The digital book Tarikna is an amazing journey for readers and for its 14 youth authors from Eritrea, Somalia and Ethiopia.  Tarikna was produced through a combined English literacy and digital media program by the YTech Program at the Metrocenter YMCA of Seattle with the Seattle Public Library and Horn of Africa Services. For the 14 exceptional participants, the first parts of their journeys are the stories they share in Tarikna of leaving their home [...]

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Peter Gishuru, Yohannes Beshi and ACPNW intern Ida Goitem with students at the lab. Peter Gishuru, the President and CEO of the African Chamber of Commerce of the Pacific Northwest (ACCPNW), was talking with a recent immigrant from Kenya, who complained of not knowing how to operate a computer. “I do not even have email,” he said. Unable to find employment, this man wanted to volunteer at a local senior center, even though manning the [...]

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Low Income Housing Institute’s Computer Technology and Job Search Training program is on the move. With support this year from the Technology Matching Fund and the Solid Ground MLK AmeriCorps/VISTA program, LIHI has expanded this project from a small pilot to a growing program serving residents at nine housing sites. The program offers homeless, formerly homeless and low-income individuals opportunities to increase their employability and career advancement options through a highly individualized computer technology and [...]

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Tech Matching Fund awards up to $20,000 in matching funds to community projects which increase resident access to information technology, increase literacy in using technology, and/or apply technology to foster civic engagement and community building. ...

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The Ethiopian Community in Seattle (ECS) serves all persons of Ethiopian origin by providing help to those in need, and empowers them to live productive lives. With support from the Technology Matching Fund last year, the organization revitalized their computer lab. When asked to reflect on the impact of the grant, Computer Center Coordinator Tefera Gulelat shared these comments: What were the greatest successes of your project? “The ECS computer center has become an invaluable resource for large number of low income people in their quest to learn new technology and to better themselves. They surf the internet for job search, tutorial services, homework help, research their class projects and engaging their friends through social media. It is really heartening to see a good number of senior citizens frequenting our facility.” What were your most difficult challenges? “We were challenged in several fronts when we tried to procure our native Amharic language word processor. The lack of standards in their encoding (ASCII or Unicode) scheme, compatibility with various operating systems and the varying cost made it harder for us to choose among several competing vendors.

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City grants to help your community with technology We are offering workshops and now accepting applications from community and neighborhood groups for the 2013 Technology Matching Fund.  Applications are due March 4.  Attend a workshop and learn more about the program and how to apply for a grant. First-time applicants are encouraged to attend. These [...]

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Visit Brainstorm.Seattle.gov to read our latest issue of Brainstorm.  Featured article is Jack Straw Offering Hands-on English Language Training.  There are several community events of interest in January: Joint Technology Matching Fund and Neighborhood Matching Fund Workshop, January 17, 6:00 to 7:30 at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center Ask the Mayor, January 23,

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Seattle World School student reads poetry to practice English.  Photo by Nancy Peterfreund. Jack Straw Productions, a multidisciplinary audio arts center in the University District, has been providing hands-on language and technology training to Vietnamese, Spanish and Amharic speaking youth at the Seattle World School, a public school for newcomers to the United States. With support from the Technology Matching Fund in 2011, Jack Straw implemented a new writing, performance, and technology project with Seattle [...]

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Seattle’s Tony Perez, Office of Cable Communications director, serves on the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Committee for Diversity in the Digital Age. Tony shared with us some information from the Diversity Committee’s October 3, 2012 meeting. FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel commented on the importance of developing policies to increase women and minority representation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) jobs. According to the Commissioner, women currently occupy less than 25% and Hispanic/Latino and African Americans [...]

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The Downtown Emergency Service Center (DESC) helps chronically homeless adults gain the skills they need in order to obtain and maintain employment, providing them with economic well-being, productivity and self-accomplishment. Case managers and volunteers work with each client to address issues holding them back, like chronic homelessness, no high school diploma, mental illness, disability, and/or chemical dependency. DESC also works with employers within the community, such as Metropolitan Improvement District and Princess Tours, who are [...]

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