City Departments
Mike McGinn, Mayor
7/22/2009 6:00:00 PM
David Keyes (206) 386-9759
D'Anne Mount (206) 233-8736
Community technology projects receive $250,000 in grants
Grants promote technology literacy, access and civic engagement
SEATTLE - Mayor Greg Nickels announced today that nineteen organizations will receive $250,000 in Technology Matching Funds from the Department of Information Technology. The money will support projects throughout the city to help close the digital divide.
Many Seattle residents struggling with the economic crisis need to build technology skills for employment. These grants will help develop jobs skills and teach people where to find health information and essential services online. Funds will also provide youth with positive alternatives to violence by teaching new media journalism skills and providing after-school homework help.
“Technology Matching Fund projects will provide crucial support to our most vulnerable neighbors at a time that it’s needed the most” said Mayor Greg Nickels. “These projects will bring technology training and access to more than 3,500 low income youth, immigrants and refugees, seniors and people with disabilities. Over half of the funds ($126,000) will help sustain jobs at these Seattle organizations and enable them to provide quality training for residents,” he said. The Citizen’s Telecommunications and Technology Advisory Board (CTTAB) recommended these digital inclusion projects to the Mayor. Grant recipients will match the city’s dollars with over $414,000 in community contributions, including volunteer labor, professional services and donated equipment and software.
“The success of today’s youth in the classroom and in the workforce is strongly connected to technology. All of our youth must be able to speak the universal language of technology and we must help seniors and displaced workers remain competitive. Through efforts such as this, we can provide that opportunity and further the city’s commitment to education and digital inclusion,” declared Councilmember Bruce Harrell.
Campana Quetzal is one of the organizations receiving a grant. The Padres Conectados project was awarded $17,000 to train parents as peer leaders and equip them with laptops for home visits to Latino parents. Parents will learn how to access online information about their children’s education. Laptops will also be used as a “portable classroom” to offer computer literacy trainings for parents in Spanish. To read more about all the 2009 recipients, visit http://seattle.gov/tech/tmf/projects2009.htm.
The Technology Matching Fund was established in 1997 to support the community’s efforts to close the digital divide and encourage the use of information technologies for civic engagement. The city named the matching fund in memory of Bill Wright, a Central District community leader who embodied the program’s goal of using technology tools to build strong neighborhoods. Since the program began, the city has contributed over $1,850,832 to 153 projects with community contributions totaling more than $3,963,000. The fund furthers the city’s commitment to education, inclusion, and race and social justice. For more information on the Bill Wright Technology Matching Fund, visit www.seattle.gov/tech.
Seattle’s Department of Information Technology provides technology services and policy planning for our customers, Seattle's citizens and City of Seattle departments and employees.
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