and experiences would prove quite valuable to the institution.

Each student, along with the GSLIS faculty and staff along on the trip, brought along his or her own knowledge and specialties, and together we were able to ask key questions, probe deeper into underlying issues, and make appropriate suggestions in areas such as digitization, server architecture, archival standards, community engagement, and more.

In turn, we as a group learned a lot from the staff and administration of the Universidad del Turabo as we conducted these needs assessments.

In addition to the Roselló Gubernatorial Library and other museums and archives at Turabo, we visited the National Library in San Juan and the Jane Stern Dorado Community Library in nearby Dorado. In these different settings, a major goal of ours was to identify opportunities for GSLIS to continue to collaborate with the Universidad del Turabo moving forward, whether it be through coursework, research projects, practicum opportunities, internships, or other means.

Overall, our week in Puerto Rico was a fantastic experience on both a professional and cultural level. I hope that the groundwork we established during this trip and the ideas we generated will lead to continued engagement between our universities, and that more GSLIS students get the chance to bring their own experience to the island in order to make a real impact. And I certainly hope to get a chance to go back myself in the future!

-Andrew Walsh

By Lori Hurley

I have really dreaded writing this blog post. I found myself putting it off each day, for various trumped up reasons, but the truth of the matter is I am held back by fear that I will fall hopelessly short in my attempt to capture such a rich experience. My first draft, titled “Saludos from Puerto Rico,” began “We are wrapping up a wonderful week of Spring Break in Puerto Rico.” Not bad for the start of a weather report, but completely inadequate to describe our Spring Break adventures last week.

We spent our first day as a group on an excursion to a nature reserve on the northeast tip of the island. During the tour we were gifted with stunning views and intricate knowledge about the ecosystems of the island. Arranged by Dr. Sarai Lastra, the vice-chancellor and primary contact for Turabo within the GSLIS / Turabo partnership, this seemed an opportunity for our first glimpse of the culture of Puerto Rico as well. It communicated the importance placed upon relationship. Sarai knew that we would be collaborating closely and intensely over the next few days – and that our success would be rooted in relationship.

The theme of relationship — of partnership – prevailed throughout the week. One of the most memorable experiences was our Monday lunch on the terrace of the Pedro Rosselló Library and Museum at the University of Turabo campus. Pedro Rosselló, governor from 1993 – 2000, had donated the entire collection related to his time in office – a compilation of documents, audio and video tapes, memorabilia, and artwork – under the condition that the facility to house the collection would be dynamic and interactive, both library and museum. In that spirit Rosselló informed the design plans, insisting on the creation of the terrace space as a place of community exchange.

It was on that very terrace that we sat that pleasant Monday afternoon, unwrapping our brown bag lunches and preparing for enlightenment. This was to be no ordinary Powerpoint presentation. On three sides lie a carpet of verdant grass and beautiful, arching trees. Before us sat Governor Rosselló. Beyond him the glass wall offered a fish bowl view of the museum hallways and the virtual library lab beyond. Quotations capturing Rosselló’s philosophy line the upper walls of the hallway. From his first year in office it is written, “No vengo a culpar por el pasado, vengo a responsibilizarme por el futuro.” (Translation: “I don’t come to blame the past, I come to take responsibility for the future.”) From 1996, he is quoted, “La igualdad nace y se nutre en el pobre, para hacerlo productivo en el enfermo, para hacerlo sano en el ignorante, para enseñarle en el triste, para alegrarlo…” (Meaning: “Equality born and nurtured makes the poor productive, the sick healthy, the ignorant educated, and the sad uplifted.”)

Against this inspirational backdrop, we shared a meal together. Rather than conforming to a formal interview, our conversation was one of exploration, communication of vision and brainstorming of ideas for sharing Turabo’s resources to achieve broader community engagement. Governor Rosselló expressed his concern over the migration of Puerto Ricans, especially those from the more educated sector, to the mainland. He then he posed the challenge of how to create conditions in Puerto Rico to reverse that trend.

Over the next few days we explored the potential for collaboration between GSLIS and Turabo on community engagement initiatives to address Rosselló’s challenge. However, we also took a closer look at many other potential projects. At the University of Turabo these include digitization of the Rosselló collection, establishment of preservation standards that will later serve as a model for other collections, archiving of the collection, virtual library and Content DM work, IBM server configuration, and exploration of potential for emerging mobile technologies. We spent several days interviewing Turabo staff to assess the status of these projects. After our interviews, we developed a critical analysis to identify any areas for follow-up discussion, as well as some possibilities for participation of GSLIS students and/or faculty that would be mutually beneficial to both partners.

We also had the opportunity to visit one of Turabo’s partner sites, the Jane Stern Dorado Community Library, located in Dorado, a beautiful seaside suburb of San Juan. (http://www.jsdcl.org/about_history.php). There we met with a pair of dedicated volunteers undertaking the leadership and growth of the library; they outlined many possibilities for collaboration opportunities with GSLIS. Project work at this site would allow a student to try on many public library hats, or to propose a direction of focus according to his or her academic interests.

Finally, we ended our week with dramatic flourish, amidst the beauty of the rare book collection at the National Library. We were honored with a tour led by the executive director, who emphasized that they would welcome an intern on projects in many areas, perhaps with the greatest need in the area of disaster recovery assessment and planning.

I was highly impressed by Dr. Lastra and her staff, as well as by the contacts at the partner sites we visited. The GSLIS relationship with the University of Turabo offers an excellent vehicle for exchange of library systems knowledge and expertise. Combining all of that with the beauty of the island and the warmth of the Puerto Rican culture makes for several awfully tempting internship opportunities.

Spring Break in Puerto Rico proved an enlightening and productive experience for both GSLIS students as well as our contacts at Universidad del Turabo. Throughout the week, we had the opportunity to meet and conduct interviews with everyone from the former governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro Rosselló, to the digital archiving team in an effort to assess and uncover opportunities for partnership between GSLIS and Universidad del Turabo. While Universidad del Turabo is quite sophisticated on many fronts, it became apparent throughout the week that they could benefit from the expertise offered at the University of Illinois and that these gaps would provide students and faculty with opportunities to learn and grow professionally.

Primary areas identified for partnership, including potential internships, practicums, research opportunities and course work include:

• Community engagement: conduct a needs assessment via formal survey tools to better understand how the university can provide support to the general Puerto Rican population in light of a lack of public libraries and resources in the public schools
• Analysis and recommendation regarding the use of mobile technology to access the university’s virtual library
• Process efficiency and refinement for the registration and digitization of items for the Pedro Rosselló Library and Museum on the University of Turabo campus
• On-site guidance and support for the Jane Stern Dorado Community Library (including analysis on the opportunity of eBook usage and resource and funding procurement)
• Analysis on the utilization of the Salon de San Juan and recommendations on how to engage the community in the use of this facility, and especially the resources offered via the Universidad del Turabo’s virtual library

The team at Turabo, headed up by Dr. Sarai Lastra, vice-chancellor of the university, is extremely knowledgeable, passionate about their work and interested in partnering with Illinois’ students and faculty to improve Turabo’s presence, processes and efficiency. They would make a fantastic team to work with, learn from and guide.

By Jeff Ginger

I was recently asked by a professor to assemble a list of videos about community use of technology. What he had in mind was that I find videos essentially about community informatics projects, but what I discovered in the process was an information science problem – our current video search systems have four major drawbacks:

Clarification of terms: community, as you know, has many forms (communities of practice, virtual communities, identity communities, and geographic communities of varying size). In the case of this assignment I assumed he was looking for smaller neighborhood-based communities, mostly ones comprised of disadvantaged groups. Further, technology is also ill-defined. It might include production and process, simple things, like use of sticks for sanitation, media like TV or radio, or, commonly, ICTs, which is what I assumed the professor was looking for. Unfortunately the search systems had no way of asking what I meant in using each word. Stock image sites like Corbis do this: if you provide a word with multiple meanings it asks you to clarify and presents examples – but you don’t have to use the filter if you don’t want to.

Better parsing of text associated with videos: One aspect of community technology projects is the degree to which they are driven by external institutions (say corporations or government) or individuals in grassroots causes. Search engines rarely do well at characterizing the often limited text attached to videos, so it’s hard narrow down results with variables like this. Many community organizations make very effective and consistent use of technology but don’t talk about it overtly in their project descriptions. Paseo Boricua is a good example, where they teach English with Google Docs and do hydroponics in biology class, but don’t have any videos dedicated to this. We could help to improve this by better structuring video descriptions (giving an optional section that has ‘who, what, when, where, why, how’ to it) and encouraging users to write more by explaining to them that the text is what will result in their video showing up in searches.

Poor Metadata: Tags are wonderful in that they allow users to bring the full diversity of language in categorizing videos, but they result in lots of specific reference (like the name of an organization or an acronym) and less abstract description (like labeling a project cyberspace activism). Most video websites don’t provide suggested tags based off of association or cloud reference. Websites could prompt users with questions to help them generate tags, too.

It’s easy to get lost: I don’t know if this is a drawback, but it is fun to watch ‘related’ videos that pop up, but they’re often not related in the way that you want. Querying digital literacy will lead you down a path of alternative education programs and a lot of academic talk, but not yield videos about specific communities. It would be helpful to give searchers the option to filter related video listings by tag.

In any event, I was able to pull together some decent findings.

CTC Like Examples

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLJzz-4N1VI
Summary: A collaboration between the Children’s Partnership and the Bresee Community Center. Focus on teaching job-finding skills and opening up opportunities to new lines of creative work.
Tags: Bresee, digital literacy, skills, youth, children’s health, telehealth

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjX5Mdkcbcw
Summary: SLICE, a 16-month program offering residents of Harlem and other neighboring communities the chance learn computer skills that can lead to challenging new information technology careers. They make use of Columbia University resources.
Tags: service learning program, workforce outsource services, Columbia university, digital literacy

http://queens.ny1.com/content/top_stories/115061/-virtual–senior-center-helps-queens-elders-use-new-technology
Summary: A pilot program based in Flushing, Queens, intended to help seniors improve their quality of life by taking part in games, video chat and ongoing education.
Tags: elderly, Queens, social inclusion

http://vimeo.com/15065356
Summary: The Digital Connectors program, based in several cities across the US, in this case Modesto, provides an agriculture county with opportunities. Another example at http://www.necn.com/Boston/Business/2009/11/30/Comcast-program-aims-to-close/1259618136.html
Tags: Modesto, digital literacy, skills, youth, teaching, Comcast Digital Connectors

A compelling series of videos on the use of information technology, mostly mobile and web based, by geographic and identity communities around the world. Their website explains more: http://www.informationactivism.org/ and the introduction video is http://vimeo.com/7079347.

http://vimeo.com/9270471
Summary: Twitter used in response to Mumbai terrorist attacks by surrounding community
Tags: Collective intelligence, safety, communication, disaster response, information transparency, spontaneous mobilization, awareness, phones, neighborhood community

http://vimeo.com/8742995
Summary: The power of video as a way to mobilize people to take action. Examples including use of Facebook to create support networks for lesbian women in Lebanon and the Pink Chaddi champaign in India, a resistance movement to combat the abuse of women.
Tags: Mobilization, land distribution, virtual meeting spaces, privacy, LGBT rights, Lebanon, identity community, Pink Chaddi, Facebook, women’s rights

http://vimeo.com/9404998
Summary: Innovative use of phones to provide checks and balances, local information, and alternative venues for communication.
Tags: information transparency, phones, VOIP, alternative communication, elections, Zimbabwe, strategies

http://vimeo.com/9897919
Summary: An academic talk, but it hits on some really interesting concepts: in summary, how communities can help design their own technological identities. It provides history of rich examples from an urban planning perspective and leads up to grassroots movements supported by the ICTs and volunteers. There is no emphasis on ICT.
Tags: advocacy, self-organization, self-production, Italy, Boston, urban renewal, time-lapse photography, use of public spaces, volunteerism, civic upkeep, open hardware

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YF6vSxKg1cg
Summary: a guide to online video for non-profits: what they should care about and how to go about the process of production.
Tags: Tutorial, social significance, online video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tGj47PHlBs
Summary: More from the MIT Media Lab, technologies built to aid activism and local causes.
Tags: information transparency, surveillance, politics

Most of these are broader programs not centered in a specific neighborhood community, but larger-level groupings like cities, states or villages. Most of them do not engage with ICTs specifically or exclusively, but are well-positioned to influence policy and mobilize individuals.

http://www.youtube.com/invisiblepeopletv#p/u/0/a4D1lIZSck8
Summary: InvisiblePeople.TV – Giving a face and voice to homelessness, interviews with people off the street as well as homeless families, designed to help dismantle stereotypes and raise awareness.
Tags: Homeless, YouTube, housing programs

http://www.youtube.com/greenforall
Summary: Green For All – People creating and filling out green jobs around the state of California.
Tags: farming, recycling, solar power, waste-reduction, environmental literacy

http://www.youtube.com/user/Witness#p/u/1/fJY8PBz8bQY
Summary: Witness – Collections of videos capturing human rights violations as well as stories in interviews.
Tags: human rights, torture, war, stories, Rodney King, police brutality, information transparency, video production

http://www.youtube.com/user/theirc
Summary: International Rescue Committee – Some of these videos feature examples of communities and groups making use of technology to better their situation. Mostly, however, it is not ‘community-driven’ but instead institutionally fueled.
Tags: international aid, sanitation, education, health, representation

It’s hard to find a good video example of community wireless, which is basically the practice of providing free wireless networks made up of people who just openly share their internet, but here are a few:

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4AYUMx_tYM – Organic, more-anarchist style community wireless mesh, dependent on volunteers. There’s some talk about the political and social implications of these things.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpO7LEBud1o – What community wireless looks like driven by the [hacker] community, somewhat like WUWiN project that took place in CU.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6Gtv3qm54w – An example of corporate-driven community wireless, with reference to the recent NTIA policy decisions.

http://www.ted.com/talks/majora_carter_3_stories_of_local_ecoactivism.html
Summary: Social service and landscape architecture technology and community activism related to the environmentalism. Lots in here about substantial avenues for social change, tied to strong examples.
Tags: infrastructure, community, green, alternative energy, jobs, food production

http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_phillips_creative_houses_from_reclaimed_stuff.html
Summary: Another environmental talk that involves technology, but not of the ICT variety. Low tech design using recycled and reclaimed materials in creative ways to construct homes in Huntsville, Texas. 5:06 mark is where he starts talking about some of the concepts behind it all, which are what I think makes it worthwhile.
Tags: reuse, architecture, divergent thinking, funny

Have anything to add? Post it in the comments!

In a number of conversations lately, I have encountered people who were surprised or disturbed at how rocky, inconsistent and unpredictable collaborative work among students, staff, faculty and community partners can be. Almost three years ago, I compiled a checklist of things to think about in community informatics work, tailored to the Community Informatics Initiative, but probably applicable in many settings.

General
Is there a clear and galvanizing idea/issue? Is it generally understood in the same ways by everyone?
Who is not at the table? Why? Are there too many/too few people involved?
What are the motivations for seeking a partnership?
Is there a process in place or in development for coalition building? Conflict management? (Partners must spend time together to foster mutual trust)
Is there enough time to accomplish the goals?
What are the existing and potential funding sources? How will resources be shared?
Does each project have a process for documentation? Assessment?
Have ethical and self-reflecting processes been established? Who is responsible for what?
Are there/will there be opportunities for periodic reviews of these processes?
Is there a timeline or work plan with deadlines?
How will projects that have ended be presented? Maintained or renewed?
In the end, will the project be mutually beneficial, to the best of our knowledge?

Potential Partners
Are the community partners sufficiently established? What level of commitment to the project is evident? (How many people are on board?)
What is their track record of accomplishment in collaborative work? (Evidence of administrative support? Inclusive processes? Length of commitment? Infrastructural support?)
Is their process transparent? (No overt effort to shut out a particular group.)
What will they get out of the project? Who is included in the outcomes?

Community Informatics Initiative
What roles are there for Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) students? Staff? Will there be training, if necessary? Who will conduct it?
Do participants have relevant skills/languages/cultural competencies?
What supervision will students receive?
What might the research possibilities be and how might they be advanced?
Are there faculty or staff members who have the appropriate interest/expertise?
Do the relevant people have sufficient time to get involved with integrity?
Is a collaboration/partnership the best way to accomplish the goal(s) of (most) of those involved?

The “Research 1″ University of Illinois’s emphasis on “deliverables” and research publications may not serve every project well, for example. There are very real clashes of institutional values/priorities/structures.

Decisions
What are the goals of community informatics partnerships? Whose goals are they?
•    Research publications?
•    Theoretical and/or methodological models?
•    Systemic change within the University?
•    Capacity building and social justice on campus and off?
•    Long-term involvement with one or a few groups?
•    Teaching GSLIS students?
How many of these goals are complementary? How many are in possible conflict with each other?

I don’t think it is necessary to have answers to all these questions. If that happened, we may never get out the door. But I think some anticipatory conversations and thoughtful exchanges can help smooth the way for the inevitable bumps.

–Sharon Irish

I blogged about the recent Digital Excellence conference and the Reboot, Rebuild convening in Chicago October 29-30 here. Julia Stasch of the MacArthur Foundation, who was recognized with an award, noted that digital excellence meant both access AND participation.

On November 8, a number of us gathered to consider local, regional and global conferences that we had attended: Martin Wolske to Prato, Italy, and the Community Informatics Research Network (CIRN) and Abdul Alkalimat and the eBlack Champaign-Urbana Symposium that was held at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science and at the Douglass Annex in north Champaign, November 5-6. One of the key challenges in all of these endeavors–community informatics globally, community technology regionally, and adoption and effective use of broadband locally–is how to keep the momentum going, given the poor economy and high demands on people’s time. We agreed that coordination and management of information was a huge task and might be best taken up by libraries/librarians.

–Sharon

By Colin Rhinesmith
Drew Clark is Executive Director of the Partnership for a Connected Illinois (BroadbandIllinois.org), a non-profit organization with the goal of ensuring that all Illinoisans have access to high-quality broadband. Clark spoke today at the Digital Divide lecture series at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Broadband Illinois was selected by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to implement a comprehensive statewide broadband deployment. Clark came to GSLIS today to provide an update on the status of the project.

Clark began his talk by providing a bit of background to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which designated money to the National Telecommunications and Infrastructure Administration (NTIA) and Rural Utilities Service (RUS) to provide broadband infrastructure where it was most needed in states across the U.S.

NTIA and RUS were the two agencies that were tasked to ensure that money was distributed. The NTIA was responsible for awarding money that would provide broadband infrastructure, middle-mile investments, and other broadband adoption projects. RUS awarded funding for rural parts of the state. Broadband Illinois received $4.7 million to do coordination, data collection, and to establish local eTeams to gather accurate broadband data and to help provide sustainable broadband solutions to residents in counties across Illinois. The goal is to get broadband to those who are least served by providing access to infrastructure.

Clark explained that Broadband Illinois was able to get maps and summaries of all of the major projects that have been handed out. The East Central Illinois project, for example, will provide access to hundreds of community anchor institutions and will provide broadband access to those who are are either “unserved” or “underserved.” Broadband Illinois also supports public computing centers and other state projects that will be able to promote sustainable broadband.

Clark asked: “What part of the Internet are students most interested in with regard to information connectivity?” Students responded by saying that applications were a large interest, because “you have to know how to apply the technology.” Clark then asked: “What are some of the applications that you’d like to see enhanced?” Students responded with the following:

* How can we improve the application of broadband to benefit the community?
* What kinds of collaborations could happen with community anchor institutions around broadband deployment?
* What other benefits beyond media can broadband provide?
* How can we catch people up to the current moment with regard to digital literacy?
* Sometimes people don’t know what it means to have broadband access. What can we tell them?
* Will broadband be empowering to people or to the owners?

Clark responded to all of the students’ questions. He said that in order to address these issues we are going to have to step back and talk about what we need to do in terms of dealing with the digital divide. Clark explained that broadband has changed so many aspects of our society from how we order tickets for air travel to how students study. The Internet and connectivity has changed everything. The cloud has enabled multitudes of applications and has connected organizations. How do we have access to the cloud and how will these technologies be used?

Broadband Mapping: Who Cares?

Clark explained there is a great need to map broadband capabilities. He said that broadband mapping will be vital because we are moving from a world of dial-up to a world of high speed Internet. But not everyone has it. The question of who has broadband is a question for providers and for users.

Connectillinois.org’s broadband mapping efforts are focused on providing better broadband data and to spur broadband use. Clark explained that his organization’s mission is to promote better data to help better the lives of Illinoisans and to help them improve their own lives.

Broadband Data Background

When Clark worked for the Center for Public Integrity’s Well Connected project, he helped to track media ownership of cable, newspapers, TV and radio. He said they couldn’t get access to all the data, so they sued the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The Center was not successful. But it did lead to a start in collecting data in speeds, prices, broadband, etc. Clark explained that the FCC has a lot of data that has been very useful. But it also lacks a lot of data.

Broadband Illinois put forth a solution for citizens. They asked broadband consumers to fill out a simple census form that allowed them to provide information about their carrier including broadband speeds. This was a crowd-sourced solution. But, as Clark explained, it is not going to be good enough to build a comprehensive broadband map.

Broadband Illinois has also collected information from providers including data on cable, mobile, DSL, Fiber, FixedWireless, and Unserved broadband access across the entire state of Illinois. There is a lot of variation around the country with regard to broadband upload and download speeds. With the Urbana-Champaign Big Broadband (UC2B) project, it promises 100 mbit/s up and down, and 5 mbit/s outside of town. Symmetrical speed has to do with the download and upload at the same speed. It’s important because historically you had a faster download speed than an upload speed.

But now, Clark explained, we are living in a world where everyone is a publisher, where everyone is a creator.

He showed a number of maps that provided layers of information about the types of service that’s available in counties across Illinois, including cable, DSL, wireless, etc. Clark said they started with these maps. Their thinking was that this needs to be information that is usable.

eTeams

Clark also talked about the eTeams, or technology leadership teams. Broadband Illinois has started eTeams in the following counties: Clark, Crawford, Cook, Jo Daviess, Carol and Monroe. They are working to get together a group of users and providers in each county. The goal of the teams is to develop a problem solving solution to what the issues are.

Clark explained that the strategic plan for Illinois is somewhat driven by the road map laid out in the National Broadband Plan. The plan includes a focus on the following topics: innovation and investment, inclusion (better availability and greater adoption and utilization – eTeams a key component to this through supply and adoption), national purposes, health care, public safety, and the environment.

In addition to our data collection, Clark explained, they have eTeams and other events at the state level. Broadband Illinois has worked to develop a Broadband Deployment Council to make sure that broadband is used as effectively as possible at every level of the state government.

Broadband Illinois wants to create digital literacy initiatives that make computers more relevant to residents in the state. The organization wants to promote applications that will help tip the scale.

Sustainability and Adoption

There are three sustainable broadband adoption projects that have been awarded with funding through Broadband Illinois. The projects should be fully sustainable after three years. Clark went on to explain that a major solution to the problem of sustainability will come via Universal Service Fund (USF) reform. Clark said that the answer comes down to change from the USF to the UBF, or Universal Broadband Fund. He said this reform will happen within the next 2-5 years.

Another key issue in terms of sustainability involved the rights-of-way issue. Clark explained that rights of way should be open to the public. He said that we need to be thinking smartly about how rights of way issues can help cities and towns across Illinois promote sustainable broadband infrastructure.

(Photo above by Colin Rhinesmith available on Flickr under a Creative Commons license)

—
Colin Rhinesmith is a PhD student, Information in Society Fellow, and Research Assistant with the Community Informatics Research Lab at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

By Colin Rhinesmith
Michael K. Smeltzer, Director of Networking at UIUC, talked about the Urbana-Champaign Big Broadband (UC2B) project today during the third annual Digital Divide Lecture Series at GSLIS. He began his presentation with a brief history of broadband in Champaign-Urbana. In the mid-1990s, he explained the city was one of the first in the country to have cable modems. It was good for receiving but for not sending since the output relied on a dial-up phone line. Smeltzer said they also learned a good deal about network security.

The network at that time was big and flat. Institutions using the network, such as banks, The News-Gazette and local schools all used Apple computers with Apple Share networking software. This meant newspaper reporters were connected to the banks and the superintendent of schools. At the time, people didn’t have any sophisticated ways to manage network security. Therefore, the newspaper could access private records that belonged to the schools and the banks! Fortunately, Smeltzer said there weren’t any problems before the issue was soon resolved.

In the late 1990s, the University of Illinois put out an RFP to find a company that would provide fast Internet to student housing. There were 25,000 students living in buildings and UIUC asked for fiber or DSL for these units. Fiber was built on part of the campus in Champaign and 10,000 students were hooked up to it. The Urbana side of campus got hooked up with DSL (Digital Subscriber Line), which was new at the time and something Urbana was interested in exploring.

Smeltzer said that a popular refrain that he’s heard time and time again is that “broadband needs to be like water, plentiful and free.” He said that while free would be nice, there needs to be someone at the other end of the line to respond to network problems.

In 2008, Educause put together a white paper that said the federal government would be well served by getting everyone hooked up to the Internet. Smeltzer said the report stated that $200 billion was needed to connect fiber to every home in the U.S.  In 2009, President Obama announced federal stimulus legislation as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that made 7.2 billion dollars available for broadband nationwide. Smeltzer said they had a jump start on the project in getting their broadband application together. The legislation required that the funding include a 20% local match. He said that the State of Illinois Broadband Program, under Gov. Quinn, dedicated money for Illinois broadband projects.

Smeltzer said that UC2B has a commitment of 3.5 million dollars. The project had to show that 20% of the budget would come from the state. UC2B received partial funding in the first round of awards, for the comprehensive infrastructure portion of the project.

To learn more about the broadband stimulus funding visit the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program and the Broadband Investment Program websites.

What is UC2B?

Smeltzer explained that UC2B is an intergovernmental consortium in Urbana-Champaign that would like everyone, ultimately, to have fiber in their homes. The consortium includes:

• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• City of Champaign
• City of Urbana

It was created to secure ARRA broadband funding for a $29.4 million infrastructure project. UC2B completed three different applications:

• Infrastructure
• Public computing center
• Sustainable broadband adoption – i.e., for training, computers and support

The UC2B infrastructure project got funded, but unfortunately the others did not. Smeltzer said that was too bad because UC2B and the community still have the need for public computing centers and ways to support sustainable broadband adoption. UC2B can’t use the money, earmarked for construction, to train people on computers and to help people learn how to use the new faster broadband network. Smeltzer explained that putting a broadband connection in a person’s basement is not going to change their life. Rather, it’s about the work that needs to be done afterward, such as training, technical, and community support. UC2B hopes that it will eventually receive funding to help make a difference in this way.

The matching 20% of local funds for UC2B came from state government, UIUC, Mass Transit District, Champaign Telephone Company, U-C Sanitary Department, Lincoln Trail Libraries, the school system and more. All of these organizations will get their own strands of fiber on this larger network. The infrastructure will have 432 strands of fiber in it. The state will use 8 strands, UIUC will use 12, etc. Smeltzer explained that the strands disappear quickly with the people who put up the money.

The organizations have 20 year leases to use the big broadband network. And many of the groups will save money in the process.

What Will UC2B Provide?

There are 7 rings of fiber that will be distributed across Champaign and Urbana from two central nodes located on campus. There are several maps on the website that provide diagrams describing the network. Ultimately, UC2B will provide fiber connectivity and Internet services for 143 very  “Anchor Institutions,” broadly defined. These include: Schools, Public Safety, Government, Medical, Senior Living and Activity, Youth Centers, Social Service Agencies, Public Computing Centers.

UC2B will also provide Fiber-to-the-Premise or FTTP. It plans to reach 4,659 homes and 200 businesses. During the application process, UC2B discovered that there are 11 “underserved” census block groups – 6 in Champaign, 5 in Urbana – that will get fiber to the home.

The City of Champaign does not have public utilities. The city was never in the business of providing these facilities. Smeltzer explained that the city took a serious leap of faith to get behind the idea of providing broadband service. He believes UC2B will give the city an opportunity to get comfortable with the idea.

UC2B will also offer retail broadband services, including a 100 megabit connection, to local institutions for $19.99 a month. They hope to find grant funding for this fiber. They will also work to make higher Internet bandwidth tiers available.

An Open Access Network

UC2B is an open access network, meaning that anyone in the Internet business will be able to provide services over the network for a reasonable rate. UC2B will not be allowed to discriminate against any data based on where it comes from–a basic principle of network neutrality. It will be an open network with shared, community owned infrastructure.

Why is UC2B “Special”?

The UIUC team will support the infrastructure for 5 years. The network is built on a “close to bleeding edge” technology. UC2B is also special because it has received broad community support.

The university is involved because it sees many benefits, including: improved connectivity on and off campus; campus fiber backbone reinforcements; blended learning opportunities; and it will help to attract and retain faculty.

Construction begins next summer. By Summer 2013 they hope to have a plan to expand broadband to the entire community.

Smeltzer explained that fiber will provide many benefits to the local community through the UC2B project. He says for one thing it is “future proof.” The network will be a great benefit for people 50 years from now who will be paying for the stimulus funding. UC2B will be community owned, shared and will serve the community for decades.

The UC2B policy board meets twice a month on the first and third Tues or Thurs of the month. These meetings are open to the public. More information about the policy and tech committee meetings, with an archive of minutes and audio is available on their website at UC2B.net.

(Photo above by Colin Rhinesmith available on Flickr under a Creative Commons license)

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Colin Rhinesmith is a PhD student, Information in Society Fellow, and Research Assistant with the Community Informatics Research Lab at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

By Colin Rhinesmith

Digital literacy is a basic life skill. We need it to apply for a job, access health care information, and learn more about political candidates. In many communities, the library is the only place where residents can go to gain these critical life skills.

One librarian at the front lines of this challenge is Frances Roehm. Roehm is SkokieNet Librarian and Community Liaison at the Skokie Public Library and Member of the DCEO Advisory Committee for the Eliminate the Digital Divide Program. Roehm spoke today at the Digital Divide Lecture Series at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Roehm began her talk by providing some demographic information about Skokie, which has a population of 68,000. 39% were born in another country. Half of them speak a language other than English at home, where 94 different languages are spoken. 20% of Skokie residents are over 60. Many of these people visit the Skokie Public Library to get help with basic and more intricate information and communication technologies.

After the war, a large number of Jews moved to Skokie. In 1968, Roehm explained that Skokie was the first village to pass a fair housing ordinance. It’s been a beacon for people ever since, particularly for immigrants coming to Skokie from places of war and strife. During the 1980s, many immigrants came from Russia and Asian countries. Skokie has a Festival of Culture which is a great place for people to develop leadership among and to celebrate diverse groups in the community.

The Skokie Public Library works to teach literacy skills in many languages. Roehm said the library supports as many languages as it can and celebrates serving new communities. They partner with Skokie Community College to provide ESL classes. They also have library databases are in any different languages.

Roehm also talked about how the library serves the business community in Skokie by providing small businesses and start-ups with financial help. The library also provides important information to consumers. Skokie was also the first library to bring a Congressperson staff member into the library to help residents find health and welfare service information. The library prides itself on partnering with social work organizations to provide essential community services.

Digital and Media Literacy Services

The library has an extensive digital and media literacy training program. They have three computer labs and laptops for checkout. The library has a youth services lab and a new digital media lab where residents can learn how to make movies, scan photos and receive technical assistance. Roehm said there is more and more technology everyday, and as librarians “we have to keep learning”. She said that librarians have to help patrons keep up with these technology changes.

Skokie residents have access to a wide range of computer classes at the library, and the library staff is always working to learn new skills and ask important questions: “What is next? Where can we use it? How to present it?” The library provides hands on support with technology. This is the value the library adds to the community, particularly for those most in need.

Roehm said the library staff knew that the Hispanic community was not using the library. In response, they did outreach to bring them in. Now they offer computer classes in Spanish. The library also has story time in Spanish for children. The community also experienced an influx of Iraqi refugees. In response the library partnered with social workers to find ways to support these new residents. They found people to teach basic computer classes to teach Iraqis in their native language.

Skokie librarians play a vital role in helping people fill out all kinds of forms online. Librarians are always helping residents with “basic things” such as looking for jobs, government information, etc. To help people gain these basic life skills, the library offers one-on-one classes that start with how to use a mouse. It’s critical to using a computer, Roehm said. She explained that the library is there in the community to serve a diversity of needs, such as gaining access to basic internet classes. “No matter how many we offer,” Roehm said there are always people who want to join these computer classes.

They have expanded their basic computer class offerings to include cell phone tutorials and web-based courses. The library provides patrons with access to the Safari Book Collection, which is published by O’Reilly Books. Roehm says that more and more libraries are making these resources available to their communities.

The library has wifi throughout the building. Roehm explained that the library has worked to create more spaces where people can plug in their laptops. She said they have librarians who are mourning the “scaling back on print resources.” For example, 30% of the libraries print resources are gone. Roehm said they rely more and more on online information resources.

Even with all of the advances in digital technology and the literacy skills needed to effectively use them, Roehm explains, librarianship is about people. Whatever the technology need, “you just go with it.”

The Skokie Public Library as Physical Community Center

Roehm described how the library has created more space for face-to-face meetings. They have small business owners in the library for meetings, people tutoring, small chamber meeting, etc. She said they also need room for more computers.

The Skokie Public Library staff knows that people still need help with the analog basics such as learning how to find things on the shelf. Providing public access to photocopiers is another major value added. The library’s philosophy is to help as many people as they can, even though some people may not learn. Roehm said they do this by providing help with writing skills, including how to write a letter or build a resume.

Roehm says, “the library is welcoming to all. We try to live up to that.”

Every November the library brings local computer savvy social workers in to help residents find their prescription drug plans online. Dealing with basic technology is very difficult, Roehm said. In response, she said the library is there to help Skokie residents wherever they are, at any point.

SkokieNet

Roehm talked briefly about SkokieNet which is an online community information network managed by the Skokie Public Library. She said it is very inclusive. The library staff works with residents to teach them how to add information to the website, including to the community calendar. SkokieNet has a Teen Talk area for kids. Roehm said all are welcome to participate.

Roehm concluded her talk by telling the audience, “One by one, day by day, we will work to bring people into the library to help them find what it is they are looking for.” This is the real value of the library in the digital age.

(Photo above by Skokie Public Library available on Flickr under a Creative Commons license)

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Colin Rhinesmith is a PhD student, Information in Society Fellow, and Research Assistant with the Community Informatics Research Lab at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

By Colin Rhinesmith

Brian Bell, Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) Grant Coordinator at the Computer Science and Information Technology Department at Parkland College gave the 2nd lecture in this year’s Digital Divide Lecture series. Bell is a also a member of the C3 public computing group and UC2B, the Urbana-Champaign Big Broadband project. Bell runs free computer literacy classes at the Illinois Worknet Center public computing center (PCC) at 1307 N. Mattis. The hours are Mon and Wed 10-5pm. He is looking for people to volunteer as a lab monitor, to teach a class, or help repair computers that are donated by local organizations and corporations.

Types of Digital Divide

Bell began his talk by describing the types of digital divide that exist here in Champaign-Urbana. These include: access to education and training, physical equipment, the internet and broadband network speeds. Sub-categories include: race, region, income, and level of education. Bell tells his students, “The digital divide is what happened to you while you were at work.” That is to say, advances in information technology have created a rift between those who have and have not been working in environments with computers and the Internet.

After showing an illustration of the global digital divide, Bell explained that most of the students in his computer class could be considered as members within the less developed world. 70% don’t have a computer at home or access to the internet.

The Mission

Bell described the public computing center’s mission as:

* Service to 300 people – but they are serving closer to 1200 people and the program is expanding.
* 28 hours of computer assistance
* Basic literacy training – from what is a mouse to how to develop a webpage
* Open entry and open access – people can come and go as they please
* Computer help through drop-in hours and structured classes

The clients who use the lab are mostly:

* Over 40 and unemployed
* 50/50 male/female
* 50/50 minority and white
* 50% no computer or internet at home

Bell explained that once they received the money from Illinois (DCEO), they already had tons of machines. They were old, but  running and could be of use to the community. He asked “Why don’t we donate these machines to people who need them?” Bell went into the community to find out which communities needed computers. Once he started to distribute the computers, they went fast. He then looked to local organizations that would be wiling to donate machines. These included: City of Champaign, Champaign Public library, State Farm, Parkland College, and others.

Today, Brian desperately needs LCD monitors, keyboards and mice!

Computer Technology Services

Bell explained that Parkland’s public computing center (PCC) is supported by the staff at Parkland’s IT department. The center is very clean and focused on putting people back to work and/or in college. Many of the computers have been donated to the PCC by Champaign Public Library. At many local institutions, computers have to be turned over every three years, and Bell’s lab has benefited from this phenomenon. For example, State Farm called Bell to tell him they had 450 computers to donate! He ended up taking 200 computers because of a lack of space and resources to service the machines.

The PCC has a classroom style approach coupled with one on one instruction. They have hired paid employees through the “Putting Illinois to Work” program. Workers help clients move into the future with knowledge of hardware, operating systems, and applications. Brian tells his students: “Bridge the gap, by catching people up to speed, and insist they keep that speed.” They address the challenges of trying to get back to work through learning. These challenges include: how to fill out an application online, edit the application through Adobe, etc. and then email back to an employer.

What have they learned?

Bell reviewed some of the lessons learned while running the computer lab over the past year. He said that people who are most affected by the digital divide are over 40 and unemployed. They don’t have a computer at home and never had one.

Young adults who use the PCC also have varying degrees of experience with computers and broadband technology. Bell talked about the example of Central & Centennial High Schools in Champaign, where he found that half of high school students are experts. They know “everything.” They are emailing, they have their own websites, downloading music, etc. The other half, who went to the same high school, have much lower levels of digital literacy. Bell explained that there is an incredible digital divide among youth in the area.

Bell asks his students whether or not they had a computer when they were in 4th grade. One person says yes, the other says no. “Access at Home at Early Age is Key.” He argued that we need to start putting technology in the hands of young people or we are going to keep falling behind.

What can we do about it?

In order to bridge the digital divide in Champaign-Urbana, Bell explained that it’s critical to continue to forge relationships with organizations and corporations who donate out of service machines. He said that the lab needs to stress the importance of catching up and staying caught up with technology. Bell believes that there should be a computer in every home, much like there used to be a phone in every home. But he also said that it’s important to create an interest in technology so people can understand how it can help them. He talked about the power of flash drives, portable apps, online apps where now you can use Office 2007 on the Internet for free, which just came out three weeks ago. These are all helpful developments in connecting communities with digital tools and skills that can help them get back to work or into school.

Current challenges

Bell concluded his presentation with a real world example of the digital divide, here in Champaign-Urbana, that probably exemplifies the ongoing need in other communities across the U.S. First, he showed an image of a PDF file that is writable, meaning that the user can fill out the form using a computer. And then he showed another PDF that was not machine-editable. He said that ALL employers need to make sure to provide machine-editable PDF files to make it easier for people to fill them out and return them online, particularly if an employer restricts applications to online-only submission.

Watch the video.

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Colin Rhinesmith is a PhD student, Information in Society Fellow, and Research Assistant with the Community Informatics Research Lab at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.