All That Philly Jazz

The Nobel Prize-winning author William Faulkner famously observed: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” At this weekend’s music hackathon, my team, All That Philly Jazz, will bring Philadelphia’s jazz legacy to the present.

The Philly Jazz App will map historic places and markers, murals and local venues to hear live jazz.

Looking beyond the hackathon, we will go back to the future and augment reality along South Street, Ridge Avenue and 52nd Street. Back in the day, those corridors were jumping with jazz clubs where legends like John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald and B.B. King hung out. I’m already fantasizing about the Fantasy Lounge, which was located across the street from the studios of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff’s Philadelphia International Records.

All That Philly Jazz is at the intersection of technology and art. The project can serve as a model for how art can be used to motivate underrepresented minorities to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). While jazz appeals to an older demographic, a project on, say, Philly’s or Brooklyn’s hip-hop legacy would resonate with young people who are disconnected from the innovation economy.

For more information, follow us on Twitter: @PhillyJazzApp.

International Jazz Day

Today is UNESCO’s International Jazz Day, a celebration of an American art form that has united people around the world.

Istanbul will host a daylong series of events, culminating in the International Jazz Day Global Concert, which will be streamed live on YouTube starting at 2:00 p.m. ET. The concert will feature an all-star lineup, including Herbie Hancock, George Duke, Ramsey Lewis, Eddie Palmieri, Esperanza Spalding, Al Jarreau, Dianne Reeves, Joss Stone and Terence Blanchard.

Closer to home, Philadelphia’s Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy will host a lunchtime concert in the City Hall Courtyard. The concert will feature the world premiere of the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia. The orchestra is under the artistic direction of trumpeter Terell Stafford.

In an interview with Philadelphia City Paper, Stafford said:

The first premise is bringing folks together. Then it’s about representing the musical legacy of Philadelphia on the highest level possible because there’s some incredible musicians here and some incredible musicians who come from here.

Stafford added:

Philadelphia is a very soulful, passionate city, and the music that comes from the city is the same. It has this unique attitude, and there’s an intellectual side and a spiritual side to it. There’s so much talent and so much music that comes this people and people need to hear it.

Hear, hear. At next month’s Music Hack Day, my team will develop a mobile app to tell the story of Philadelphia’s jazz legacy. We will map historic places such as the John Coltrane House, historic markers, the Walk of Fame and murals.

But it’s not just about the past. It’s also about hearing some live jazz at venues like the Clef Club, the Philadelphia Jazz Project, Chris’ Jazz Café and Ars Nova Workshop.

For more information, drop me a line or send me a tweet.

STEM is Everywhere

STEM is short for science, technology, engineering and math. In the nation’s revitalized manufacturing industry, math matters. And for a lot of job applicants, that’s problematic.

McClatchy reports that manufacturers are having trouble finding prospective employees with basic math skills:

But what troubles General Plastics executive Eric Hahn is that although the company considers only prospective workers who have a high school education, only one in 10 who take the test pass. And that’s not just bad luck at a single factory or in a single industry.

Jacey Wilkins, a spokeswoman for the Manufacturing Institute, added:

You could think that even for production, do you really need to know math? But the truth is, you do, because these jobs are incredibly complex and integrate multiple functions and systems.

The truth is, part of the problem is how math is taught. The focus on repetition (“drill and kill”) and teaching to the test kill students’ interest. Sam Houston, president and CEO of the North Carolina Science, Math and Technology Education Center, said the Common Core State Standards Initiative will help teachers connect math to real-world possibilities:

The Common Core should give everyone a better means to answer the question, “Why do I need to know this?”

Why indeed. That’s what most schools don’t teach. That’s also the problem that STEMeverywhere will help solve.

At last weekend’s AT&T EduTech Hackathon, my team developed a prototype for a mobile-friendly website where we will curate free resources for teachers to help them connect the dots for students. The team members are Morgan Bagshaw, Pamela Bey, Jessica Hammond, Cheo Walker and Michael Washington.

In the Teachers’ Lounge, we will break down information silos and curate a fully indexed database of resources, including Common Core instructional materials, lesson plans, and tutorial/how-to videos on inquiry-based learning. On the community message board, teachers will be able to collaborate, share strategies and effective instructional practices, and identify their needs.

The Students’ Space will promote year-round learning and engagement among our target audience of middle- and high-school students. With one click, students will have access to free resources on how to build video games and other cool things, internships and contests. Using our interactive map, they will be able to search for tech-filled fun where they live. Our STEM Rocks interactive videos will connect students to STEM superstars who can expose them to the possibilities.

STEMeverywhere made it to the second round where we will compete for the grand prize of $5,000, plus in-kind business services from local partners.

We will be judged on three criteria – concept, development progress and implementation opportunity. We have an opportunity to have an impact on increasing interest in STEM among underrepresented minorities and girls. But it will take a village – crowdsourcing – to fix the crisis in STEM education.

If you want to get involved, contact us.

National Women of Power Summit 2013

In celebration of Women’s History Month, the Black Women’s Roundtable will host its 2nd Annual National Women of Power Summit, “Amplifying the Voices of Women and Girls in the Digital Age.”

The summit will bring together a diverse group of women leaders and emerging leaders from across the country. On Day One, they will make the rounds of Capitol Hill and meet with members of Congress. Melanie L. Campbell, convener of the Black Women’s Roundtable and president of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, said:

We’re coming together in the nation’s capitol to leverage our vote. In 2012, black women were the highest vote for President Obama and the margin of victory for many in the U.S. Congress. We want to tell our elected officials what we want, which includes ending the sequestration now and becoming a functional government working in the interest of the people.

On Day Two at the Faith and Social Justice Prayer Breakfast, I will receive the BWR Social Innovation Award.

It is an incredible honor to be recognized before a room full of fierce women. I hope you will be able to join us for a power-packed celebration of difference-makers and tree-shakers.

To register, go here. For more information, call (202) 659-4929.

Lady Hackers Kick off Women’s History Month

It’s called the City of Brotherly Love (and Sisterly Affection) but last weekend’s Lady Hacks was for women only.

Philadelphia’s first women-only hackathon attracted 65 hackers. Tristen Hightower, an organizer of the event, said:

The point of this event is to try new things. You’re already successful. You’re here.

And while there, the ladies worked on a wide range of projects, including Hacking the Gender Gap, redesigning the website of Girls Rock Philly to make it more teen-oriented, and developing a game to motivate girls to get interested in technology.

My team worked on a project that began at TechCamp Philadelphia, namely, how to motivate underrepresented minorities and girls to pursue STEM fields. STEM is short for science, technology, engineering and math.

My team members are Elise D, Jennifer Fazler, Jessica Hammond and Eleni Miltsakaki. Our mentor is Pamela Bey, a WordPress developer.

The problem we addressed was the lack of a central, user-friendly website for teachers, students and parents to find free resources and tools that would expand and enhance the learning process. Right now, STEM information is buried in silos. Our solution, STEMeverywhere, will fix that.

We will curate resources for students, parents, teachers, guidance counselors and community members. The one-stop shop will feature a Teachers’ Lounge where we will aggregate content-specific instructional materials that have been peer-reviewed. We will include a real-time, fully indexed library that will be searchable by keyword.

The Students’ Hangout will promote year-round learning and engagement for our target audience of 13-to-17-year-olds. With one click, students will have access to information about internships and mentorships, learning games, contests and challenges, and online learning opportunities.

STEMeverywhere will produce interactive videos to connect students with STEM professionals who can expose them to the possibilities. We will post engaging user-generated YouTube videos tagged “STEM Rocks” or “STEMRocks.”

We will also curate offline activities such as Web Slam!, Bootstrap,Operation Eve, Black Girls Code and Temple University’s Urban Apps and Maps.

Women hackers’ work is never done. To join us, send an email. For updates, follow us on Twitter: @STEMeverywhere.