The National Urban Technology Center and the Bronx Community Technology Centers Network
Patricia Bransford · 2001
The National Urban Technology Center (1) (Urban Tech) is a 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit company established to provide access to computer literacy and competency training to youth and families in inner city communities. ,Over the last six (6) years it has become a major after school activity for families in over 140 communities across the country. Urban Tech is honored to be a partner in the Bronx Community Technology Centers Network (2) (Bronx CTCN)installing high tech centers, teacher training, community-focused training materials and technical assistance to implementation teams. Funded by the Department of Education the Bronx CTCN initiative has the potential of significantly improving computer competency among Bronx youth and their parents, strengthening academic performance, and becoming more competitive for 21st century jobs. Over the three year funding period of this grant, ten Community Technology Centers (CTC) are scheduled to be established. Urban Tech's strategy is to use the tools of technology and telecommunications to increase the capacity of community-based organizations so that these organizations can better serve the needs of their communities. In the Bronx, Urban Tech has acted as a facilitator for community planning to provide an awareness of the benefits of technology for community development, develop partnerships for successful implementation of the BCTCN program, and mobilize the community to effect change around this important initiative. To create a local Community Technology Center (CTC) an initial three-hour workshop is held involving community residents and leaders representing all parts of the community (religious, government, educational, and business). Everyone is asked to identify available resources to implement the program, to examine the issues and obstacles to successful implementation, and to form a Board of Advisors, who have the responsibility for overseeing the implementation of their CTC and tracking the outcomes of the program against the goals set by the planning group. After the community has developed its strategy and plans for implementing their CTC as part of the broader Bronx CTCN, Urban Tech installs the computer centers and begins the important work of training CTC instructors and teachers. The objective of this step is to transfer skills and empower the community quickly and with minimal cost. All components of the center (one trainer workstation, five student workstations and printer, all networked and ready to plug into the Internet) are delivered pre-configured, pre-loaded with the latest Windows operating system and application software, and pre-tested so the CTC is set up for training. The community organization supplies the space, wired for communications. After the pre-installed, pre-tested center is shipped to each site, Urban Tech completes the installation of the center in approximately three hours. The entire process from community planning to installation can be completed in four to six weeks unless there are extenuating circumstances (e.g. installation of high-speed lines, construction delays) at the site. At each of the existing CTC sites, the schools and community based organizations have expanded the number of available computer stations to between twelve and twenty. Once the centers are installed, Urban Tech conducts a 5-day Teacher Training Workshop for individuals who are selected to be instructors. In addition to extensive technical material, the workshops include methods for demystifying technology and building confidence in students. Transferring skills and know-how in this step are important to community ownership and the long-term sustainability of the CTC. Each instructor in the workshop is given a toolkit with daily lesson plans, power point presentation slides and scripts, student exercises and quizzes to assure consistent quality of training. Within days after the installation of the Center, these individuals are ready to begin training in the community. …