Community Technology Awards

RTPnet recognizes individuals, organizations and businesses that have made significant contribuitions to North Carolina communities in the area of information and computer technology with Community Technology Awards. RTPnet presented the first Community Technology Awards at the 2004 RTPnet Conference.

We invited the public to submit nominations in each category. Our panel of judges picked an exceptional group of winners who demonstrated a commitment to serving North Carolina through technology. The awards were presented at the 6th Annual RTPnet Conference.

INDIVIDUALS
Dan Brussee (left) Better Way Computing, Raleigh
Kamira Jones (left) NetCorps, Durham
ORGANIZATIONS Small
Strong Parental Involvement in Community Education (SPICE) Durham	No one present to receive the award
ORGANIZATIONS Large
WinstonNet, Inc. Winston-Salem Lynda Goff accepting (left) (the Winston-Salem judges abstained from voting in this category)
BUSINESS
NOAH Chapel Hill Allan Polak accepting (left)

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Here are excerpts from the winning nominations:

INDIVIDUALS

Dan Brussee, Better Way Computing, Raleigh

Dan Brussee has done an amazing job as the Software Engineer for Tech LinkUp, working many, many hours as a volunteer. The ideas for Tech LinkUp evolved through several stages over three years. During the winter of 2003-2004, Dan transformed the system, then called "CTC LinkUp," from a static database into the dynamic Web application that Tech LinkUp is today. He recommended features far beyond anything we could imagine, and he was able to build them into Tech LinkUp. For example, the old CTC LinkUp had a numeric code for geographic region. Dan implemented searching a zip-code range, where the user can specify search distance, as well as zip code. This feature made searching more effective within the Triangle area and it immediately made Tech LinkUp useful nationwide. Tech LinkUp is now a service, offered by RTPnet.

Kamira Jones, NetCorps, Durham

Kamira began her Digital Divide work as an AmeriCorps VISTA in 2000. She led a four-person Teaming for Technology (T4T) staff and revitalized the diminishing program by encouraging technology-savvy volunteers to get involved. Kamira’s outgoing, sincere personality endeared her to the volunteers and it was only a matter of time before these techies were asking their companies to donate surplus computer equipment to the program. Although Kamira’s tenure as a VISTA ended in 2001, she is still involved with T4T as an advisor, mentor and volunteer. In fact, a fair share of T4T’s success in recent years is due to Kamira’s work, but because Kamira hasn’t been involved with T4T in an official capacity, she’s never been recognized for the countless hours of work she continues to invest in making the program strong and successful. She is always behind the scenes, never looking for praise or recognition, but still diligent and passionate about bridging the Digital Divide.

ORGANIZATIONS

Strong Parental Involvement in Community Education (SPICE), Durham

Strong Parental Involvement in Community Education (SPICE) is the primary project of the Southern Anti-Racism Network (SARN). SARN launched the SPICE project in August 2001 with support from the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. SPICE is an organization of parents with children in Durham Public Schools. Parents came together to support efforts to close the achievement gap between African-American and white students in Durham Public Schools. SPICE has a two-prong mission to close the achievement (literacy) gap and the digital divide. The main program of SPICE is a family literacy class that provides home computers to families who successfully complete the classes. SARN teaches computer literacy classes to parents in the Cornwallis public housing community, Rochelle Manor, a Section 8 community in northern Durham, and classes will soon be taught at Liberty Street and the W.D. Hill Center. Parent graduates of the April 2002 class taught the second class and have taught all subsequent classes. Recently, the first SPICE “Youth Teacher” took the reins at Rochelle Manor. She is a 15-year old 10th grader at Southern High School and has proven to be as excellent a teacher as she was a student. SPICE has completed 10 classes since April 2002 for a total of 70 families who now have computers in their homes as of April 2005.

WinstonNet, Inc., Winston-Salem

WinstonNet, Inc. is a nonprofit community technology initiative with the goal of bridging the digital divide that currently exists in the Winston-Salem and Forsyth County communities. Striving to be a prototype for the nation, WinstonNet is employing cutting edge technology throughout Forsyth County to set the standard for ubiquitous computing for the nation. WinstonNet was incorporated in 2001 and operates as a partnership between many of the major academic, social, and corporate institutions in Winston-Salem. WinstonNet’s business model is built on using recycled computers and connecting them to a citywide network where they share central resources making it easier and more cost effective to maintain and support computers in the field. WinstonNet has built the city/county technology infrastructure to support and maintain effectively numerous technology centers across the county. In the past 18 months, 40 computer labs were established throughout the county; 18 WS City Parks and Recreation computer labs, 10 public library labs and 12 labs established by Winston-Salem State University in area churches and other underserved areas. WinstonNet supports 350+ computers and plans to expand this operation to 50 labs over the next 12 months.

BUSINESS

NOAH, Chapel Hill

While the goal of any business is to seek profits, it is equally the responsibility of business to give back to the community in which it operates. Such is the philosophy of Allan Polak, president of NOAH, a Chapel Hill-based IT solutions firm, and an active community volunteer. Each week Allan personally donates his expertise in the information technology field to non-profit organizations located in the Triangle. A typical Monday will find Allan performing general maintenance on the computer systems of The DAC, (Disabilities Awareness Council, a nonprofit organization which provides services to the disabled, while Wednesdays are devoted to Club Nova, a non-profit which specifically serves those with mental disabilities. Over the course of a month, he donates approximately 16 hours of his time to these organizations. In addition, Allan is a volunteer appointee of the Orange County Technology Advisory Committee, to which he donates approximately three hours per month. As NOAH grows as a business, Allan intends to make volunteering a greater part of the company.