CENTER START-UP MANUAL

Transcription

1 COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY CENTERS NETWORK CENTER START-UP MANUAL With Support From: Nationa Science Foundation U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Deveopment Surdna Foundation

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3 Community Technoogy Centers Network Center Start-Up Manua

4 1997, 2000 by Education Deveopment Center. 2002, 2003 by Community Technoogy Centers Network (CTCNet) A rights reserved. This manua was deveoped with support from the Nationa Science Foundation and U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Deveopment. A revised 2002 edition was prepared with support of the Surdna Foundation. However, the opinions expressed herein do not necessariy refect the positions or poicies of those agencies or organizations, and no officia endorsement shoud be inferred. Printing of this 2003 edition was donated by AOL Time Warner. This manua is avaiabe on the Web at Printed copies may be ordered for $25, incuding shipping fees. Checks shoud be made payabe to CTCNet and maied to: Community Technoogy Centers Network (CTCNet) 372 Broadway Street Cambridge, Massachusetts Editor / principa author: Antonia Stone. Revised/updated 2003 edition editor: Karen Zgoda Manua design by Jonathan Bruce Cover design by Tom Sobczynski Cover photograph by Peter Mier CTCNet Staff Executive Director: Karen Chander, [email protected] Managing Director: Stephen Ronan, [email protected] Director of Programs and Poicy: John Zotner, [email protected] Project Coordinators: Benjamin Cain, [email protected] Een Caffrey Garza, [email protected] Hoy Harrie, [email protected] Trang Le, [email protected] Marissa Martin, [email protected] Anne Nevie Davis, [email protected] Johanna Pabst, [email protected] Eiott Wiiams, [email protected] Office Manager Wendy Peveri-Conti AmeriCorps*VISTA Member Dan Schackman, [email protected] Ohio CCCN Coordinator: Angea Stuber, [email protected] New technoogies scout: Phi Shapiro, [email protected] Founder: Antonia Stone CTCNet, 372 Broadway, Cambridge, MA (617)

5 Center Start-Up: Timeine and Process Preface What is Community Technoogy Centers' Network (CTCNet)? CTCNet supports community technoogy centers so that they may better serve their constituencies. CTCNet offer resources to enhance each affiiated center s capacity to provide technoogy access and education to its community. CTCNet activey encourages onine and in-person communication among organizations and individuas working to expand access to technoogy. CTCNet affiiate members are independent community service, socia action, and/or aternative education agencies or programs. A share a commitment to providing technoogy toos for those who otherwise might ack access to them, aong with a wiingness to be active in the CTCNet community, open to sharing expertise, success, faiure, and resources. CTCNet is an expansion of the Paying To Win Network, which itsef was an outgrowth of Paying To Win's Harem Community Computing Center. That Center, estabished in 1983, was the first pubic access computer faciity in the country to be ocated in a owincome neighborhood. Thus, CTCNet brings to the deveopment of this manua 20 years experience in starting, operating, supporting, and sustaining neighborhood technoogy access programs. For more information about CTCNet, pease visit the Web site at Evoution of this manua Eary in 1996, CTCNet was asked to assist Georgetown University in preparing a manua for the US Department of Housing and Urban Deveopment's Neighborhood Networks initiative. In agreeing to work with Georgetown, and recognizing that much of the content woud be coming directy from its affiiate members, CTCNet retained the i

6 Center Start-Up Manua right to amend or extract text and information that coud contribute to its own manua. Georgetown was extremey cooperative and even provided CTCNet with copies of the disks containing the text of the HUD pubication with fu permission to use as it saw fit. Accordingy, a first draft of this manua was made and distributed to a CTCNet affiiates at the June '96 A-Affiiates Conference. Affiiates were asked specificay to critique the content, the sequence, and to identify missing or sighted areas as we as those that coud be shortened or omitted. Most importanty, they were encouraged to offer anecdota support from their own experience so that this fina version can refect the broadest expertise possibe. The wiingness to share experience is the cornerstone of CTCNet, and this manua has been enriched by that wiingness on the part of CTCNet affiiate members and potentia affiiates, so many of whom have given so generousy of their time - to read and reread, critique and offer constructive feedback, suppy documentation, and, most importanty, share their hard-won successes and even some of their mistakes so that others may find a cearer and easier path. CTCNet and EDC staff, too, have invested time and energy in the preparation and countess revisions of this materia. Karen Zgoda took the ead on editing and revising the 2002 edition. To each of them, my persona thanks, and, in particuar, to Stephen Ronan without whom it simpy woud not have happened. Dedication This manua is dedicated to a Community Technoogy Centers, past, present, and future, and to the peope who make them happen and keep them open to serve those who otherwise woud have itte or no opportunity to engage the power of technoogy in service of their own ife and earning goas. Antonia Stone Founder, CTCNet ii

7 Tabe of Contents Preface How to Use This Manua... 1 Chapter One: Timeine and Process...3 Chapter Two: Mapping Community Resources Chapter Three: Determining Program Focus Chapter Four: Staffing Chapter Five: Software Seection and Criteria Chapter Six: Space, Hardware, and Security Chapter Seven: Scheduing, Outreach, and Sef-Evauation Chapter Eight: Budgeting, Funding and Sustainabiity Chapter Nine: Preparing a Business Pan

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9 Center Start-Up: Timeine and Process How to Use This Manua Read It Regardess of the needs you have to address, the state of your pans or your operation, you' want to have an idea of what this manua addresses and where you can go for the information you need when you need it. So, browse through the entire manua. You' see that each chapter separator contains a detaied guide to that specific chapter. In genera, you' see that each chapter addresses specific issues, that there is a section reporting experience of affiiates reevant to these issues, and, in many cases, an appendix of potentiay usefu materias and/or resources. In browsing the manua, you' aso note that there is ots of white space. The manua has been formatted to provide ampe room for your notes and comments. Use the Sections as They Become Appicabe to Your Needs Not everyone is in the same pace at the same time. Whie the sequence of the manua is designed for start-up centers, there is penty of materia that is appicabe to centers aready in some stage of operation. If you are in a funding crunch, Chapters 8 & 9 (Funding the CTC, and How to Prepare a Business Pan) may be hepfu. If you're thinking of expanding your software ibrary, Chapter 5 may give you some insights. If you need to repace or take on additiona staff, you might want to ook carefuy at parts of Chapter 4, and so on. It is our intention that this manua may outive your start-up phase, producing guideines for addressing operationa issues as they arise. Pease note that you are wecome to photocopy part or a of the manua in order to share materia with coeagues for non-commercia purposes. 1

10 Center Start-Up Manua Te CTCNet About Your Experience Using the Manua The success of this manua in addressing the mutipicity of issues confronting the vast variety of CTCs depends overwhemingy on its abiity to represent the actua experiences of centers. Enarging on the experience aready contained can ony enrich the content and substantiay assist centers that may be using this manua in the future. Communication is key. So et CTCNet know what is usefu, what is not, what you'd ike to see in future editions, and most importanty, what your own experience has been. 2

11 1 c h a p t e r Timeine and Process Why is Community Technoogy Needed (CTC)?... 3 What is a Community Technoogy Center (CTC)?... 5 How is a CTC Created?...6 How Long Wi it Take to Create a CTC?...6 How Shoud a CTC Steering Committee Be Formed?... 8 What Wi the Governance Structure of a CTC Look Like? Documentation Additiona Resources... 14

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13 Timeine and Process 1 c h a p t e r Timeine and Process "In the word today you have to have some computer experience and I sti didn't know a thing about computers. But what coud I do? I had no money for computer casses or transportation to get them and I certainy didn't have money to buy a computer." Nancy Farrow, as submitted by Linda Berno Rya Schoo Why is Community Technoogy Needed? The community technoogy movement began as a grassroots, community response to provide access to technoogy resources where inequities existed. Community technoogy centers, or CTCs, aow ow-cost or free access to a sorts of computing technoogies in an environment supportive of earning. Those abe to harness and appy the power of technoogy have access to a wide variety of opportunities that span education, empoyment, arts & media, and communication. Community technoogy heps ensure that peope are not deprived of such opportunities due to a ack of persona resources whie at the same time fostering community deveopment and connectedness. An Annie E. Casey Foundation report found that: CTCs are popuar with chidren, youth, and aduts. Both the peope who come to earn about computers and the staff who run CTCs recognize that computer proficiency is associated with success in schoo and in the workpace. Mastering this compex, modern too is a powerfu, affirmative experience -- one that offers chaenge as we as hope. CTCs address a wide variety of needs and interests, both community and individua. These incude becoming iterate, earning business computer skis, practicing math skis, creating newsetters and brochures, paying games, performing research onine, assembing a computer, and administering a computer network. Often community members create onine information systems about their neighborhoods, cutures, or famiies. They experience the computer as a powerfu and versatie too. ("Computer and Com- 3

14 Center Start-Up Manua munications Use in Low-Income Communities: Modes for the Neighborhood Transformation and Famiy Deveopment Initiative," avaiabe at CTCs can make a cear statement about the importance of embracing diversity by thinking and panning for a members of the community. This is especiay true for those organizations providing access to and training on technoogies that faciitate participation and independence for peope with disabiities. CTCs have an opportunity to pay an infuentia roe in increasing access within their organizations and communities. A peope benefit from an environment in which it is easier and safer to move and function. Disabiity is a universay common occurrence and characteristic of the human condition. The US Census Bureau states that in the United States there are 54 miion peope with disabiities or neary one in five peope with a disabiity. Peope with disabiities are the nation s argest minority. (Nationa Organization on Disabiity. Cosing the Gap Expanding the Participation of American with Disabiities (N.O.D./ Harris Survey of Americans with Disabiities A Summary). A disabiity is a condition caused by an accident, trauma, genetics or disease, which can affect or imit a person s abiity. A disabiity can affect or imit a person s mobiity, hearing, breathing, vision, speech or menta function. A disabiity can be visibe, such as a spina cord injury necessitating wheechair use, or invisibe, such as diabetes, heart disease, epiepsy, hearing oss, menta retardation or a earning disabiity (Kaies, J.I. & Jones, D, Guide to Panning Accessibe Meetings, Independent Living Research Utiization (ILRU) Research and Training Center on Independent Living at TIRR, Houston, 1993.) Neary everyone has been affected by disabiity whether by contact with a famiy member or through persona experience. There is an 80 percent chance that most peope wi experience a significant temporary or permanent disabiity at some point in their ives. The incidence of disabiity is highest in communities of coor, poor and rura communities. 67% of a aduts with disabiities are unempoyed. Disabiity (seen or unseen) is a part of every community and it is critica that everyone move toward a more accessibe environment. Community technoogy has become a too of both individua and community empowerment. The technoogy we have today enabes peope to take charge of their own ives, aowing a richer experience because it does not channe what one is doing. Rather, technoogy aows for greater sef-expression, sef-directed earning, and opens up new pathways for community interaction. New technoogy wi continue to deveop in response to and in anticipation of our needs, and our communities have a responsibiity 4

15 Timeine and Process to ensure that these technoogies are accessibe to a community members. Hence, CTCs are a vita, community-buiding resource, providing opportunities for continuing technoogy iteracy amidst a backdrop of arger societa inequities. What is a Community Technoogy Center (CTC)? Describing the roe of CTCs, Seatte City Panner, David Keyes stated: CTCs are stepping-stones to opportunity, equaity and civic participation for youth, senior citizens, minorities, ow-income peope and new residents. These centers aso serve as foca points for job ski deveopment, ifeong earning and community buiding. CTCs may be stages for cutura activity, eectronic hearings, pubic events and conferencing. CTCs are often part of arger programs and can be found in community centers, pubic faciities, non-profit agencies and schoos, housing communities, and ibraries. CTCs provide a range of services from genera access to advanced training. They usuay incude access to computers and the Internet and may be inked to other community network technoogy services such as web or emai hosting. CTCs use a range of information technoogies and appications to do their work. In essence, a CTC is a community service, socia action, and/or educationa faciity where computers and reated communications technoogies are avaiabe to peope who otherwise might have itte or no opportunity to use or earn to use these technoogies. A CTC may be an independent agency dedicated to this mission, or it may be a program within a nonprofit organization. Each CTC has its own unique quaities, yet a share a commitment to technoogy access and a beief that a CTC can be a means for participants to increase their sef-sufficiency. A successfu CTC offers opportunities to improve education eves, gain job-reated skis, and buid persona and community capacity. It can offer a pace where participants gather together and ink with the entire community. An important criterion for success wi be the degree to which the CTC becomes an integra part of its community. Participants can and shoud take part in the panning process and have a rea roe in directing and sustaining center operations. 5

16 Center Start-Up Manua How is a CTC Created? The start-up process for a CTC generay moves through the foowing steps: 1. Form a CTC Steering Committee to serve as the governing body for the CTC or as an advisory committee to the agency's existing governance structure. 2. Engage in a process of community mapping to identify interests and needs of prospective participants. This process shoud aso identify assets and strengths avaiabe through community enterprises and community members themseves. 3. Form partnerships and deveop commitments for assistance from members of the community (e.g., space, vounteers, funding, equipment & furnishings, etc.). 4. Research community technoogy needs. Structure program offerings in response to identified needs and interests (e.g., adut education, afterschoo sessions, job preparation, eder services, famiy and pre-schoo programs). 5. Conduct a piot program to test the panned programming structure and to further refine concusions reating to community interest and need. 6. Consider and pan for the operationa needs of the CTC (e.g., space, hardware, software, personne, and resuting financia requirements). 7. Deveop a business pan identifying the CTC's operationa and financia projections so interested parties and funders can buy into the effort. 8. Engage in whatever additiona fund-raising, space and equipment acquisition, staff and vounteer recruitment is necessary to make the pan operationa. Note -- Do not pan to start fu operations unti the Steering Committee is satisfied that the CTC has sufficient backing to stay in operation for at east 12 months. How Long Wi it Take to Create a CTC? The time required to create a CTC depends upon many variabes, such as staff, computers, participants, space, and avaiabe funds for operations. For exampe, a CTC can be estabished within a short time if a supervisor, hardware, and space is readiy avaiabe. In genera, however, it is ikey to take at east a year to estabish a CTC. This timeframe 6

17 Timeine and Process assumes that Steering Committee members have constraints upon their time, such as fu-time jobs and famiies, which means that the time given to the CTC wi be imited. The foowing is a suggested timeine for the creation of a CTC, beginning with the decision to proceed: Months 1-4 Form the CTC Steering Committee (see beow). Conduct the first meeting of the Steering Committee; estabish subcommittees of the Steering Committee. Institute community mapping of neighborhood institutions (see Chapter 2). Research the creation and estabishment process of other CTCs in your oca region. Identify agencies to partner with. Conduct the second meeting of the Steering Committee, incuding new members identified through community mapping. Gather in-depth information regarding intended constituency needs and assets (see Chapter 2). Formaize Steering Committee membership to refect constituency needs, assets, and information obtained in community mapping process. Determine governance structure for the CTC and, if necessary, initiate process for obtaining non-profit status. Design a fund-raising pan (see Chapter 8). Months 5-8 Hod Steering Committee meetings once a month. Determine the programmatic focus(es) of the CTC to refect identified needs and interests of the community (see Chapter 3). Buid partnerships with neighborhood institutions. Deveop a eements of a business pan (see Chapter 9). Impement the fund-raising pan. Design a strategy for ongoing operations and conduct a piot program. Acquire physica space for the CTC. 7

18 Center Start-Up Manua Months 9-12 Hire a professiona to run the CTC (see Chapter 4). Identify software programs for the program needs of the residents (see Chapter 5). Acquire computers and software (see Chapters 5 and 6). Deveop a memorandum of understanding for each partnership, carifying partner roes and responsibiities. Prepare and move into space. Wecome the assistance of vounteers with initia orientation sessions (see Chapter 4). Conduct piot program and finaize strategy for ongoing operations. Pan a grand opening event. Be sure to conduct outreach to the oca media for coverage of this event (see Chapter 7). Open the CTC. How Shoud a CTC Steering Committee Be Formed? One of the most important tasks that the CTC wi undertake is assembing the Steering Committee. Assembing the Steering Committee is important because the CTC organizer rarey has a the experience needed to estabish a CTC. The CTC organizer can marsha the expertise needed by recruiting and seecting peope who possess the necessary skis and experience to deveop and grow a CTC. Therefore, at a minimum, the Steering Committee shoud consist of: CTC organizer Representatives from the proposed CTC constituency Representatives of the oca business community Representatives from the educationa community One or more professionas The number of members of the Steering Committee is a function of the CTC needs. As 8

19 Timeine and Process key neighborhood institutions, as defined in Chapter 2, are identified, their representatives may be added to the Steering Committee. This section wi discuss the roes and basic tasks of each Steering Committee member. CTC organizer This is the prime mover/organizer whose idea it is to estabish a CTC - the agency head or an empoyee, a community activist, a teacher, an owner/manager of property. The organizer pus the pieces together and makes, or deegates, key decisions about how to make the CTC operationa. It may be that the CTC organizer becomes the Center Director, or, when a Center Director is hired, deegates the buk of the operationa decisions to the Director. In the atter case, the reationship between the organizer and the Center Director becomes coegia, simiar to that between a CEO and the Board Chairperson (see the Staffing section of Chapter 4). Community representatives The CTC is being designed to serve residents of the immediate and/or the surrounding community. Residents must active participants on the Steering Committee from the beginning. Tenant organizations, neighborhood associations, oca reigious institutions, community service agencies, PTAs, etc. are good sources for community representatives. In addition, someone with expertise in meeting the technoogy needs of peope with disabiities and functiona imitations (for exampe, someone from an ATA Assisitve Technoogy Resource Center) shoud be invoved. Community representatives serve as the iaison with the intended CTC participants. They pubicize the deveopment of the CTC in and for the community, and their experience serves to inform the Steering Committee of the needs, interests, and assets present in the community. Business community representative Representatives from the oca business community can bring specia skis, expertise, and possiby other business support to CTC deveopment. For exampe, a oca technoogy company representative may be abe to offer knowedge about computer hardware and software; a corporate representative from a human resources company may offer expertise in staff deveopment and training; and an empoyment services representative coud hep with job preparation and pacement. Such foks are typicay we-connected to other business eaders in 9

20 Center Start-Up Manua the community and can offer feedback on oca commerce needs. Consider connecting with area business associations and oca Chambers of Commerce. Professionas The CTC wi need a variety of professiona advice and/or service at various stages of its deveopment. For exampe, an accountant is needed to set up the accounting system. Tracking and reporting of income and expenses is important for severa reasons. First, if federa funds are being used to start the CTC, the CTC may have to have an independent accountant certify that the costs of the project were what the CTC said they were. This certification wi be difficut and costy without an accounting system in pace that generates reguar income and expense reports. Second, the accounting system wi assist the organization in keeping within its budget. Third, funders wi want to see the CTC s track record. The records generated by the accounting system are an important piece of the track record. This accounting system shoud be computerized and the staff must receive training in its use. The CTC shoud consider obtaining the services of an attorney to assist in the estabishment of the CTC. The kinds of activities for which a awyer may be needed incude: estabishing the CTC as a nonprofit corporation under state and federa aw; entering into subcontracts or partnerships; reviewing eases and/or obtaining variances from the oca panning body as necessary for use of the proposed space as a CTC; and reviewing any insurance poicies. A marketing/pubic reations professiona can aso provide a vauabe service to the CTC in the creation of a marketing and community outreach pan, and as an advisor on the issue of deveoping a strategy for the ong-term future of the CTC. These professionas have the foowing expertise: abiity to write press reeases and pace them in newspapers; experience writing grant proposas; and access to oca media organizations such as teevision, radio and cabe stations. Marketing/ pubic reations professionas may incude a pubic reations company executive, a pubic reations speciaist from a oca corporation, or a professor of pubic reations. 10

21 Timeine and Process Representative of the educationa community Representatives from the educationa community (oca schoos and their PTA's, coeges, and universities, ibraries, museums, and adut education programs) wi be vauabe members of the Steering Committee. Educators not ony wi know what the schoo system offers but aso may provide entry to the other systems as we. The educationa community aso may be a vauabe source of vounteer instructors, professiona deveopment opportunities, education programs, and so forth. Other members After severa months, the Steering committee may discover a need for adding new members. For exampe, peope with knowedge of equipment acquisition, fundraising, and hiring may be vauabe. In addition, as neighborhood institutions with resources that the CTC can tap into are identified by the Steering Committee (see Chapter 2), representatives of these potentia partners shoud be added. What Wi CTC Governance Structure Look Like? One of the first issues the Steering Committee must address is that of governance. Committee members must agree upon a framework under which the CTC wi operate and they must specify the nature of the decisions that are to be the responsibiity of the different components of that framework. There are mutipe options. The most ikey incude: Governance by an existing non-profit agency. If the CTC is to be an addition to offerings of an existing service agency, no separate governance structure may be needed. On the other hand, it is strongy recommended that the agency estabish a sub-committee of its existing board or a separate advisory group, simiar in membership to that recommended for the Steering Committee, to assist the Center director in handing issues pecuiar to CTC operation. Such issues might incude outreach and program promotion, hardware and software donations, technoogy-skied vounteers, resource identification, and fund-raising opportunities. Governance by the community. Here, the Steering Committee deveops organizationa documents (such as artices of incorporation, byaws, a mission statement) that are required for the estabishment of a nonprofit entity that is tax-exempt according to section 501(c)(3) of the Interna Revenue Code. This entity woud then be governed by an eected board of 11

22 Center Start-Up Manua directors whose primary responsibiities woud be to make sure that the CTC: n n n is cear about its purpose; has enough money; and, does what it is supposed to do. An aternative to aunching a new non-profit corporation or simiar entity is for the Steering Committee to seek a coaboration with an existing nonprofit that is wiing to serve as fisca agent. Having a fisca agent buys time for the Steering Committee to proceed with panning and operationaizing the CTC before becoming bogged down in the technicaities of setting up a forma governance structure of its own. The disadvantage is that the fisca agent charges a fee to cover the expenses incurred, usuay between 5% and 15% of the gross revenues earned by the CTC. Governance by the property owner or manager. If a property owner or manager is the primary catayst for the creation of the CTC and/or providing a majority of the financing, he or she wi make the decision as to whether the CTC wi be wi be under the management contro of the forprofit enterprise or independenty run under the auspices of a non-profit organization, which might either be one that is estabished specificay for this purpose or, perhaps, an existing nonprofit that provides other services to residents. In making this decision, the owner/manager must recognize that for-profit entitities sedom quaify for donations or grants that are taxdeductibe for the donor. Property owners often find that governance by a non-profit organization heps ensure stronger ties to the community, increasing the program's ikeihood of success. Whether the Steering Committee of the CTC is constituted as a Board of Directors or as an Advisory Board, it shoud meet on a reguar basis. It shoud consist of between 5 and 15 peope to aow for ordery meetings and constructive work to be performed. Subcommittees shoud be constituted to aow incusion of non-members. The Board/ Committee's major responsibiities, both in the organization and impementation phases, are poicy deveopment, fisca oversight, and fund-raising. Its major CTC contact is the Center Director. 12

23 Timeine and Process Documentation The process described in this chapter shoud resut in the production of certain items that wi be necessary in formuating a business pan (see Chapter 9) and assist in the day to day operation of the center: a ist of Steering Committee members with their affiiations, addresses, phone numbers and emai addresses; minutes of a Steering Committee meetings; a timeine for opening the CTC together with a preiminary ist of tasks to be addressed and the designation of those responsibe for foow through (this timeine wi be added to and made more detaied as pans for the CTC progress); and a description of the proposed governance structure for the CTC, aong with any documents required for non-profit status appication (shoud that be the determined governance structure). 13

24 Center Start-Up Manua Additiona Resources Board Cafe BoardSource - Buiding Effective fective Nonprofit Boards bridges.org - Guides to Running a CTC Computers In Our Future Tookit - CTC StartUp Checkist Deveoping Your Strategic Pan Free Compete Tookit for Boards Greater Boston Broadband Network Poitics of Pubic Access Cabe and the Community Technoogy Movement; Sponsored by the CTC Vista Project and the Coege of Pubic and Community Service at UMass-Boston, avaiabe as video on demand Interna Revenue Service Charities & Non-Profits Neighborhood Networks Lessons Learned in Starting and Running a Neighborhood Networks Center - June Sampe of a Board of Directors Committee Work Pan 14

25 Timeine and Process Starting and Understanding Your Nonprofit Tweve Guideines for Making the Net Work for Organisations U.S. Department of Education Too oo Kit for Bridging the Digita Divide 15

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27 2c h a p t e r Mapping Community Resources Introduction Who Wi Participate? What Are Their Interests? How Do You Approach Information Sources? Locating the Needed Information Identifying Loca Institutiona Resources What Shoud the Steering Committee Do? Community Partnerships That Have Worked for CTCNet Affiiates...23 Additiona Resources Exhibit 2-1: Community Partnership Interview Scenario Exhibit 2-2: CTC Resource Worksheet Exhibit 2-3: Putting the Community into Community Technoogy...35 Exhibit 2-4: Partnerships with Loca Institutions...37

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29 2 c h a p t e r Mapping Community Resources Mapping Community Resources "The success of the Cyber Maden Center is reay two stories. It's the story of peope ike Sophia, Mary-Ann, and countess others who are no onger disenfranchised, but are part of the word of technoogy that is redefining every facet of their ives. The second story is about community eaders coming together in a partnership at the grassroots eve to create a new community resource, one that truy bridges the gap in the digita divide." Tony Abate, as submitted by George Moriarty, Executive Director of the Career Pace Community Technoogy Access Coaition, Cyber Maden Square emai [email protected] Introduction The Steering Committee must have as much information about the community as possibe before attempting to determine the nature of the program to be offered at the CTC. The success of that program wi depend in arge part on how we it compements existing programs and addresses interests and needs currenty unmet within the community. Ideay a CTC wi be created in response to an unmet community need. Inevitaby, the CTC wi be judged within the community according to how we it understands and refects community priorities, even though the community may not be openy articuate about those priorities. Where the CTC is to be an independent program, the Steering Committee wi need information about the proposed participant popuation as we as about community programs and resources. When an agency is estabishing a CTC to broaden or enarge an existing service program, the participants demographics and interests may be known, but the process of identifying community resources and potentia partnerships specificay reevant to the CTC is sti a worthwhie endeavor. This chapter outines strategies that can be used to obtain information about the community and about the proposed participant popuation. 17

30 Center Start-Up Manua Who Wi Participate? What Are Their Interests? Every community or neighborhood is made up of many different groups of peope. The Steering Committee wi need genera information about the peope it intends to serve in order to make sensibe choices and decisions regarding: space and ocation requirements for the CTC (incuding access to pubic transportation) hardware and software types of workshops and/or casses to be offered mutiingua capacity of CTC staff scheduing to maximize opportunity to use the CTC numbers and types of teachers and vounteers needed Census data can be used to obtain information regarding: size and density of targeted popuation breakdown of popuation by age range, sex, ethnic background, anguage of choice, eve of education, disabiity status, and reigion proportion of empoyed to unempoyed, average income eve, predominant types of empoyment or occupation Other sources for this sort of information incude mandatory reports fied with city, state, or federa agencies by housing authorities or other neighborhood programs, and any community surveys that have been conducted recenty by other neighborhood agencies. The Steering Committee wi aso want to estabish the eve of community interest in the CTC aong with perceived need, among its targeted constituency, for education programs, job skis deveopment, afterschoo activities, programs for young chidren, recreation, eder services, and business interests. The SC wi aso be interested in skis and/or taents that participants coud offer in service to the CTC: Is there a pumber who might offer to fix a eaking pipe, an eectrician to hep wire the center? Are there peope aready skied in specific ski areas or certain computer technoogies who can serve as vounteers? 18

31 Mapping Community Resources Are there unempoyed or edery community members who woud contribute reception services or chidcare? What other skis are avaiabe as resources to the start-up and on-going operations of the CTC? Community residents on the Steering Committee shoud be good sources for this kind of information. The Steering Committee might consider organizing and conducting a series of community meetings or focus groups at which SC members can expore these questions with neighborhood residents in person. How Do You Approach Information Sources? Start with the positive: a genera description of the proposed CTC, then ask about interest in using or participating, inquire about skied contributions that the individua, famiy, or institution might make. Then proceed to the information needed to hep structure the center to meet those needs. [See Exhibit 2-1] Locating the Needed Information Among the many ways to gather information about community residents, consider these first: US Census information: Census data, athough incompete, may nevertheess provide much of the quantitative data you need. Census data is avaiabe through your oca or regiona Census office or on the Word-Wide Web ( Steering Committee members may, through positions they hod within other oca organizations, possess the knowedge needed or have access to past surveys conducted by municipa or civic organizations that may compement or enhance or update Census data. Representatives of oca governmenta agencies may have knowedge of data sources through reports submitted to their offices. Check your state web site by visiting where XX is your state's initias. For exampe, the web site for the state of New York is Federa agency resources may be accessed via the FirstGov porta at Key community eaders and heads of other community service organizations may contribute previousy gathered information. 19

32 Center Start-Up Manua Neighborhood/bock meetings, focus groups of community residents who share common interests (e.g. seniors, business owners, famiy support groups incuding famiies with kids with disabiities, unempoyed peope, PTA famiies, tenant groups, chidren & famiies in paygrounds, etc.) may provide more personaized data. If, after exporing a the above methods, the Steering Committee sti acks what it deems absoutey necessary information, it may want to consider initiating a community survey. CTCNet recommends circumventing this eventuaity by whatever means possibe. One such method is to postpone more detaied survey questions unti community residents start coming to the CTC (or to a piot program). If a community resident turns out to be a reguar user, s/he shoud be more wiing to respond to questions regarding interests, needs, and potentia contributions than woud the inexperienced community at arge. (See Chapter 7 - Section on CTC assessment.) Identifying Loca Institutiona Resources It takes a community to raise a chid. -- African Proverb Because operating resources for CTCs are typicay imited, the Steering Committee must ook to other organizations to see if their programs or assets can be usefu to the CTC. These Institutiona Resources can be found at neighborhood agencies, pubic and private. Creating this inventory wi assist the Steering Committee in deveoping partnerships. Any partnership must offer benefits to both entities invoved. As you think about how a partnership with a specific agency or institution might benefit the CTC, think aso of what resources the CTC might offer to that agency or institution. Step 1: List a the neighborhood and community institutions most ikey to reate constructivey with the CTC: Schoos (pubic and private) incuding preschoos, eementary, midde and high schoos, and vocationa-technica schoos serving the neighborhood. Community Schoo Board members shoud be contacted, as shoud schoo district personne such as the oca computer coordinator. Post Secondary Institutions - incuding technica, junior and community coeges and/or university departments or extension services that may be ocated in or near your neighborhood. Many departments are fertie fieds for vounteer soicitation, and many institutions today have community iaisons or offices that coordinate vounteers. 20

33 Mapping Community Resources Fraternities & sororities or outreach programs associated with those coeges & universities. Libraries and museums. Assistive technoogy resource centers (simiar to an ATA center, Loca business organizations: Chambers of Commerce, Kiwanis and Rotary Cubs, BPOE, VFW, Professiona Women s Organizations, union ocas. Major manufacturers or business concerns in or near your neighborhood: restaurants, trave agencies, data services, poice, etc. Reigious institutions and associated specia interest groups. Community-based organizations: United Way, YMCA s, Boys & Girs Cubs, 4-H, senior centers, credit unions, cinics, homeess sheters, community action agencies, iteracy programs, cutura or ethnic cubs or associations, arts councis. Press & media: oca newspapers, cabe access stations, radio stations, magazines, circuators of advertising, biboard companies. Loca or regiona freenets or other teecommunications providers, technoogy companies, additiona businesses in the community. Nonprofit deveopment centers or management support organizations for nonprofits. See Exhibit 2-3 for a graphica representation of "putting the community into community technoogy." Your Steering Committee can brainstorm additions to this ist based on their knowedge of the oca scene. Step 2: List the needed CTC resources. Your ist might ook something ike this: space/faciities where the CTC coud be ocated rehab for space incuding wiring equipment: hardware, furniture & furnishings, copiers, etc. peope: potentia staff and/or vounteers, peope with expertise that the CTC is ikey to need (accounting, equipment maintenance, evauation, etc.) distance earning programs/courses avaiabe through teecommunications 21

34 Center Start-Up Manua compementary programs (e.g., adut iteracy, afterschoo, job training and/ or pacement, recreationa, eder services, Head Start or Even Start) jobs for participants who acquire new skis at the CTC economic capabiity (e.g., the abiity to buy in buk, to share educationa software icenses, to offer free Internet accounts) pubicity and ways to promote the CTC money good od cod hard cash contributions to the CTC other (your Steering Committee can doubtess add to this ist) Step 3: Use the information deveoped in Steps 1 & 2 to determine those neighborhood agencies and institutions with which partnerships might be the most beneficia to both parties. Construct a database of community resources isting contact information for key institutions, the potentia resources from each and, if possibe, the potentia benefit for that institution from coaboration or partnership with the CTC. What Shoud the Steering Committee Do? 1. Using the chart showing the institutions to be contacted and the potentia resources (Step #3 above), apportion contact tasks among Steering Committee (SC) members so that the entire ist is covered. 2. Provide an introductory scenario for SC members to use (see Exhibit 2-1). 3. Provide a tabuar format that SC members can use to record the resuts of their conversations and meetings (see Exhibit 2-4). 4. Assembe the resuts and prepare a summary report. 5. Discuss this report at the next SC meeting and decide which partnerships to pursue in the short term, and which might be more suitaby pursued at a ater date. 6. Confirm the agreed upon partnerships, formay or informay. 22

35 Mapping Community Resources Community Partnerships That Have Worked for CTCNet Affiiates Schoos These exampes iustrate the kinds of reationships that can exist between a oca schoo and a CTC: "We are in the process of finay having the schoo district be receptive to our services as being an enhancement to the services they aready provide. This we credit to first forming a reationship with the PTA s (principa in particuar), asking the principa to provide a vounteer to represent her/him on our board. From that we et the reationship grow and annuay increased requested support as needed. We have found that principas are very resourcefu and have authority to make decisions in most cases for their faciities. We suggest to start by getting a etter of support from the schoo district, then a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), without setting any imits." (JoeAnne M. Thomas-Joseph, The J Connection, Inc.) "Community Technoogy Centers here in Zanesvie, Ohio are working with pre-schoo and kindergarten chidren 4 days a week on a software program caed aerobics. The chidren are earning skis ike the differences in the etter sounds. The software aows them to earn rhyming words and what sounds an object makes aong with a foow up step 2 that shows them math skis and etter reconciiation." (Tricia Duper, [email protected]) "I coordinate 4 CTCs in Connecticut with funds from the U.S. Department of Education. Two of our Regiona Access for Technoogy (RAFT) Centers are in pubic schoos (eementary) and one is in a chid care faciity. The two things that stand out in my mind are 1) the hesitancy of schoos to be open to the pubic regarding the traffic a CTC woud generate & the genera safety of the chidren, 2) payment and avaiabiity of a custodian to be on site at a times as required by the pubic schoos. Once you work out these two issues things are a set to start up. The best way to go for #1 is to choose a ocation (if avaiabe) within the schoo where you can have a dedicated entrance/exit separate from the main entrance of the schoo. This makes parents and schoo districts much happier. We aso did a ot of reassuring foks in the beginning that the pubic woud not disrupt the pubic schoo. We work hard at respectfuy voicing this issue to the pubic on a reguar basis." (Paua M. Cymbaa, RAFT Regiona Access for Technoogy) 23

36 Center Start-Up Manua "Our work with schoos has deveoped over the past 3 years beginning with summer workshops for teachers in basic skis. From that we springboarded into working on-site at schoos with teacher-student teams using computers to compete academic tasks. We affiiated with two oca coeges to offer degree credits and worked the program into a 3 credit graduate cass. We have offered this opportunity mutipe times at a fee with success." (Harod Smith, CyberSkis/Vermont) "Keep in mind when working with teachers that you don t have to be a techie to work with technoogy. Learning how to troubeshoot computers doesn t necessariy come from memorizing an overwheming amount of computer facts. Understanding how to identify that something is wrong, to record observations, and knowing where to find information that provides potentia soutions is at the heart of being abe to troubeshoot. The ony way to earn how to sove computer compications is through practice and hands-on experience. Students who have earned basic computer appications, such as the word processing and graphics programs, can become basic troubeshooters, as ong as they have confidence in themseves and they earn the process of observation and information gathering that heps them find answers." (Rahsaan Harris, Paying2Win) Coeges The foowing exampes iustrate the reationships that can exist between a oca coege and a CTC: Graduate students from a oca coege serve as vounteers at Paying to Win (New York, New York) and many other CTCs. The Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technoogy contributed equipment and its staff donated its time in deveoping the program phiosophy and concept for The Cubhouse at the Computer Museum (Boston, Ma). Bristo (CT) Famiy Center and the Somervie (MA) Community Computing Center have served as test sites for program deveopment of the Hands- On Universe a project of Lawrence Berkeey Laboratories in Caifornia. The Community Literacy Center is a community/university coaborative of Pittsburgh s 80-year-od Community House and the Center for the Study of Writing at Carnegie Meon University. Libraries The foowing exampes iustrate the reationships that can exist between a oca ibrary and a CTC: 24

37 Mapping Community Resources Brookyn Pubic Library operates 5 earning centers with over 150 vounteer tutors to faciitate earning among 850 ow-income adut earners. Most pubic ibraries now offer at east imited Internet access. Washington, D.C. Pubic Library offers adut iteracy courses using computers. Loca businesses The foowing exampes iustrate the kinds of partnerships that can be estabished between oca businesses and a CTC: Loca corporations contribute funds to many CTCs. Somervie Cabe Access Teevision (SCAT) asked a oca restaurant owner to serve on its Board. In turn, the restaurant owner provided ow-cost catering for SCAT functions. Pugged In obtained the support of corporations and their staff in the foowing different roes: n n n as corporate sponsors. A the computer equipment was donated by companies such as Bay Networks, Appe Computer, Inc., and Hewett Packard. Corporate support aso accounts for approximatey one-third of Pugged In s budget. on the Board of Directors. on the Executive Advisory Counci (East Pao Ato, Caifornia). Specific government agencies The foowing exampes iustrate the types of partnerships a oca government can have or faciitate with a CTC: The City of East Pao Ato s Community Services Department has sent nine different groups of students to Pugged In as part of their Summer program. Students earn basic computer skis. The City Manager of the City of East Pao Ato sits on the Board of Directors of Pugged In. The Lansing Housing Commission in Michigan received funding through HUD's Drug Eimination Program to institute a computer program aong with community poicing, with poice officers estabishing rapport with 25

38 Center Start-Up Manua youngsters whie heping them earn computer skis. Out of the City of Waco's Community Deveopment Bock Grants (CDBG), $75,000 has been awarded to Mission Waco to deveop adjacent commercia properties that had been boarded up for years due to crime, bight and socia diemmas. At the site, Mission Waco is preparing a Community and Youth Deveopment Program, incuding a computer ab. Reigious institutions Reigious organizations have started community technoogy centers in communities throughout the United States. As just a few of the many exampes that can be found among CTCNet members: E Centrito De La Coonia is a biingua bicutura community center ocated in the Mexican American community of Oxnard, Caifornia, known as La Coonia. Sponsored by Sisters of St. Joseph Ministeria Services (SSJMS), it operates a free After Schoo Drop-In Computer Program. In 1960, Friendship Community Church was paced by Pittsburgh Presbytery in the heart of a densey popuated urban area, adjacent to the Pittsburgh's argest housing deveopment. The Church has emphasized youth programs, starting the New Beginnings Learning Center in 1989 to enhance, encourage and support the academic performance of community youth. The Jewish Community Center of the St. Pau Area serves the socia, cutura, educationa and recreationa needs of more than 15,000 persons of a ages in the St. Pau area. To support the community surrounding the Center, it wi be offering computer casses in severa anguages incuding Spanish, Laotian, Vietnamese and Russian. The Association of Christian Community Computing Centers (AC4, was formed in 2000 to support Christian community computer centers across the word in their effort to provide access, skis and reationships needed to succeed in the information age. The initiative grew out of PREP Community Computer Center of Bruce Wa Ministries in Boston. Community-based organizations The foowing exampes iustrate the reationships that can exist between community-based organizations and a CTC: The East TN Technoogy Access Center is providing training to CTCs in the 26

39 Mapping Community Resources Knoxvie area on using basic assistive technoogy toos with a broad range of students. Pugged In has deveoped partnerships with a wide range of communitybased organizations. For exampe, Next Generation Daycare is a chid care program in the Pao Ato area. A group of 5 and 6 year od chidren in the program went to Pugged In to earn basic computer skis. Documentation The work outined in this chapter shoud resut in the foowing records: A database of community resources incuding individuas, service agencies, and institutions. You wi expect to update this database periodicay and to use it to research new partnerships and/or potentia coaborations, new board/steering committee members, and other resources as the need arises. A report or spreadsheet giving community demographics and tabuating expressed interests and needs of community residents. This record, too, wi be updated from time to time, and wi continue to be usefu as you frame grant proposas and requests for funding. Additiona Contact Information Paua M. Cymbaa, LEARN Project Coordinator, RAFT Regiona Access for Technoogy, Rahsaan Harris, Executive Director, Paying2Win, th Avenue, New York, NY, 10026, [email protected], JoeAnne M. Thomas-Joseph, The J Connection Inc. Southwest Forida Community Technoogy Centers, th Street W, Lehigh Acres, F 33971, (239) , [email protected] or [email protected] Harod Smith, Co-Director, CyberSkis/Vermont, Od North End Community Technoogy Center, 279 North Winooski Avenue, Burington, VT,

40 Center Start-Up Manua 28

41 Mapping Community Resources Additiona Resources ABCD Training Group (Asset-Based Community Deveopment) Introduction to Creating Partnerships IPR Research Asset-Based Community Deveopment Institute Making the Net Work Tookit Invoving the Community Making the Net Work Tookit Loca Resources Checkist Neighborhood Technoogy Resource Center Randa D. Pinkett Papers et a. 29

42 Center Start-Up Manua 30

43 Mapping Community Resources Exhibit 2-1 Community Partnership Interview Scenario: Foow-up: 1. Introduce yoursef and mention the name of the person who gave you the contact information. 2. Make an appointment to meet with the person, if possibe. If the CTC is operationa, or in its piot phase, invite the person to visit. If a meeting is inappropriate, ask if the person has time now or if there s a more convenient time when you coud ca back. 3. Describe very briefy the pan to deveop the CTC. The Steering Committee can formuate this statement to be used by everyone making these contacts. 4. Describe very briefy the prime reason you are making this contact (i.e. to expore possibe avaiabe space, compementary programs, etc. - whatever you think the most ikey shareabe asset from this institution might be). 5. Expore what interest the contact may have in assisting you. 6. List briefy other resources the CTC is interested in identifying. 7. Ask for referras to other peope and institutions that might be interested in heping. 8. Thank the contact for time and for whatever assistance has been suggested or pedged. 1. Fi in the information on the contact sheet. 2. Foow through with any referras you may have been given. 3. Write a short note to the contact, saying thank you and describing steps that you have taken as a resut of that conversation. 4. Make sure the contact receives an invitation to the next CTC open house. 31

44 Center Start-Up Manua 32

45 Exhibit 2-2: CTC Resource Worksheet Mapping Community Resources Resource What do we have aready? What do we need? Where coud these resources come from? Who wi coordinate this? What issues or questions do we have to resove? Community Invovement (Advisory committee and ongoing p a rtic ip a tio n) Mission Statement, Needs and Audience Identification (W hat is driving the center and for whom) Programs (Casses, O pen Lab Time) Oversight and M anagement (W ho wi advise? W ho wi make decisions? W ho wi impement?) Staff for program coordination, training, etc. (paid vounteers) Vounteers Technica Support (who wi provide ongoing equipment maintenance?) Faciitie s (space, eectricity, air, entry) Furnishings (desks, ights) H ardware (equipment) Software (computer programs appropriate to your needs) Networking (i.e. for sharing printers) Internet (connection and services) Marketing (for casses and vounteers) Resource-raising (How are you going to continue your program?) Evauation (How wi we know if we're successfu: for each individua, for our organization, for our community. W hat specific measure wi we use to check this?) Submitted by David Keyes; Produced by the City of Seatte Department of Information Technoogy (206) ; 33

46 Center Start-Up Manua 34

47 Exhibit 2-3 Mapping Community Resources 35

48 Center Start-Up Manua 36

49 Exhibit 2-4 Partnerships with Loca Institutions Institution name and address: Notes on contacts made: Resources avaiabe to CTC (incuding estimated vaue): Contact name, phone, fax, emai: Resources CTC can offer to institution: 37 Institution name and address: Contact name, phone, fax, emai: Notes on contacts made: Resources avaiabe to CTC (incuding estimated vaue): Resources CTC can offer to institution: Mapping Community Resources

50 Center Start-Up Manua 38

51 3 Program c h a p t e r Determining Focus Introduction What are Likey Program Areas for a CTC? Pubic Access and/or Open Lab Time Pre-Schoo and Famiy Afterschoo Activities Adut Education Eder Services Career Deveopment and Job Preparation Computer Centers in Faith-Based Organizations Socia Service and Advocacy How Does the Steering Committee Determine a Program Focus? Exhibit 3-1 The Best of Curricuum and Resources for Youth Exhibit 3-2 Seniors Training Seniors in Computer Basics Exhibit 3-3 CTC Programming Worksheet... 67

52

53 3 c h a p t e r Determining Program Focus Determining Program Focus "He wants nothing more than a job. Times have been rough... with the recession and the attacks on September 11th, jobs are scarce. He comes in 2 to 3 days out of the work week to search for jobs onine. He searches for, and corresponds with, potentia empoyers via the Internet. He entered our community center with no knowedge of how to do so. We showed him how to set up an emai account, how to read, compose, repy and forward emais, and search the Internet. He does not hesitate to ask any member of staff for assistance." As submitted by Amanda Hartt, Program Coordinator Korean American Community Services, Chicago Introduction Providing opportunity to use and/or earn to use computer technoogy is of course the fundamenta rationae for a Community Technoogy Center. Learning to use a computer without some sort of constructive purpose in mind woud be ike earning to use a hammer without something to pound. Having access to computer technoogy means having access to a new set of toos toos that can be used in myriad ways to hep achieve work, ife, and earning goas. Because computer appications range over such a vast area, it is usefu for a start-up CTC to identify specific areas in which to concentrate its programming activities. This remains the case even if the CTC is being created in a arger agency amid a backdrop of other services. This chapter wi discuss ikey focus areas for CTC programming and the process that the Steering Committee shoud foow in panning CTC offerings. The data gathered through Mapping Community Resources (Chapter 2) wi guide the Steering Committee in making decisions about programming in genera and wi determine specific offerings or concentrations, and hence, what software wi be needed. The area(s) of program focus chosen by a CTC wi aso hep with accessibiity panning. Whie certain standards need to be met regardess of age range or program activities, a 39

54 Center Start-Up Manua youth program might indicate a different organization of space or prioritization of assistive technoogy. Whie estabishing an initia focus for the CTC and engaging in preiminary program panning are essentia steps, the resuts must not be regarded as set in stone. It is more than ikey that, as the CTC grows, focus areas may change or broaden. It is probaby wise, in the beginning, not to try to accommodate every need or interest, but to eave room for constructive response once usage patterns emerge and active participant needs can be identified. It is most important to earn about your target popuation, what content is important to members, and deveop criteria and content in response to that need. In the ong run, this is better than choosing a particuar product. As far as curricuum is concerned, this chapter wi hep fine-tune your evoving content deveopment strategy. What are Likey Program Areas for a CTC? Most CTCs wi pan program offerings in two or more of the foowing areas: Pubic Access or Open Lab Time, Basic Internet Access Pre-schoo and Famiy Activities Afterschoo Activities, Youth Education, and Youth Deveopment Adut Education, Literacy, and ESL Eder Services Career Deveopment, Job Preparation, and Workforce Deveopment Technica Assistance, Financia Literacy, and ecommerce Eectronic Pubishing (incuding print, video or muti-media) Socia Services and Advocacy Computer Recycing or Refurbishing A description of each type of program area foows. Pease note that none is excusive of others; overap in terms of program focus area and required software is anticipated. 40

55 Determining Program Focus Pubic Access, Open Lab Time, or Basic Internet Access Athough the media touts Internet access as a route to information, most centers offering Internet access have found that sef-pubishing and emai for initiating and maintaining contact with friends, coeagues, and reations in distant areas are just as important for many participants. Sef-pubishing encompasses the deveopment of persona web pages, pubishing stories, recoections, poetry, music, sti pictures, and video to a word-wide audience. Internet chat and instant messaging tend to be instant attractions for youth. Some peope may need a degree of computer comfort with a variety of appications before they are wiing to aunch themseves into cyberspace; others may want to start browsing the web on day one. Hence, a CTC with Internet access as its focus shoud sti pan on offering introductory courses aimed at equipping its participants with basic computer skis. Most centers wi want to incude some pubic access and/or open ab time. Pubic Access offers members of the community the opportunity to use computer and communications technoogies to expore their own interests, to deveop skis, and to discover what the technoogy can do. Open Lab Time provides those otherwise invoved through structured casses with opportunities to practice what they are earning or to branch out into further exporations. Some centers ask for a sma vountary contribution from participants in open abs. This sum can hep to defray the costs of printer paper and cartridges, and disks. Consider asking participants to vounteer in exchange for open access. Important considerations It may be necessary to designate some times specificay for chidren and other times for oder teens and aduts. It is important to schedue some times during the day and some in the evening. Specia rues imiting one person's access time may need to be instituted for CTCs with a arge voume of users. It is advisabe to have introduction programs for the most popuar software (see Chapter 5). These are avaiabe both as on-screen tutorias and in audio 41

56 Center Start-Up Manua form (if you use the audio versions, get earphones for the users). At east one staff person or vounteer shoud be experienced with customizing the computer setup for participants with diverse physica, sensory or cognitive requirements. This wi normay be a heavy usage time with a variety of individuas each doing different things. Thus it is advisabe to have a high concentration of staff or vounteers present: at east one for every ten users. If pubic access is to incude Internet access, more than one phone ine or a high-capacity access ine may be needed. Many CTCs have migrated to broadband and wireess connectivity options. Whie requiring greater costs, these options typicay aow for very high bandwidth usage. It is imperative to set ground rues for the CTC during open access time. These rues shoud expicity cover poicies on headphones or speakers, downoading materias, saving materia (on foppy disks, hard drives, CD- ROMs, etc.), printing, chatting and meeting with strangers from the Internet, emai and attachments, and pornographic materias. Penaties for abuse shoud be ceary specified. With chidren and teenagers it may be hepfu to quiz them on ground rues from time to time or prohibit access unti they understand the guideines on their behavior in the CTC. Using a guiding phrase and corresponding phiosophy such as "You can do whatever you want in the CTC except break the rues" is one way to positivey redirect negative behavior. If possibe, cover this information with CTC participants before they begin their activities. Some CTCs have found it hepfu to invove youth in estabishing center rues, heping to foster a sense of ownership for participants. In addition, these sites may prefer to reframe their rues in terms of expectations. The guiding phiosophy of such a site might be "Whie rues may be made to be broken, Expectations are made to be met: Respect yoursef, Respect others, and Respect our toos and equipment." Center staff can have some reay interesting discussions with youth about what respect means to them and how they know when someone respects or disrespects them. Youth shoud aso be engaged in the process of determining what happens when expectations are not met. Generay, kids wi be more harsh when meting out consequences than aduts woud be, so they wi need guidance. It is aso important to be consistent and appy the consequences eveny and fairy. (Mercedes Soto, IT Resource Center) Exampes of successfu pubic access/open ab programs PTW/Harem CCC was founded in 1983 on the concept of pubic access but 42

57 Determining Program Focus quicky earned that free avaiabiity did not guarantee participation. Taking to chidren and famiy members in paygrounds, distributing invitationa map-cards, and outreach through other community organizations were some of the strategies empoyed to inform the community of the opportunities avaiabe. At the Famiy Learning Center's Computer Center (Marietta, OH), community members use the resources to perform job hunts on the Internet, write and print resumes, research schoo projects, research for persona satisfaction, improve keyboarding skis, design quits, and pay games. When the computer center is not open for pubic access, the Adut Basic and Literacy Education and Literacy Vounteers of America participants use the equipment in their work to improve their basic skis in reading, math, writing, and computer skis. In partnership with other oca organizations, the Austin Free-Net ( in Texas has deveoped the East Austin Media Lab, a mutimedia deveopment center for disadvantaged youth. The design eements of the project incude: open access periods at each ab; basic training on Internet/Web page deveopment; intensive training and mentor/ protege reationships for sma groups of teens; and internships with oca companies. Pre-Schoo and Famiy Activities Pre-schoo and famiy programs incude: Times when parents can bring young chidren and work together with them to expore appropriate software such as drawing, animation, and earning games. Opportunity to partner with a oca Even Start, Head Start, or day care program that may not have access to computers. Important considerations The attention span of young chidren is imited, so such sessions shoud be short a haf hour or 45 minutes at most. Young chidren may not be abe to reach the mouse or keyboard comfortaby from ordinary chair height. If you don t have adjustabe chairs, stock penty of teephone books or piows. Chidren with disabiities wi provide a great opportunity for the use of creativity in making appropriate use of assistive technoogies, e.g. picture- 43

58 Center Start-Up Manua based keyboards, switch activated toys, cause and effect software. Parents may need prior guidance in using the software to enabe them to work effectivey with their chidren. Pan on an introductory session or two for the parents. Exampes of pre-schoo and famiy programs The Durham County Literacy Counci offers a computer-assisted reading program, Parents Part, that teaches parents to use computers to hep their chidren earn to read. This project, funded by the Triange United Way, Bank of America, Verizon, and IBM, provides a new approach to famiy iteracy. In Parent s Part, pairs consisting of a parent and a chid, aged 4-7, work together at computers over 16 sessions to accompish severa goas. Parents master basic word-processing and parent as teacher skis. At the same time, their chidren use mutimedia, phonics-based software to deveop reading readiness. Reading offine is stressed through homework assignments and a free bookstore providing participants a chance to deveop a home ibrary of age-appropriate, high-quaity chidren s books. Parents Part workshops are hed at many community sites incuding the YMCA, day care centers, the pubic ibrary and various pubic schoos. Teaching materias are presented in easy-to-read, biingua format. Reader s Powered Up, deveoped with grants from the CISCO and AOL Foundations, provides a second option for Parents Part graduates and chidren in 2nd-3rd grades. Using the Internet, parents and chidren access onine reading and writing sites that provide usefu information to parents and iteracy practice to chidren. (Lucy Haagen, Durham County Literacy Counci) Estabished in October of 2000, the RAFT center in Stonington, CT enjoys strong community support, activey engaged partnerships, and a diverse cient base from Connecticut as we as Rhode Isand residents. In addition to RAFT s invovement with the West Broad Street s famiies, they aso offer casses to a of the preschooers housed at West Broad Street Schoo. This not ony incudes the district s preschooers, but aso the Famiy Resource Center s preschooers and Head Start program. (Paua M. Cymbaa, RAFT Regiona Access for Technoogy) "Our most successfu Department of Education CTC programs thus far at CyberSkis/Vermont has been the distribution of refurbished computers to parents and chidren from ow-income areas. They have a oca job training agency working with technicians refurbishing computers. The computers are then sod to the program as a part of the U.S. Department of Education CTC grant. Parents and Parent/Chid teams sign up for a 6 hour training in 44

59 Determining Program Focus Windows, Internet use and Internet Safety, how to set up and maintain the computer, and how to access the Internet. They receive a free 6 month ISP subscription. After training they take their computers home. Cyberskis/ Vermont did this two years ago and received oca recognition for it and have now set up 10 sessions this year for a tota of 100 participating famiies." (Harod Smith, CyberSkis/Vermont) Afterschoo Activities, Youth Education, and Youth Deveopment These can be structured for different age groups or offered as open ab time for chidren. It may be hepfu to contact and/or partner with nationa youth service organizations for assistance with activities, curricuum, and possiby financia assistance. Some possibiities incude the Boys & Girs Cubs of America, YMCA, Nationa Urban League, and the Inte Computer Cubhouse. In addition to giving chidren an opportunity to acquire ski with basic computer appications, some wi enjoy: Subject-Area Activities. Commercia software that offers homework hep, tutorias, and other activities covering subjects, such as reading, writing, math, sciences, and other subjects, is readiy avaiabe (see Chapter 5 for evauation guideines.) Games. Games can be effective toos for getting chidren and young aduts interested in earning more about computer technoogy. Exercise caution in choosing games some are vioent, others are mindess (see Chapter 5 for evauation guideines). Encourage chidren to pay two-payer games together. Chidren may be excited about a game of the week contest; be mindfu about seecting games for different age eves of chidren. Do not be surprised if most chidren want to pay games much of the time and consider the environment the chid is coming from; there is nothing wrong with enjoying the uxury of recreation from time to time. Indeed, this may be one of the few sources of reguar fun a chid has access to enjoy. Consider deveoping a curricuum around gaming, especiay in ight of the increasing workforce opportunities for game deveopers. Exporing the Internet. Once chidren are equipped with basic computer skis, they may wish to test and improve them by surfing the Internet, using the Word Wide Web (WWW) as a research too, or communicating with far-fung peers through eectronic mai. Mutimedia Pubishing: designing persona web pages, constructing famiy or neighborhood profies, creating project reports for schoo. Music-making: earning about and/or writing music and songs (may 45

60 Center Start-Up Manua require additiona hardware and software). Important considerations Know every chid. Enforce sign-in and sign-out procedures. Be sure you can notify an appropriate person if specia circumstances arise. Make sure a chidren know the rues of the center and where to find what they need. Young peope working aone need frequent attention. To faciitate peer tutoring and coaborative earning, encourage two or more to work together at a singe computer. There is an opportunity here for staff to hep kids expore assistive technoogy options that they might not have avaiabe in the schoo, and aso hep them and famiies advocate for access in the schoos if appropriate. Assign more knowedgeabe chidren to work with the ess knowedgeabe. Provide ampe space to move around, stow bookbags, coats, etc. Successfu youth programs often engage youth in program panning and design. Consider starting a rotating member, youth advisory board. Exampes of successfu afterschoo activities In the January 2002 a new program, The DISKovery Hour, was impemented through coaborative efforts among the West Broad Street Schoo, Famiy Resource Center, Stonington High Schoo and the RAFT Center in Stonington. The DISKovery Hour targets 12 chidren at risk and provides them with an extended opportunity to earn by offering homework and reading support in a safe and educationa environment. The goas of the DISKovery Hour is to offer enrichment activities that are specificay designed to assist third and fourth grade students to deveop competency in a technoogicay rich environment whie providing homework assistance. This program was created in order to decrease students after schoo isoation through fostering teamwork, friendships and strengthening group dynamics. The program aso incorporates mentoring opportunities for Stonington High Schoo Honor Society students thus enhancing earning opportunities for young chidren through the integration of community service and technoogy. (Paua M. Cymbaa, RAFT Regiona Access for Technoogy) Maden Access Teevision Studio (Maden, MA) has offered a program for 46

61 Determining Program Focus chidren brought to the studio by the oca YMCA to earn animation software using Fracta Design, Dabber, and D-Paint. The Inte Cubhouse at the Museum of Science provides a pace where young peope ages 10 to 15 can use computers to create their own computer-based projects. Computer-using professionas and graduate students serve as mentors, offering educationa guidance and inspiration to participating youth. See Exhibit 3-1 for additiona information on curricuum and resources for youth. Adut Education, Literacy, and ESL Estabishing a comprehensive adut education program wi invove far more than computer access. There wi need to be cassroom or tutoria space for non-computerbased earning and instructors with the experience and quaifications needed to teach these casses. Rather than deveoping an adut education program from the ground up, a coaboration or partnership with an existing program in the community may serve the goas of both. Adut education generay incudes: Genera Equivaency Degree (GED) training. Participants are taught certain skis to prepare them to take a test to obtain the equivaent of a high schoo dipoma. Engish as a Second Language (ESL) courses. These programs teach the basic skis to speak and understand Engish. The cass concudes with a test measuring students progress towards fuency in the Engish anguage. Adut Basic Education (ABE) casses. These casses enabe residents to deveop the abiity to read, write, and perform basic math. Learners progress to GED casses. Life-ong Learning Opportunities: Extension courses, distance earning, or onine earning opportunities. Basic computer comfort and introduction to technoogy. These workshops introduce peope to the keyboard, the mouse, how to turn the machine on and off, and some basic appications which wi enabe them to use the computer without supervision and prepare them for more advanced computer training in the future. Important considerations Many aduts must bring their chidren with them. The CTC shoud estabish simutaneous casses for the chidren and/or a pay area. 47

62 Center Start-Up Manua Some aduts prefer to earn among other aduts rather than in a cass integrated with chidren. The CTC shoud, if possibe, set aside teaching time specificay for adut instruction. Many aduts work; accommodate these schedues. It may be possibe to ocate the CTC within a oca schoo equipped with computing faciities as most schoos are avaiabe in the evenings. Many of the toos designed for individuas with reading reated disabiities are aso great toos for those earning Engish as a second anguage. Computers are good toos for practicing memorization skis. Exampes of successfu adut education programs The Marietta Area Community Computing Center (Marietta, OH) offers ABE casses 4 hours per day on 10 computers in their Appe/Macintosh Center. The aduts often return during pubic access hours to earn other software appications such as word processing, spreadsheets and graphics design. The Henry Street Settement (New York, NY) offers programs for mentay chaenged aduts aimed at buiding their sef-esteem, teaching them to work and pay with other peope, and heping them earn probem-soving toos. At the Brookyn Pubic Library in New York, adut earners work together in coaborative, earner-centered projects using wordprocessing and other productivity toos to deveop a foundation of knowedge of writing, reading, probem soving, and information and iteracy skis. Eder Services Some oder persons particuary enjoy: Connecting to other oder aduts Mentoring younger peope Exporing their hobbies and interests Games such as chess, go, or backgammon Teecommunications contact with reatives and friends Teecommunications and CD-ROM-based trave exporations 48

63 Determining Program Focus Financia panning assistance Famiy tree programs and famiy history productions Heath care and other services information Just being part of the communications age Hoy Harrison of the Aamo Area Community Information System (AACIS) recommends the foowing for working with Seniors: Use Youth Mentors - At a neighborhood senior center we successfuy tested an intergenerationa training strategy that it wi use throughout our work with 50 senior centers. In this strategy, students from an aternative high schoo serve as tech mentors to senior citizens. Resuts: Seniors appreciate the time to spend with youth and respect their mastery of the technoogy. Youth improve their sef-esteem and benefit from seeing seniors strugge to earn new things, receive stay-in-schoo support, and deveop positive reationships with aduts. Recognize that it takes insight and time to create a cuture among senior citizens that appreciates the vaue of technoogy and what it can do. AACIS uses project-based earning for seniors and for each of its targeted customer groups. Project-based earning is reay a simpe concept that says that earners earn best and sustain interest in earning when their instruction focuses around things of interest to them. A coordinator surveys seniors and provide feedback to mentor-trainers. These resuts are integrated into handouts as we as informa instruction sessions. Our survey resuts from a piot site on most popuar technoogy uses among seniors are: 1. emai; 2. beauty web sites; 3. heath information; 4. I don t know what it can do show me! Actuay, we try to incorporate show me into a of our work. We start with where users are, what their interests are, and then broaden and deepen the topic. Often our new users may have no idea what you can do on a PC or with the Internet. We have to show them the potentia. We have to be patient with them watching other users be successfu and giving them time to come around. How we measure success and the time frame for getting to success must accommodate time for this shift. Having the right toos is equay essentia: arge font, big screens, and easy-to-use mice with trackbas. Important considerations Seniors often prefer to earn about computers in casses made up of other seniors. Offering seniors ony courses may go a ong way to making them 49

64 Center Start-Up Manua peased to be at the CTC and ikey to return. In addition, ike any other popuation, seniors earn better in smaer casses and need to be istened to. Some seniors truy enjoy working with young peope. Consider forming a senior vounteer corps to assist during ab times open to chidren. Young peope may aso be eager to staff senior casses. Some seniors have a hard time trying to get the mouse to stay put; some are afraid of the mouse. A whee mouse may faciitate scroing. Seniors often prefer activities during daytime or norma business hours. This may aow for more efficient use of the CTC if it woud otherwise be empty when chidren are at schoo and aduts are working. Exampes of successfu eder service The Seatte Human Service Department and the Mayor s Office for Senior Citizens has a vounteer program entited Seniors Training Seniors. Computer iterate vounteers (50+) receive hours of training in a very unique and specia curricuum specificay designed to teach oder peope computer basics, emai and the Internet. Four, 2-hour casses are taught each month at various senior and community centers in a reaxed and nonintimidating atmosphere where eders earn to expand their horizons with new technoogy. (Patti-Lyn Be, City of Seatte, Mayor's Office for Senior Citizens) CyberSkis/Vermont works with seniors in training seniors from the oca senior centers in the use of emai and the Internet. This is one of the parts of a U.S. Department of Education CTC grant. The staff run short, 1.5 hour workshops for up to 6 participants over a 4 week training time. They wi train approximatey 60 seniors this year, providing access to computers when the senior center is fu. They have worked in deveoping meaningfu curricuum for seniors through the senior center for over 2 years. (Harod Smith, CyberSkis/Vermont) See Exhibit 3-2 for additiona tips on working with senior citizens. Career Deveopment, Job Preparation and Workforce Deveopment As with Adut Education (see above), a comprehensive job preparation focus wi entai additiona, non-computer cassroom space aong with instructors who have the experience and quaifications needed to conduct the casses. Job preparation generay incudes both job skis training and job search activities. Job skis training incudes 50

65 Determining Program Focus casses teaching basic computer iteracy, keyboarding skis, word processing, graphics appications, spreadsheets, databases and other office skis casses. Job search activities incude resume writing workshops; casses teaching interviewing skis such as what questions to ask and what is ikey to be asked; how to dress; workpace behavior training; and, how and where to ook for a job. A focus on job training cries out for coaborative reationships with existing community services (e.g., those that perform job pacement). If a CTC offers job pacement to compement its job training program, such activities may repicate services avaiabe at empoyment agencies. Important considerations The factor most ikey to produce a successfu job preparation program is the avaiabiity of rea jobs to those who compete the program. If Job Preparation is to be a CTC focus, the Steering Committee shoud form an Empoyer Advisory Counci that wi match the types of training offered, software seection, and program emphasis to the types of jobs actuay avaiabe in the community. A technique proven to be particuary motivating in engaging young peope in job preparation courses is to present them with promised empoyment after successfu competion of the CTC course. An Empoyer Advisory Counci can take the ead in ining up these jobs. Staff shoud be abe to refer participants with disabiities pursuing a vocationa goa to their state department of vocationa rehabiitation (different name in each state) for services as appropriate. It is imperative to research the main types of jobs that are avaiabe in your community to get a better sense of what oca empoyment needs are. It may be hepfu to work with other workforce deveopment programs to ensure that the CTC fis a niche in the community. It wi be hepfu to deveop a database of how to find avaiabe jobs in the community. Jobs can be researched through the Steering Committee and/or through neighborhood partnerships. Other sources incude newspapers (and their respective web sites), trade journas, oca magazines, web sites (may be oca, statewide, nationa, or internationa in scope of job offerings), and eectronic buetin boards. Ideaist.org ( may be particuary usefu as a isting of nonprofit jobs and regiona career fairs. Note that databases require reguar maintenance to remain up-to-date. Job Preparation students, as an activity, may wish to prepare a database of avaiabe oca jobs and a second database of their own skis and desired types of empoyment. Note that databases require reguar maintenance to remain up-to-date. 51

66 Center Start-Up Manua The Empoyer Advisory Counci (see Job Preparation) can recruit oca businesses to notify the CTC of vacant or soon-to-be vacant positions together with advance notice on the skis required for those positions. Job openings can be posted on a buetin board, a community eectronic buetin board, and/or pubished in a CTC Job Listings Newsetter. Performing these tasks can be assigned to participants in the program. The CTC can organize and/or host a Job Fair with participants doing the research and impementation as a project. Aternativey, participants can be encouraged, and prepared, to attend job fairs sponsored by other agencies in the community. Exampes of successfu job preparation programs Jobs for Youth (Boston, MA). Industries, such as environmenta technoogy and biotechnoogy deveopment companies, send representatives to the CTC to estabish computer casses for skis that are needed by the companies. Persons trained at the CTC in these casses are ater hired by the companies. The Seward Adut Learning Center in partnership with AVTEC (Aaska Vocationa Technica Education Center) is an adut basic education program serving oca citizens pus students who arrive from a over Aaska to acquire computer iteracy, basic reading, math and anguage skis. SER Jobs for Progress, Inc. was formed in 1972 as a joint effort by the two odest and argest U.S. Hispanic vounteer organizations, the American G.I. Forum and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) to provide better opportunities to disenfranchised Austin residents. The organization is deveoping an Internet-Based Interactive Career Center. The NOVA Private Industry Counci of Sunnyvae, Caifornia and its partners unveied Youth@Work, an on-ine community service connecting empoyers with youth seeking work in Santa Cara and San Mateo Counties. NOVA supports schoo staff in the use of the system and aso maintains pubic access sites throughout the two counties where out-of-schoo youth who don't have home Internet access can use terminas free of charge. Technica Assistance, Financia Literacy, and ecommerce Eectronic commerce is a term used to describe a variety of business activities that can be conducted at the CTC. These types of business activities incude outsourcing, sma 52

67 Determining Program Focus business support, sef-empoyment, and entrepreneurship. It is imperative that the CTC is cognizant of the oca business community as both a resource and as competition for services. Outsourcing is an activity in which the CTC is hired by an organization or business to undertake a task it usuay performs itsef, such as payro processing, data processing, and inventory. The CTC might be abe to perform tasks for oca businesses, certain government agencies, community-based organizations and schoos for a fee, thereby empoying CTC participants to do the work and earn revenue they share with the CTC. Sma business support is an activity where the CTC is made avaiabe to CTC users to support their business operations, such as by using computers for accounting, tracking inventory, biing, advertising and so forth. Sef-empoyment is an activity for which a CTC participant uses CTC faciities to perform work for a fee, such as designing fax sheets, producing brochures, providing technica assistance to estabish a computer system, and/or creating homepages on the Internet. Individuas who use the CTC in this way shoud expect to recompense the center from their earnings. Entrepreneurship is a business activity created by a CTC member or former member in which the person estabishes a business at home or at another ocation using skis earned at the CTC. Important considerations The CTC is ikey to need new or additiona equipment and the atest software in order to compete in the marketpace. Teenagers and young aduts coud work with the CTC in fufiing business contracts, earning business skis, and deveoping reationships with the business community. Both the CTC and individuas woud make money. The CTC must deveop a system for sharing profits. Written contracts are extremey hepfu for carifying responsibiity, quantity and quaity of work to be competed, timeine obigations, and appropriate recourse in the event of a probem. It may take significant time for profit to defray start-up costs; pan accordingy! 53

68 Center Start-Up Manua Exampes of successfu programs At the Owerri Digita Viage, a community technoogy center in Nigeria created and managed by Youth for Technoogy Foundation (YTF), a revenue-sustaining mode that has been estabished is in the area of communications technoogies. The center has one genera maibox where mais are received from individuas in urban areas of Nigeria or abroad. The individuas sending these e-mai messages are account hoders at the Owerri Digita Viage where they pay a nomina fee every month for up to ten e- mai deiveries each month. Owerri Digita Viage staff members then sort through the e-mais and twice a week deiver the e-mai messages to oved ones, famiy members or friends in the rura communities. This approach ensures that the ack of access (at the grassroots eve) doesn t excude underserved community members from communicating with the outside word. (Njideka Ugwuegbu, Youth for Technoogy Foundation) At Pugged In, students earn technica skis, such as mastering mutimedia programs and hypertext mark-up anguage (HTML), which enabe them to offer a service. The students aso earn business skis, incuding how to meet with cients, bid on contracts, negotiate agreements, and deveop business pans. In the first two months of operation, Pugged In Enterprises grossed approximatey $3,000. A friends of RAFT campaign has been crafted for individuas as we as corporations to make donations to our program. Aong these ines it is important to stress community outreach. For exampe, after a presentation to recruit interns from a group of graduate students enroed in a program in Workforce Education & Deveopment, staff from RAFT =was approached by an engineer who wanted to know if they were interested in corporate giving. This person was impressed by the presentation and the project and fet his pharmaceutica corporation woud be interested in making a donation to RAFT. In other words you never know who is in an audience. (Paua M. Cymbaa, RAFT Regiona Access for Technoogy) Over the past 3 years CyberSkis/Vermont has deiberatey worked to create revenue streams to keep this CTC aive. Without sources of money from paces other than the government the organization woud have been out of business ong ago. Staff work diigenty in setting up reationships with other NPOs as we as socia serving government agencies such as DET, PATH, and VR. They sit on the oca Adut Ed Counci and attend meeting with each of these agencies. Their fu program of pubic enroment casses provides some opportunities to DET and PATH participants to gain computer skis. Their other work has been in deveoping a fu adder of opportunity for individuas to progress from no computer skis to job skis invoving technoogy. Over the ast 3 years they have deveoped 54

69 Determining Program Focus programs caed Getting Ready To Work, Making It Work 1, Making It Work 2, and most recenty STEP-IT UP. The STEP-IT UP program provides quaified individuas with over 100 hours of training from the very basics to the eve of work in web deveopment programs such as Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and Front Page. CyberSkis/Vermont recenty ran this program at Dae Correctiona Faciity for Women with great success. Revenue is where you find it and you can ony find it if you are ooking for it through a variety of channes incuding other NPO needs, government channes, and through advertising. Most significanty, the CTC does this with a fu-time staff of 6, work experience peope from DET and PATH, interns from the oca coege, and vounteers from other NPOs. (Harod Smith, CyberSkis/ Vermont) Computer Centers in Faith-Based Organizations The foowing content was submitted by Andrew Sears from the Association of Christian Community Computer Centers. "A Christian Community Computer Center is any ministry using computers as an outreach to serve the community and address the Digita Divide, which is the gap that separates those with access to and skis with computers to those without such benefits. Some of the way Christians are addressing the Digita Divide incude: After schoo programs which integrate technoogy into their activities Computer casses offered either at ow cost to unempoyed aduts and atrisk youth Adut basic education casses using computers Job training and pacement programs which offer computer training Wak-in computer centers that offer free computer access in ow-income areas Technoogy entrepreneurship programs where youth do Web page design, graphic design or other work Computer refurbishing that takes used computers from companies and individuas and refurbishes them to provide ow cost computers to individuas Computer ministries in churches of teams of vounteers to support computer centers 55

70 Center Start-Up Manua "Part of what makes Christian community computer centers unique is that they are trying to address spiritua needs in addition to physica, economic and educationa needs. We beieve that earning computer skis is one of the best ways for peope to be abe to make a iving. We aso beieve that a good spiritua foundation is the best way for peope to make a ife and find happiness. "There are currenty over 200 Christian community computer centers on our ist across the USA and many deveoping in other countries. The key goa of AC4 is to assist churches and Christian organizations to become a major driving force behind computer iteracy just as they were with basic iteracy. Socia Service and Advocacy Many CTCs are increasingy partnering with socia service agencies in their communities to address a broad range of needed services. Often technoogy programs are an added benefit to such programs and may hep with sustainabiity. Whie there is no set formua for creating such a CTC, the foowing exampes may prove hepfu: Phiadephians Concerned About Housing (PCAH) was founded in 1981 to be a next step for homeess famiies coming from sheters. Its mission is to hep ow income, singe parent, formery homeess famiies reach true, ongterm sef-sufficiency by providing these famiies with comprehensive, intensive, integrative, supportive socia services in tandem with housing. It has deveoped 148 mosty scattered site housing units and continues to manage 129 of these. In December 1999, PCAH opened its computer center that focuses on assisting cients with their education and empoyment goas. Aside from computer and mutimedia equipment and broadband Internet connectivity, the center provides computer training and activities, intensive individua and group tutoring for parents and chidren, after schoo and summer activities, education and career assessment, counseing, panning and pacement, chid care subsidies and transportation subsidies. Each PCAH cient famiy has a socia worker that heps integrate computer center services with other PCAH services such as case management, drug and acoho counseing, ife skis workshops, psychoogica counseing, famiy recreationa and cutura enrichment activities, eadership deveopment activities, housing and home-ownership counseing. (Terry Guerra, Phiadephians Concerned About Housing) DePau University and the Association House of Chicago, a non-profit community-based socia service agency, coaborated to create the DePau Learning By Association CTCs. They are ocated in the West Town and Humbodt Park areas of Chicago. University students provide technica expertise, academic tutoring assistance, and genera ab support. They 56

71 Determining Program Focus work with the various departments of the agency to create targeted workshops and programs. Exampes incude: the inquiry-based project in which chidren in the after schoo program team up with university education majors to work on research projects; Los Monstros de High Tech in which youth in the aternative high schoo earn hardware and software skis to support various departments within the agency; and the Senior Memoirs Project in which senior citizens earn to use various technoogica resources to create their memoirs. (Roxanne F. Owens, Ph.D., DePau University) The broad goa of the Morehouse Schoo of Medicine Community Technoogy Centers project is to essen the digita divide by making educationa technoogy avaiabe to indigent popuations. A narrower goa is to demonstrate to both the indigent consumers and pubicy-funded heath care systems that hospita-based Community Technoogy Centers can enabe popuations to better educate themseves about their own heath and the heath of their chidren. Faciitating the abiity of ow-income popuations to educate themseves about their own heath and the heath of their chidren wi meet nationa and oca needs by: a) Increasing peope's understanding of the important ways in which such technoogy can faciitate their earning and functioning; and b) Providing ski-buiding to enabe them to use the technoogy. The Morehouse Schoo of Medicine Prevention Research Center (PRC) in cooperation with the Emory University Schoo of Medicine, Grady Heath System, and the City of Atanta Parks and Recreation Department has estabished a heath-focused Community Technoogy Center dispersed in three sites: (1) Grady Memoria Hospita, (in particuar, the Teen Services Cinic), (2) Hughes Spading Chidren s Hospita (in particuar, the Young Men s Cinic), (3) Thomasvie Recreation Center, a neighborhood center in the area targeted by the Prevention Research Center. The two hospitas serve the indigent popuation in Atanta. Their catchment area encompasses the area served by the neighborhood recreation center enabing hospita cients to continue to earn about their heath and deveop computer skis without having to return to the hospita. A minisite in the PRC s offices (1 computer) has aso been set up for use by community board members. The computer is equipped with foundation information and Internet access to enabe them to find information hepfu in writing their own grant proposas for the benefit of the community. (Marion Howard, Ph.D., Morehouse Schoo of Medicine Community Technoogy Centers Project) 57

72 Center Start-Up Manua How Does the Steering Committee Determine a Program Focus? The Steering Committee must now use the data obtained through the processes described in Chapter 2 together with the materia presented above to determine the program focus for the CTC. It wi be hepfu to have a summary report of findings reated to interests and needs of neighborhood residents together with a report summarizing compementary programs aready avaiabe in the community. The data wi ikey provide good indication of what initia offerings a CTC shoud provide and which popuations need to be served. Decisions shoud certainy be made in ight of the data, but shoud not be regarded necessariy as fina or cast in concrete. Suppose that the data reating to neighborhood residents interests and needs indicates that a arge percentage have ony a grade schoo education or ess, and have not had any experience using computer technoogies. It woud seem reasonabe to rank Adut Education high on your focus ist. If, however, the Steering Committee is not ready to commit to a fu-fedged Adut Education program, it might be possibe to coaborate with an existing agency, providing computer accessibiity to them in return for other services. A CTC, estabished as part of an existing program, may be presented with an opportunity or a need to expand, and thus have recourse to the community mapping data. It may be that the focus of the CTC parent agency dictates the genera focus of the program but that the data can be used to determine other aspects of the offering. The Somervie CCC was given space by the Somervie Center for Adut Learning Experiences (SCALE) so that SCALE students coud acquire computer skis. It was agreed that when SCALE students and teachers were not using the center, it coud serve other groups as we as the genera pubic. This partnership ed to the very comprehensive program now run by the SCCC incuding pre- and after- schoo groups, eder services, and pubic hours in addition to SCALE access. At The Bridge (Jacksonvie, FL), the CTC was introduced to enhance the job skis of pregnant and parenting teens. No community mapping process was undertaken unti more recenty when the opportunity to expand the program arose. The recent data indicated that a partnership with one of the oca schoos woud provide access to students afterschoo and woud give The Bridge access to schoo services such as software icenses, technica expertise, and vounteers. 58

73 Determining Program Focus See Exhibit 3-3 for a CTC programming worksheet, Exhibit 3-4 for poicies and reguations, and Exhibit 3-5 for a ab poicy vioation etter. Documentation Reports generated by work specified in this chapter wi incude: A summary of community interests and needs; A summary of partnership buiding efforts and resuts (Exhibit 2-2 provides a usefu mode); A statement of program focus areas determined by the Steering Committee; and Minutes of Steering Committee deiberations on the above issues. Additiona Contact Information Patti-Lyn Be, City of Seatte, Mayor's Office for Senior Citizens, Human Services Department, nd Avenue, Suite 250, Seatte, WA, 98104, [email protected], Paua M. Cymbaa, LEARN Project Coordinator, RAFT Regiona Access for Technoogy, 59

74 Center Start-Up Manua Terry Guerra, Phiadephians Concerned About Housing, Lucy Haagen, Durham County Literacy Counci, Hoy Harrison, Community Networking Project Manager, Aamo Area Community Information System (AACIS), Marion Howard, Ph.D., Director, Morehouse Schoo of Medicine Community Technoogy Centers Project, Atanta, Georgia, Roxanne F. Owens, Ph.D., DePau University, Schoo of Education, 2320 N. Kenmore, Chicago, IL, 60614, Andrew Sears, Association of Christian Community Computer Centers, 670 Washington Street, Dorchester, MA, 02124, Harod Smith, Co-Director, CyberSkis/Vermont, Od North End Community Technoogy Center, 279 North Winooski Avenue, Burington, VT, Mercedes Soto, IT Resource Center, CTC Acceerator Project Director, 29 E. Madison Street, 10th foor, Chicago, IL, 60602, Njideka Ugwuegbu, Executive Director, Youth for Technoogy Foundation,

75 Determining Program Focus Additiona Resources ACC-Resources-Program Design Aiance for Technoogy Access Resources Library AskERIC Education Information AskEric Educationa Technoogy Association of Christian Community Computer Centers Discussion ogs for EDTECH Emai List edtech Technoogy Foundations Knowedge and Skis K-12 Matrix Getting Invoved in Seatte Community Technoogy - Info Age Campaign Technoogy Literacy Benchmarks for Nonprofit Organizations 61

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77 Determining Program Focus Exhibit 3-1 The Best of Curricuum and Resources for Youth by Mary Margaret Pavan, AmeriCorps *VISTA Member Introduction The Best is a quick-reference for the onger report, Curricuum and Resources for Youth. The fu report contains more sections, incuding ones on projects others have actuay done and software and is avaiabe at For Curricuum YouthLearn is the best genera site for esson pans and hep in making your own curricuum at a Community Technoogy Center. This web site by the Morino Institute ( addresses issues reated to working with youth and technoogy, specificay in out-of-schoo settings. This site offers advice on how to pan as we as actua esson pans. You can aso subscribe to their ist service. A good web site for fairy academic esson pans is Tammy s Technoogy Tips for Teachers. This page incudes curricuum pans for computer projects, incuding Word Processing/Drawing, Spreadsheets/Databases, Internet Projects, and Mutimedia. These projects seem appropriate for a schoo-ike setting. Most projects are for 4 th -8 th graders. This site aso offers presentations about teaching technoogy we. page1.htm. In addition there are significant curricuum resources for youth at the Association of Christian Community Computer Centers Website at For digita art curricuum, see the Faces of Tomorrow web site. Not ony wi you see some resuts of this project, but you wi aso find a nice pdf-format manua about the project. This free manua incudes some esson pans for digita art projects. Aso check for ideas on digita photography projects. For Youth There are severa websites that stood out for youth. In genera, these sites are fairy educationa, coorfu, and interactive. Discovery Onine for kids (and teachers!), grades K-12, has tons of information. Youth can type in a math probem and it wi expain how to find the answer. There are aso entries from a save about what savery was ike and guidance about how to pan a science project. This site is very educationa! There are aso resources for teachers and parents. I Know That is a free e-earning website for younger chidren, ages 2 to 12. This site is very educationa and truy aimed at young chidren by being fun, coorfu and interactive. There s an on-ine sticker book of dinosaurs or ancient Egypt, art activities and educationa games with math, science, geography and phonics. When chidren compete an educationa activity successfuy, they can print an award certificate. Kids can aso save competed projects. PowerUp has severa sites for chidren. These sites are good starting paces for kids, because they ink to other kids sites. They aso have a theme for each month and a reated activity to direct kids in surfing the web. These coud be particuary usefu in a wak-in center environment to encourage youth to ook up something besides WWF and yrics. Ø PowerUp Kids is for grades K-3. Ø PowerUp Kids Pus is for grades Ø PowerUp Teens is for grades Ø PowerUp Teens Pus is for grades New York Pubic Library s fun sites for kids has some great inks, especiay on its Science and Technoogy page (you can view earth from rea sateites!). Additiona sections incude Arts & Games, Peope & 63

78 Center Start-Up Manua Paces, and Sports among others. Many of the inks are to ThinkQuest sites (student-made sites). www2.nyp.org/home/branch/kids/ Web Page Design Web Monkey for Kids teaches HTML-based web page design. It is the best (and ony) site I have found for teaching youth web page design. This site incudes a basic Lessons section that makes earning HTML unintimidating. Kids make a web page right away. There is aso a Projects section, where kids can see exampes of web sites, view the HTML code and are encouraged to copy, paste, and change the code to make it their own. The codes incude comments to hep kids understand. The projects are a good step from essons to more advanced work, without more tedious essons. The site offers Shockwave videos to watch during Payground time. Finay, there s a Toos section that not ony has software downoad information, but aso a ist of a HTML tags and a chart of web coor codes. Finay, there s a Panning Guide for parents and teachers. Pease note, however, that there is a ot of reading and athough witty, it may be intimidating/boring for young chidren. You may want to adapt the essons so you re the teacher instead of the website. It woud probaby be fine for midde schoo and oder for sef-study if an adut is around for questions. hotwired.ycos.com/webmonkey/kids (You can aso ink to this site at the bottom of which is a popuar site for web page designers). Back History I have reay enjoyed using AFRO-Americ@ s Kids Zone with K-7 th graders, especiay the Myths & Fabes section, which aows students to become famiiar with cicking through web pages even as they work on their basic reading skis. There is aso Brain Teaser, which incudes puzzes, African animas and a Back History quiz. There are great maps in Discover Africa and, of course, games in A Fun and Games. For Girs Three sites stand out as fun, interactive sites specificay for girs: Gir Tech ( Gir Power ( and The Adventures of Josie True ( Gir Tech predominanty encourages girs to communicate on-ine. Gir Power focuses on heath issues (it s sponsored by the U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services). The Adventures of Josie True is an educationa game that stars a Chinese-American gir and aows youth to practice their math skis as they go through history. For oder girs and women (high schoo and up), check out WOW/EM ( ~wowem), Girs Inc. ( and The Gae Group: Ceebrating Women s History Month ( WOW/EM offers resources to girs interested in both the arts and math/science/technoogy. Girs Inc. encourages girs to be strong, smart and bod. Ceebrating Women s History Month focuses on women s history. Homework Hep Ask Jeeves Kids is a great and popuar homework hep site. It s simpe: Students type in their question and Jeeves gives them possibe subjects that probaby incude the answer they want. This is appropriate for any age eve. Andrew ew Sears, Association of Christian Community Computer Centers, 670 Washington Street, eet, Dorchester chester,, MA, 02124; 64

79 Determining Program Focus Exhibit 3-2 SENIORS TRAINING SENIORS IN COMPUTER BASICS Tips & Lessons Learned Teaching Eders Provide sma casses with a ratio of 1:3 for optimum, one-on-one earning Senior instructors without adut-earners, teaching background may require more training time with a seasoned instructor (12 16 hours) Foow esson pan as cosey as possibe, but adapt for varying eves of students Reaize that most attendees are between 65+ to 90 years od with very itte or no knowedge of keyboarding skis Senior instructors (over 50+) and assistants wi hep each student individuay throughout the four, 2-hour casses Physica imitations such as eye-hand coordination; stiffness in fingers; imited vision and hearing oss increase instructor s individuaized attention to students Remember that teaching this technoogy to eders is ike teaching an edery person how to drive for the first time! Avoid excessive computer terminoogy it is intimidating reate to what they know from past experience Deveop eary on a comfortabe and reaxing atmosphere among the students and yoursef et them know they do not need to earn everything in these first 4, 2- hour casses. We woud ike them to fee comfortabe about returning. Do not ecture; break your day s esson into timed sections (i.e., 10 minute introduction; 15 minutes practice; 10 minutes Q & A) Do not push beyond what each one can do individuay have series of exercises for varying eves of competency as you assist each student Buid in practice time where they can search for or work on what they woud ike to do. Adut earners ike to make decisions for their earning. Enjoy their amazement. Have a great sense of humor. Create a comfort eve so they wi return and have ots of fun with your students. -- STS Tips and Lessons Learned, Created 5-02 / pb / Nancy Birdwe, Instructor The City of Seatte Human Services Department, Mayor s s Office fice for Senior Citizens nd Avenue, Suite 250, Seatte, WA. A

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81 Determining Program Focus Exhibit CTC Programming Worksheet CTC Programming Lab Environment Choices What wi it ook ike? How wi you get there? Signage What does your ab environment ook ike? Is it inviting? Is it updated? Do you have cient work up on the was? Are specific ab procedures posted and cear? Cient work Lab rues Posters Requesting Hep How do your users request hep? Overa Fee Is there a friendy, wecome feeing when users come in? Wecoming staff, sign-in, inviting? Course Design Choices What wi it ook ike? How wi you get there? Drop-in A Safe Pace Tutoring Homework Integration into "non-tech" courses Courses with a product Research Activism Coaboration Academic Skis Tech Specific Courses Websites Programming Robotics Newsetters Appications -- Saesforce.com/foundation, 1 Market Street, Landmark Bdg., ste. 300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, cefoundation.org; g; 67

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83 4c h a p t e r Staffing Introduction What are the Tasks? Preparing the Staffing Pan Staff Quaifications Hiring Process Personne Poicies Orientation Staff Deveopment Vounteer Deveopment and Management The CTC VISTA Project Exhibit 4-1 CTC Staffing Resource Worksheet Exhibit 4-2 CTC Position Description Worksheet Exhibit 4-3 Guide for Deveoping Vounteer Job Descriptions Exhibit 4-4 Vounteer Host Site MOU Exhibit 4-5 Contract for Consutant Services

84

85 4 c h a p t e r Staffing Staffing "Within the span of a year and a haf, he had gone from knowing nothing about computers to being abe to give back by teaching others in their native anguage. Teaching the casses opened up another opportunity within the agency when he was hired as a fu-time project director. Stories ike this remind staff, funders, and others why our services are so necessary and wi be needed for a ong time to come." "Ai," as submitted by Ingrid Kirst, Computer Lab Director Lincon Action Program, Nebraska "He heard that La Paza was in need of vounteers and decided he coud not ony hep out the community, he coud earn more about computers and Internet technoogy by working there. His father was aware that Mike woud need computer skis for future empoyment opportunities and supported him in his decision to work at La Paza as a vounteer." Mike Ortiz La Paza Teecommunity, Taos, New Mexico Introduction No other singe factor is so important to the success of a CTC as the quaity of its staff and vounteers. Resourcefu, friendy, hepfu, reiabe staff are essentia to making the CTC a pace peope want to come to, be in, and return to. The Steering Committee may wish to engage a staff person to work with them through the setting-up stages of operationaizing the CTC. Their choice may be a person who wi be the CTC director or coordinator; aternativey they may decide to take on a community outreach director first. Both are ogica choices. In considering its staffing pan and in thinking about the individuas who wi, in the ong run, be the reason the CTC succeeds, the Steering Committee shoud bear in mind 69

86 Center Start-Up Manua these essentia quaities: Interpersona skis are more important than technica expertise. Technica skis can be earned, bought, vounteered, but the abiity to reate easiy with a wide range of peope, to give them confidence, to recognize and appreciate the abiities they aready have that is the god. Staff shoud be abe to converse in the anguages predominanty spoken by participants. Otherwise both parties are at a disadvantage. If a center serves a variety of non-engish speaking peope, perhaps biingua vounteers can be found to assist communication. Fexibiity is key. Staff wi need to reate easiy with peope in many different age groups, with a variety of interests and needs and abiities, different incomes, widey varying backgrounds, and vasty different expectations of the CTC and of themseves. Common sense is essentia. What are the Tasks? Before punging into a staffing pan or even making a first hire, it is wise to consider a the tasks that make up successfu CTC operation. In CTCNet s experience, these fa roughy into five categories: Administrative, Community Outreach and Deveopment, Direct Services, Faciities and Equipment, and Cerica Support. 1. Administrative Program deveopment, management, and assessment Fisca accountabiity Liaison with governing/advising bodies and funders Staff and vounteer management 2. Community Outreach and Deveopment Cutivating and sustaining reationships with the community Promoting coaborations within the community and beyond Overseeing pubic reations and deveopment panning Researching, writing, and foow-up for grant proposas and other funding Reaching out to the entire community, incuding those with disabiities and 70

87 Staffing 3. Direct Services functiona imitations Supervision of CTC activities Insuring that the faciity and services are accessibe to peope with disabiities and functiona imitations Educationa activities n n n n n Teaching/supervising casses Orienting individuas, vounteers, and groups Creating and faciitating specia projects Counseing re jobs, heath, persona issues Preparing for, and documenting, a of the above Reception n n n n n Wecoming visitors and participants Answering and routing phone cas Monitoring sign-in/sign-out procedures Providing information about CTC activities & casses Scheduing orientation sessions 4. Faciities and Equipment Maintenance Site management n n n Security Housekeeping Refuse remova Maintain and improve the physica accessibiity of the site so that peope with disabiities and functiona imitations can get into and use the faciity Technica support n Troube-shooting hardware probems 71

88 Center Start-Up Manua n n n n Arranging repair, maintenance, and upgrades Storage of back up suppies Registration, warranties, and insurance Technoogy panning and recommendations for future purchase 5. Cerica and support services Generating pubications and announcements, incuding pubications and materias in accessibe formats and appropriate anguages Assembing and organizing maiings Sorting and routing incoming mai Updating buetin boards and CTC information packets Maintaining inventories Record-keeping and fiing reated to finance, attendance, scheduing, resources, etc. Knowedge of community resources, such as interpreters (mutipe anguages and sign anguage); knowedge of reay services This is an imposing ist and, even so, may not incude a the tasks required for successfu operation. The Steering Committee shoud brainstorm additiona tasks and responsibiities to ensure that the fina ist is a-incusive. For a piot program or sma center, a tasks may be the province of a singe paid staff person supported by a judiciousy seected group of vounteers and, of course, the Steering Committee itsef. Larger operations require a greater number of paid staff. Consider, too, the possibiity that participants themseves may, in time, take on operationa tasks. Preparing the Staffing Pan Once the tasks have been determined, but before an actua pan is aid out, the Steering Committee must consider a number of other factors: Budget Limitations What makes staffing a CTC so difficut is that so many centers are shoestring operations. Among CTCNet affiiates, some centers are fortunate to have many 72

89 Staffing paid staff. Severa survive with a part-time coordinator and vounteers. Regardess of the stringency of the budget, CTCNet does not recommend staffing a center entirey with vounteers. There must be one person who is responsibe for the overa management and direction and is empowered to make opera- tiona decisions. That person shoud be paid a saary with benefits and accorded the respect owed to a professiona. Ideay, a CTC wi have at east one staff person in each of the above task areas, and perhaps a number of speciaists in the education area of Direct Service. The PUENTE center in Los Angees is a high end exampe with space and staff to serve cose to 2000 peope of a ages every day. Security Budget imitations are not the ony factors infuencing the staffing pan. Another is the security of the space. Staff, vounteers, and participants must fee safe entering and eaving the CTC if they are to return. Post emergency procedure and contact information after it is used to train staff and vounteers. It is advisabe to have at east one paid staff member on site at a times who is famiiar with emergency procedures. In addition, in some high-crime areas, some staff and vounteers may fee more comfortabe with a staff or security escort into and out of the CTC. Honor their requests. Work with oca aw enforcement authorities to conduct periodic patros of the area if necessary. The SCCC, with its 40+ computers, is ocated in three inner rooms of a secure buiding that maintains its own security force. Thus, supervision of casses and open hours can be done by vounteers without the presence of any paid staff. Because the Paying To Win Harem Center, on the other hand, is a storefront operation in the heart of a high-crime neighborhood, and cannot ask vounteers to take soe responsibiity for the security of the space or the occupants at any time, a minimum of two paid staff must be present during a center open hours. Size of center and hours of operation The third major determining factor is the size of the center and the usage hours projected. In CTCNet s experience, in order to provide effective hep and guidance, one staff person (paid or vounteer) shoud be present and avaiabe for every 10 computer stations (between 10 and 20 participants) in use. If the center is not ocated in a buiding that houses other active services (i.e. if there is no one who can be easiy summoned in an emergency), it wi be advisabe to have two staff persons on duty at a times that the center is open to participants. 73

90 Center Start-Up Manua Once these factors have been taken into account, the next steps are quite simpe. 1. Take the task ist (a spreadsheet is usefu) and opposite each task create four coumns headed Paid Staff, Vounteer, Steering Committee/Board, and Participant. 2. Move through the task ist indicating for each task the type of personne to whom it can be assigned. NB: You may have checks in more than one coumn for a given task. 3. Sort the tasks into these four categories. 4. Take the ist for each category and sort once again according to necessary skis. For exampe, the vounteer category may contain reception, cerica, and teaching tasks. Different ski sets are required in each, so you wi need to re-sort this ist according to ski set. 5. The resuting ists wi define the required staff and aso provide the basis for deveoping job descriptions for each position. See Exhibit 4-1 for a CTC Staffing Resource Worksheet. Staff Minimum Quaifications Administrative tasks In addition to documented experience in the areas itemized in the task ist, persons empoyed for administrative tasks shoud be articuate, comfortabe with budgets and accounting procedures, and be comfortabe and interactiona in staff supervision roes. They shoud aso view technoogy as essentia to the execution of their tasks since they wi, in a rea sense, be serving as roe modes for CTC participants. Community outreach & deveopment The idea candidate here is someone with the zea of a community activist, demonstrated capacity in community deveopment and fund-raising, with exceent communications skis (both verba and written), and genera attitude of openness and incusive approach. Initiative and foow-through are key quaities. Educationa activity Here you wi be ooking for someone with experience in basic technoogy appications, a earner rather than a teacher, a person who may repy to a question 74

91 Staffing with a question rather than an answer. Imagination and creativity are essentia ingredients. The person wi need to have the capacity to both deveop projects for participants and work with the fund-raiser to deveop ideas for directions the CTC can take educationay which can be turned into proposas. The head teacher is unfappabe, straightforward, a no-nonsense person who does not rey heaviy on didacticism. Many centers wi start out with a minimum number of software packages. The head teacher wi need famiiarity with these, but aso must possess the kind of creativity that can turn a word processor into a cooring book project for a ow reading eve participant. The teacher shoud aso have knowedge of different earning styes and reading and writing software programs that can support the earning process for peope who have earning difficuties. Knowedge of the access features in operating systems is aso desirabe. At CTCNet we often use the gardener anaogy. A gardener is not interested in producing repicas of him/hersef. A gardener cannot impart knowedge to a pant. Instead, a gardener uses his/her knowedge of pant cuture to feed, weed, prune. A gardener is interested in the heath, growth, and fecundity of his/her charges. A gardener provides space in which each pant can achieve maximum success according to its own nature. Instructiona staff with this sort of phiosophy tend to be more successfu than others. For personne at their centers, the Lansing Housing Authority uses the word coach for both paid and vounteer teaching staff. The concept is simiar, with the context one of athetics rather than horticuture. Reception Area The quaifications for this position are quite obvious: friendiness, patience, human interest, unfappabiity, a sense of order and decorum. In most cases, the reception peope wi be the front for the center, the first encounter most participants wi have. They wi aso manage the teephone and provide information about the center, and thus shoud have the abiity to communicate with a caers, incuding peope who are deaf or hard of hearing, using the state s reay systems (mandated by federa aw, check with the Federa Communications Commission for current information at trs.htm) or a TTY. It is important that this person be patient and comfortabe with a diverse community and makes a peope fee wecome. If vounteers are recruited for this position, training in teephone response may be necessary since some residents have itte experience with using a teephone. Roe pay is very hepfu in preparing a vounteer for this position. 75

92 Center Start-Up Manua Faciities & equipment A number of the tasks in this category can be farmed out, either through steering/advisory committee members (e.g., computer maintenance, trash pickup, janitoria services) or through the faciities management. What cannot be farmed out is the constant picking up and putting back of software, paper, disks, fies, etc. Reguar inventory checks are ikewise essentia since otherwise it may be hard to te if anything substantia is missing. A CTC without someone who takes these tasks seriousy can quicky become not ony a mess, but a prey to peope who pick up whatever they can (e.g., mouse bas, disks, toiet paper, ceaning suppies, books, pens, etc.). Cerica and support services Quaifications in this area are fairy standard and coincide with generay accepted quaifications for cerica positions. In CTCNet s experience, if a person is hired, or a vounteer recruited, for these tasks, an orientation and training period is essentia. Perks that can be provided incude schedued time to improve technoogy skis, use the Internet, etc. Experience with the cerica and support services within a CTC can aso constitute a rung in the training adder for participants in any job-training program housed at the center. Summary Many of the quaifications described above are admittedy quaitative difficut to specify as bueted items in a job description. Yet it is these quaities of personne that wi be important for sustainabiity of the CTC. See Exhibit 4-2 for a CTC Position Description Worksheet. Staff Recruitment The Steering Committee wi probaby want to recruit and hire the senior personne. Assembing the rest of the crew can then be the responsibiity of those hires. 76

93 Staffing Types of Staff Saaried As stated above, at east one person must be saaried. Athough administration may seem ike the biggest job, actua daiy interaction with participants at the center is more probaby the arena in which success or faiure of the CTC wi be determined. Participants as we as management wi fee more comfortabe knowing who is in charge (where the buck stops). They wi aso appreciate seeing a famiiar face, being greeted or having reguar contact with the same person. In some CTCNet centers, the administrative and head teacher tasks are performed by a singe individua. If a sponsoring agency aready empoys a Human Services Director or equivaent, it is conceivabe that person coud take on either the administration or the head teacher roe, where the rest of the tasks are performed by vounteers or steering/advisory committee members. Vounteer Many tasks can be handed by vounteers. Some tasks wi require technoogy skis or expertise, but many wi not. Community residents can be considered for a variety of duties incuding instructiona supervision but aso reception, cerica, outreach, escort services, evauating software, housekeeping, etc. In considering potentia vounteers, the resources avaiabe through the center s advisory board or steering committee shoud not be negected. Appropriate tasks are those that do not require reguar daiy or weeky scheduing. Individua members or subcommittees can hande such areas as technoogy panning, acquisition and repair, community outreach and participant recruitment, grant writing and soicitation, pubic reations, etc. Lasty, center participants themseves often make the best vounteers and center mentors. Once the center is in operation, consider estabishing a youth corps, a senior corps, or a mentoring corps from amongst the most avid center users. Pease heed the foowing words of caution regarding vounteers. Many CTCs make the mistake that vounteers are "free abor," and that you shoud never turn away a vounteer. Vounteers shoud be treated as staff, especiay since they are heping your CTC function, and wi require resources to manage. Vounteers shoud be reassigned or "fired" if they are not doing a good job or vioate CTC 77

94 Center Start-Up Manua vounteer poicies. See Exhibit 4-3 for a Guide to Deveoping Vounteer Job Descriptions, and Exhibit 4-4 for a sampe Vounteer Host Site Memo of Understanding. Consutants It hepfu to work with a paid consutant who has experience with CTC deveopment. If there are other CTCs in your community, you may want to connect with them as they may offer technica consuting services or provide you with a recommendation for a particuar consutant. Be sure to spe out the terms and services you expect from the consutant. See Exhibit 4-5 for a sampe Contract for Consutant Services. Loca sources of potentia staff and vounteers The immediate residentia community: Since the most important criterion for staff is that they know and understand the community and be abe to reate we with their participants, and to communicate with them in their anguage of choice, it is natura to ook first at the resident community for potentia candidates. Peope with disabiities -- foks with expertise and taents that might not be so obvious -- need to be incuded as potentia candidates. Educationa Institutions: Coeges and universities (technoogy, education, ibrary services departments; job pacement bureaus and internship programs) are a rich source for staff. It s important to bear in mind, however, that students are often transient and require fexibiity with regard to their schedues. They may aso require increased supervision or management to compy with schoo requirements. Students may prefer a short-term, targeted vounteer assignment identifying earning objectives and tasks to compete. Many high schoos (pubic and private) have community service programs. The oca PTA may be the best source of staff/vounteers among parents in the community. In addition, coeges and universities often have disabed student services programs that can be mined for sources of expertise on adapted computers. Reigious Institutions: A number of nationa projects in this past decade have funded computer offerings through reigious institutions. Shoud there be such a project in your community, peope who have ed or participated may be candidates for staff or vounteer positions. Other Community Service Organizations: The outreach/community mapping tasks shoud have identified a number of these organizations that use or teach peope to use technoogy resources. 78

95 Staffing Computer User Groups and Cyber-Cafes: These wi usuay post job-offerings and vounteer opportunities on their eectronic and actua buetin boards. Loca Government Agencies: The Mayor s Office for Vounteerism, the Human Services Department, the Senior Services Division a these are worth exporing. Corporations and Sma Businesses: Again, representatives serving on the Center s oversight (steering/panning) committee may provide iaison. Loca and Regiona Newspapers, Radio, and Cabe TV Stations wi often offer free space to non-profits for job postings and cas for vounteers. Onine Vounteer Listing Services, such as Ideaist.org ( and VounteerMatch ( may offer free or reduced price ads to your nonprofit. In addition, they have the benefit of reaching a wider poo of potentia vounteers. If your CTC is ocated in a popuation sparse region, isting your vounteer ad on the Internet may not bring in many vounteers. Larger urban areas probaby stand to benefit most from this option, but it doesn't hurt to try. Lasty, one coud consut oca empoyment agencies, but generay that means paying a fee. Hiring Process Step 1: Deveop job descriptions for each of the paid staff positions. Job descriptions shoud contain: a brief description of the CTC and its mission or purpose position description, tite, and supervising authority duties and responsibiities quaifications saaries and benefits appication deadine request for references N.B. If the position requires writing (reports, grant proposas, PR materias), it is advisabe to request a writing sampe from the appicant. 79

96 Center Start-Up Manua Step 2: Institute the search The Steering Committee may want to constitute a search sub-committee. Members of the sub-committee shoud be famiiar with anti-discrimination aws. Additiona members of this committee may be recruited from among neighborhood residents and from partnering neighborhood agencies or institutions. If the position requires a biingua person, some member of the Search Committee shoud be fuent in that second anguage. A Steering Committee members wi be expected to circuate the job description(s) to their own constituencies. Members of the sub-committee shoud be famiiar with anti-discrimination aws and know questions that are appropriate and inappropriate to ask. Job descriptions shoud be paced in newspapers, posted on community eectronic buetin boards and to other CTCNet affiiates, and circuated to neighborhood institutions, producers of community newsetters, oca businesses, and empoyment agencies. In this atter case, inquire in advance about fees for pacement. A word-of-mouth network is important, particuary since it is highy desirabe to be abe to make the hire from the community itsef. Step 3: Making the decision The Search Committee wi: Cu potentia candidates from resumes submitted and recommendations made Check references through persona teephone cas Schedue initia persona interviews with members of the Search Committee, and In the case of senior personne, schedue an interview with the entire Steering Committee. The Steering Committee shoud consider asking candidate finaists to meet with a group of participants, take on the roe of instructor of the piot program during an hour or two, and/or to prepare a forma written response to a potentia issue arising at the CTC. In the eary days of the Paying to Win Harem Center, asking potentia teachers to audition by conducting a guest workshop paid repeated dividends. A young 80

97 Staffing man who seemed reserved and unsociabe in an interview bossomed when interacting with center participants. Had it not been for this encounter, he might not have been hired. Another candidate with strong teaching credentias found it difficut to function in such an informa hands-on environment and withdrew his appication. Step 4: Seaing the bargain. For both paid staff and vounteers, specify the hire in a written etter. In this etter, outine the position responsibiities, the remuneration and benefits (if any) and indicate any tria period during which either party may sever the reationship without penaty (it is important to specify such a tria period, especiay for vounteers), and required time commitment. Personne Poicies If the CTC is going to have empoyees, it must deveop personne poicies. This is true whether there are one or ten empoyees. Personne poicies set out the ega responsibiities of the empoyer and the benefit packages avaiabe to empoyees. They aso spe out grievance procedures and any performance review process. CTC poicy with regard to promotion, pay increase, and severance is aso normay incuded. Whie the entire content may not be appicabe to vounteers, they shoud receive a copy of the personne poicies and the reevant areas shoud be discussed with them for iabiity purposes. Lega responsibiities If the CTC pays an empoyee, such action triggers certain obigations under state and federa aws. To ensure that it is meeting its obigations, the CTC shoud contact the oca IRS and state empoyment tax offices to find out the CTC s fiing obigations. The Steering Committee shoud aso contact the State department of abor or department of commerce/business to find out the CTC s obigations concerning unempoyment insurance, workmen s compensation, disabiity, and other abor practices. Benefit packages The CTC must consider whether to offer benefits to its empoyees. Benefits can incude heath, denta and ife insurance and vacation and persona eave. No matter what the benefit package arrangements are, a written poicy shoud be prepared and distributed to the empoyees to whom it appies. The Steering Committee shoud be aware that benefit packages can cost the CTC an additiona 81

98 Center Start-Up Manua 15%-25% of empoyees saary. These costs must be refected in the CTC financia projections. Grievance procedures Athough one hopes that the occasion never arises, it is a good idea to be prepared for grievances that may be odged by participants against staff, or by vounteers against staff or participants, or by staff against vounteers, peers, or superiors. Grievance procedures shoud set forth a forma series of steps that must be taken in the process of odging and setting grievances. These steps must incude: Documenting the grievance in writing. Submission of the documented grievance to the appropriate superior. Discussion of the grievance with the superior for the purpose of setting the grievance (this discussion shoud aso be documented and signed by both parties). A system for submission of the grievance to the next higher authority in the event that initia discussion fais to sette the matter. Specification of the ast court of appea the person or group whose decision on the matter wi be fina. Staff assessment An annua performance review is the most common type of staff assessment. However, it is not perceived as hepfu by many peope. Increasingy, human resource professionas prefer a stye that features continua feedback to the empoyee in order to reinforce good performance and stop poor performance quicky. Under this coaching concept, the year begins with the empoyee and the supervisor or Steering Committee meeting to set goas for empoyee performance in the coming year. These goas are reated to the overa goas of the CTC as we as to the specific assignment of the worker and his or her stage of professiona growth. Goas must be agreed to by both the empoyee and supervisor. As the year moves forward, the supervisor shoud frequenty et the empoyee know how he or she is doing. Praise is important as we as constructive criticism. References to the mutuay agreed upon goas shoud be a reguar part of these conversations. Adjustments shoud be made in the performance standards and goas as the year goes by. 82

99 Staffing The supervisor shoud take on a greater roe in the empoyee s achievement of his or her goas. If the empoyee s performance has not been satisfactory, the supervisor shoud hep the empoyee get on track. If progress has been good, both can enjoy the success, and presumaby the CTC s goas are being met as we. Quartery or annua reviews shoud be routine meetings and few surprises shoud arise. If feedback is constant (even daiy, in some cases), these more forma reviews are typicay used for adjustment (up or down) of the goas and performance standards for the empoyee for the year. Proponents of this system beieve it is a very effective means of staff assessment for an organization that wants continuay to improve its performance. Conditions for severance In the best of a words, personne wi be reiabe, wi reate we with participants, and wi perform aby the tasks they have agreed to perform. It is aso advisabe to have forma dismissa procedures on fie and reviewed with a staff. It is nevertheess important to specify actions that wi ead to a required probationary period or even immediate dismissa such as: Physica or verba abuse of participants or feow workers Theft or destruction of CTC property Introduction of inappropriate or iicit software Sexua harassment Drug use or deaing Orientation A structured orientation program is important for any new staff. Such a program shoud incude: A warm wecome Introduction to the mission and goas of the CTC Introduction to Steering Committee members, other agency staff or any CTC staff aready on board Introduction to personne poicies An opportunity to become famiiar with CTC resources - where things are kept, what software is avaiabe, what procedures are in pace. 83

100 Center Start-Up Manua One CTCNet affiiate devised a hands-on orientation strategy Stage a scavenger hunt. Provide each pair of participants with a bank map of the CTC space and a ist of things that are to be ocated. Ask each pair to ocate the items and abe their maps accordingy. This procedure had the virtue of being fun, acquiainting the vounteers with CTC resources, and serving as a roe mode of the kind of hands-on earning experiences that CTC staff hoped the vounteers woud provide for participants. For vounteers, the orientation shoud provide an opportunity to meet with their specific supervisor to discuss their assignments, estabish an individua schedue, and review and countersign the commitment etter. Staff Deveopment Because contentment of taented and abe staff is vita, and because the CTC probaby does not offer the highest saaries, staff deveopment is an essentia activity for the CTC. Staff deveopment incudes both opportunities for further education and increasing job satisfaction. Topics for further education shoud incude enhancing knowedge and skis on computers, earning software packages, and discovering the newest deveopments in computer technoogy. Techniques to increase job satisfaction incude soiciting and responding to feedback, giving empoyees and vounteers more responsibiity, adding more activities, deveoping fexibe hours, providing job sharing, and matching jobs with individuas interests. Vounteers work without pay, but not without rewards. The most important rue concerning vounteers thank them frequenty and appropriatey. Means of rewarding vounteers for their services can incude: an annua vounteer recognition dinner, picnic, or socia event at which an award certificate or gift is given to each vounteer; persona time on the computers; Internet time for persona use; a mass transit pass for persona use; free tickets to sporting, cutura, or recreationa events; and, paid expenses to CTCNet's annua conference and/or regiona meetings. 84

101 Staffing Affiiation with CTCNet affords a number of opportunities for staff deveopment. Through teecommunications inkages with other CTCs, staff can share probems and soicit suggestions; through regiona meetings and the Nationa Conference, affiiate staff can participate in and/or conduct workshops, pan coaborative projects, and exchange information with others in simiar centers. Vounteer Deveopment & Management Centers often find that is it not difficut to find and recruit vounteers to assist a CTC with its operation. There are aways skied and enthusiastic peope who are eager to render their services and give back to the community. The chaenge of working with vounteers, however, ies in the abiity of a CTC to utiize and draw upon their varied ski sets. Athough vounteers are not compensated, their roes are vauabe and possiby critica to the day-to-day activities of a center. Before recruiting vounteers, ask yoursef the foowing questions: Do we have the capacity to manage the vounteers? How do we keep them engaged and interested so that they wi keep coming back? How can we effectivey utiize the vounteers? For CTCs that are currenty working with vounteers or are panning to utiize vounteers in the future, CTCNet encourages the deveopment of a Vounteer Poicy. Vounteers may have much-needed expertise in certain areas; nevertheess they aso need supervision to understand and fufi the expectations attached to their roe. The purpose of a Vounteer Poicy is to provide guidance and direction to both staff and vounteers and to ensure effective vounteer usage. The poicy shoud incude operationa procedures for the vounteer management process. In creating a Vounteer Poicy, CTCs shoud consider the foowing components: Vounteer Position Deveopment Types of Projects - Consider that it is can be difficut for vounteers to make a ong-term commitment. Short-term and ceary defined projects are more ikey to attract interested vounteers. Job description - Like paid staff, vounteers require a compete description of the position they fi. A cear project scope wi hep staff attract and 85

102 Center Start-Up Manua identify the right vounteer for the job. Incude : 1. The need to be addressed 2. Outside skis and knowedge required 3. Estimated time commitment Recruitment Locating Vounteer Sources - Identify appropriate paces to post your vounteer description incuding: newsetters, newspapers, oca schoos, the center web site, and onine isting services (VounteerMatch, Ideaist.org, Vounteer Soutions, to name a few.) Appication process - Basic information about a vounteer (e.g. contact info, skis, and time commitment) must be obtained. This information can aso be used for screening and quaification purposes. Interviewing - A vounteers shoud be interviewed, even if very informay, to assure that the center and the vounteer are a good match, and that the vounteer has the interest, quaifications, and commitment necessary for the position. Screening - Screening generay invoves reference checks, background and crimina record investigation, and driving records. Each center has its own set of requirements. Seect a process that most appropriatey refects your center s needs. Seection - Consider starting the vounteer on a tria basis. After the tria period, meet again with the vounteer to make sure that the arrangement is working out on both sides. You may find that, due to a variety of unforeseen reasons, the match wi not work out. Take what you have earned and appy it to future interaction with vounteers. Orientation Orientation/training - A vounteers shoud be briefed on the work mission and phiosophy of your organization. Specificay, the purpose of and duties accompanying the vounteer position shoud be ceary expained. Vounteer standards - Standards of performance shoud be estabished for a vounteers such as basic rues of conduct, dress code, and confidentiaity issues. Expectations - A project agreement shoud not ony state what is expected of the vounteer but aso what a vounteer can expect from your organization. 86

103 Staffing Vounteer Management Vounteer supervision - Designate a staff member or personne as the primary supervisor to be responsibe for direct vounteer management of the vounteer s work. Remember that vounteers need a ot of guidance and encouragement. A person must aways be avaiabe to the vounteers for assistance and consutation. Documentation - Keep track of any work the vounteer has done, especiay if it s technica in nature. There s nothing worse than having a vounteer eave and not being aware of major changes that have been made to your CTC s configuration. It wi aso ease the transition of new vounteers into the CTC. Evauation - Designing a simpe evauation for vounteers to compete wi hep your center obtain a genera picture of your vounteer s experience and highight areas of improvement for the vounteer program. Risk Management and Liabiity - Having a cear poicy of iabiity is important, especiay in circumstances where accidents or injuries occur to a vounteer. This poicy must be presented to the vounteer prior to the start of the project to avoid future compications and ega battes. Recognition Purpose - Vounteers shoud be thanked and recognized for their service and contribution to your organization. Consistent appreciation of your vounteers wi give them a sense of beonging and prevent vounteer turnover. Methods - Center shoud deveop ongoing methods to recognize your vounteers. These efforts shoud be both informa and forma. Some ideas incude: thank yous, vounteer certificates, highighting their service on your newsetter, incuding them in a decision-making process, presenting them with sma tokens of appreciation, and participating in Nationa Vounteer Week activities ( This outine is by no means compete. Vounteer poicies can be as detaied or as simpe as you wish, depending on the working cuture of the center. The underying message is that it is important to have a Vounteer Poicy in pace. It is an effective approach for a CTC to take fu advantage of a vounteer s time and ski. (Contributed by Trang T. Le, Project Coordinator, CTCNet) 87

104 Center Start-Up Manua The CTC VISTA Project Is your CTC strugging to write grants, conduct targeted outreach, create training curricuum, or deveop program materias? Are you in need of assistance with vounteers, buiding community partnerships, fund-raising, or deveoping your organizationa infrastructure? In essence, are you ooking to buid the sustainabe capacity of your CTC? An AmeriCorps *VISTA member may be abe to hep. One of the major ways to hep your organization meet the above needs is by tapping into the AmeriCorps *VISTA program ( Commony referred to as the country s domestic Peace Corps program, President Lyndon B. Johnson created AmeriCorps *VISTA, or Vounteers in Service to America, to combat poverty as part of the Economic Opportunity Act of Athough this 35 year-od program is sated by the current Administration to undergo major organizationa changes, it has been supporting digita divide projects for severa years. The CTC VISTA project a nationa demonstration coaboration ed by the Coege of Pubic and Community Service at UMass-Boston specificay for CTCNet affiiates has been awarded a three year grant through August 2003 to assist with the recruitment, pacement, and support of more than 100 AmeriCorps *VISTA members to hep with capacity-buiding efforts at CTCs across the country. Through the CTC VISTA project, CTCNet affiiates have ow-cost access for supporting peope to work as technica assistants, training and educationa program deveopers, and resource providers to enhance programs that nurture the effective use of technoogy by those who ordinariy do not have access to such opportunities. Exampes of VISTA projects incude: deveoping technoogy course materias, incuding materias in anguages other than Engish assisting in teaching and deveoping technoogy courses providing program support by deveoping vounteer-supported staffing for computer abs engaging in community outreach enriching and deveoping programs which may invove creating and maintaining web pages, newsetters, and computer resource guides grant-writing and other endeavors which enhance program sustainabiity CTC VISTAs aso create web pages to describe the service they are performing for their communities. To view these pages, pease visit 88

105 Staffing CTC VISTAs are eigibe for a variety of on-site or off-site training opportunities incuding distance-earning opportunities sponsored by the Coege of Pubic and Community Service at UMass-Boston, which offers a certificate in Community Media and Technoogy. VISTA members commit to a year of service and receive a iving stipend set at the oca poverty eve, heath insurance coverage, trave to the CTCNet Annua Conference, and a post-service education award worth $4,725 or $1,200 cash stipend. VISTA positions are avaiabe on a roing basis. The CTC VISTA Project is rapidy growing and is open to a CTCNet affiiates. If you are interested in bringing a VISTA on board, are interested in service opportunities, or woud ike additiona information, pease visit the project web site at Documentation Task List and Staffing Pan Job Descriptions for a positions (paid and vounteer, fu- and part-time) Personne Poicies: Benefits, Grievance Process, and Performance Review 89

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107 Staffing Additiona Resources LCTC Professiona Deveopment Curricuum Modues for Training Teecentre Staffs fs ModTrainingTeecStaff.pdf Schoos Onine - Technica Assistance Resources ServiceLeader.Org, vounteer management and vounteerism resources Staffing fing and Supervision of Empoyees and Vounteers TechSoup.org - Vounteers artices.cfm?topicid=7&topic=vounteers&cg=content&sg=mainvounteers Vounteer Management - Energize s Vounteerism Resources for Directors of Vounteers 91

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109 Exhibit CTC Staffing Resource Worksheet STAFF (inc. Vounteers) Person Staffing This is intended to be used as a guide too to hep you figure out how to aocate your staff time. We suggest that the tabe represents a week, though it coud be used differenty or parts extracted. You may want to make copies and fi one out for your existing situation and another one out for where you woud ike to pan on being in six months or a year. Tite or roe Tota hrs per week TOTALS LAB TIME Casses and programs (Optiona ist each) Open ab Maintenance OTHER AREAS Outreach and marketing Cass/program registration Vounteer recruitment and management Professiona or organizationa networking Staff training Evauation & reporting Program panning Deveopment/ fundraising Staff meetings Other administration Other: -- Submitted by David Keyes; Produced by the City of Seatte Department of Information Technoogy echnoogy,, (206) ; 93

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111 Staffing Exhibit 4-2: CTC Position Description Worksheet MAYOR S OFFICE FOR SENIOR CITIZENS 618 Second Avenue, Suite 250, Seatte, Wa Seniors (& Others!) in Service to Seatte Vounteer Matching Program AGENCY NAME (Host Site): ADDRESS: Zip CONTACT PERSON: Phone: Fax # Emai Ce Phone POSITION TITLE : JOB DESCRIPTION SUMMARY: SKILLS REQUIRED MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES What personaity traits are necessary to perform job we? What are some of the benefits of this position to the vounteer? o Computer Training o Lunch o Bus tickets o Casses o Compimentary tickets to: o Learn new skis, such as: 95

112 Center Start-Up Manua o o Vounteer Recognition (e.g. certificates, etc.) Other: Are computer skis necessary? Yes (see boxes) No 1. Word processing: o Extensive o Moderate o Some o Wi train 2. Spreadsheet: o Extensive o Moderate o Some o Wi train 3. Data entry: o Extensive o Moderate o Some o Wi train What software do you use? LENGTH OF COMMITMENT o Indefinite o Month(s) Minimum o Month(s) Maximum o Project Based o One-Time Ony (DATE: ) o # of Weeks TIME COMMITMENT o Hours fexibe o Set Hours: From to o Days fexibe o Set Days: M T W Thr Fri o Weekends Sat Sun APPROXIMATE # HOURS PER WEEK PER MONTH What training / orientation wi you provide the vounteer before they begin their job? (e.g., equipment training, tour of faciity, department quideines, etc.) Is this vounteer position created in ieu of a paid position? o Yes o No What other information woud you ike a potentia vounteer to know about your company / department and the position? _ 96

113 Staffing Exhibit 4-3 Guide for Deveoping Vounteer Job Descriptions Job Tite ite This wi be the vounteer s identification. Give this as much prestige as possibe. Major objective A short concise statement, refecting the utimate goa of the service to be performed. Quaifications Incude a things necessary for the effective performance of duties, isting requirements from physica to human quaities desired. Be carefu not to over quaify the position, you coud ose some exceent vounteers due to stringent educationa requirements. Specifics such as a car, proper insurance, if needed, etc., shoud be noted. Responsibiities As specificay as possibe, ist each duty and responsibiity of the job. Orientation/Training raining This incudes the nature of, specific content needed in, and the approximate hours for orientation and training, identifying persons who wi conduct the training. Time and Pace This shoud incude the exact duty hours, which days of the week and the pace where the vounteer is to perform the services. BE SPECIFIC. Commitment The minimum number of months you need from the vounteer based on your investment in training and supervision becomes the minimum ength of commitment for the vounteer. A maximum time commitment shoud aso be specified. On the Job Supervision Name of the supervisor or the position of the supervisor. In most cases, this wi be the staff person with direct responsibiity for the service. Incude schedue of supervisory sessions. Benefits List any avaiabe benefits to the vounteer, e.g., free parking, coffee, mieage reimbursement and insurance. Frustrations Those aspects of the job which can be frustrating, e.g., the record keeping. Satisfactions Those aspects of the job which can give the vounteer rea satisfaction and earning. 97

114 Center Start-Up Manua 98

115 Staffing Exhibit 4-4: Vounteer Host Site MOU MAYOR S OFFICE FOR SENIOR CITIZENS (MOSC) Human Services Department 618 Second Ave. Room 250, Seatte, WA SENIORS (& OTHERS!) IN SERVICE TO SEATTLE Vounteer Matching Program MEMO OF UNDERSTANDING AGENCY ( Host Site ): ADDRESS: ZIP CONTACT PERSON: DIRECT PHONE: FAX: WEB PAGE: PURPOSE OF MEMO To outine the roes and responsibiities of each party participating in the Mayor s Office for Senior Citizens (MOSC), Seniors (& Others!) in Service to Seatte (S.I.S.) Vounteer Matching Program. Agency (Host Site) and the MOSC Vounteer Matching Program agree to foow these guideines for a successfu vounteer pacement. AGENCY (HOST SITE) GUIDELINES 1. Assign a CONTACT PERSON to communicate with the S.I.S Vounteer Manager 2. Contact referred vounteer(s) as soon as possibe to initiate interview process 3. Inform S.I.S. Vounteer Manager regarding resuts of vounteer interviews 4. When a vounteer is seected for position, inform S.I.S. Vounteer Manager 5. Conduct persona &/or professiona references of vounteer, as needed by Agency 6. Conduct crimina background check, if required by agency 7. Provide vounteer insurance coverage cause in your organization s poicy. 8. Provide orientation to your Agency, and training for vounteer position 9. Go over vounteer job description with him/her and have them sign & date 99

116 Center Start-Up Manua 10. Inform S.I.S. Vounteer Manager if position changes from initia matched position 11. Support vounteer (s) and provide safe & receptive atmosphere 12. Aert the S.I.S.Vounteer Manager of any potentia conficts or chaenges 13. Promote and acknowedge, when possibe, the roe of the Mayor s Office for Senior Citizens in matching vounteers to your agency through our vounteer program Seniors (& Others) in Service to Seatte. RESPONSIBILITIES OF SENIORS (& OTHERS) IN SERVICE TO SEATTLE 1. Register and promote Agency vounteer positions through various mediums (i.e., City Website, MOSC Newsetters, Vounteer Match.com, artices in newspapers, brochures, fyers) 2. Interview, and screen (phone or in-person) vounteer(s) regarding the skis / taents needed for positions within Agency 3. Ca or emai CONTACT PERSON at agency regarding potentia vounteer(s) 4. Fax a resume (if there is one) of vounteer to Contact Person upon request 5. Provide a copy of the S.I.S. Vounteer Appication, if requested. 6. Communicate with Contact Person on a reguar basis regarding vounteer(s) 7. Communicate on a reguar basis with paced vounteers regarding opportunity 8. Act as Mediator, if necessary, with any conficts or chaenges invoving vounteer(s) 9. Arrange occasiona pubicity of organization and vounteer(s) for various newsetters 10. Honor vounteer(s) throughout year, as appropriate, with cards, etters, etc. 11. Arrange specia recognition uncheon, if budget aows 12. The undersigned have read this Memo of Understanding and understand their responsibiities and expectations regarding the MOSC Seniors (& Others!) in Service to Seatte Vounteer Matching Program. DATE: HOST SITE: CONTACT PERSON: DATE: MAYOR S OFFICE FOR SENIOR CITIZENS Seniors (& Others!) In Service to Seatte Vounteer Programs Manager 100

117 Staffing Exhibit 4-5: Contract for Consutant Services This Agreement ( Agreement ) made this [DAY] day of [MONTH], [YEAR] by and between LTSC Community Deveopment Corporation (CONSULTANT) and [BUSINESS/NONPROFIT/INDI- VIDUAL] (AGENCY). Now, therefore, the parties mutuay agree as foows: 1. Services: The CONSULTANT agrees to provide the foowing consuting services for the AGENCY: [ENTER DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES HERE] [ENTER DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES HERE] 2. Compensation: AGENCY agrees to compensate the CONSULTANT by payment of a fee in the amount of $[RATE] per hour. Reimbursement of expenses of the CONSULTANT which are reasonaby reated to providing the services to program, incuding such items as trave and teephone expenses, shoud first be approved by AGENCY. CONSULTANT wi invoice AGENCY for fees and description of services rendered within 5 (five) business days of competion of services. 3. Term: The term of this Agreement sha be [LENGTH OF CONTRACTED SERVICES OR NUMBER OF HOURS]. The fina ending date of this Contract sha be mutuay agreed to by CONSULTANT and AGENCY. 4. Termination: The services of the CONSULTANT are to commence upon the execution of the Agreement and the work required sha be undertaken and competed in an expeditious and business-ike manner. Faiure to do so, or vioation of any the covenants, agreements or stipuations of this Agreement by the CONSULTANT sha give AGENCY the right to terminate this Agreement provided the CONSULTANT is notified in writing five days prior to the effective termination date. If so terminated, CONSULTANT and AGENCY wi have no further iabiity for payments due under this Agreement. AGENCY reserves the right to reduce the tota amount of the fee, based on its determination of poor performance or nonperformance of any of the covenants, agreements or stipuations of the Agreement by the AGENCY. 5. Reporting: The CONSULTANT sha periodicay provide progress reports to AGENCY. 6. Cooperation: AGENCY agrees to cooperate with the CONSULTANT in carrying out the purposes of this Agreement. 7. Location of Service Deivery: The CONSULTANT sha primariy operate and provide services at the AGENCY, except for meetings and other services under this Agreement that may require trave to other ocations. 8. Amendments: AGENCY may from time to time request changes in the scope of services of the CONSULTANT to be performed. Any changes in the number of hours required by CONSULT- ANT to compete the services wi be refected in the invoice submitted by CONSULTANT. 101

118 Center Start-Up Manua 9. Independent Contractor: The AGENCY understands and agrees that services provided pursuant to this Agreement sha be provided in the capacity of an Independent Contractor and not as an empoyee. The AGENCY aso understands and agrees that as an Independent Contractor, no benefits, other than the above specified consutation fee, wi be accrued as a resut of performing this Agreement nor wi AGENCY pay or deduct any empoyment insurance, or state or federa income tax. 10. Indemnification: The CONSULTANT agrees to indemnify, defend and save AGENCY harmess from any and a caims resuting soey from the gross negigence of the CONSULTANT in performance of this Agreement. AGENCY aso agrees to indemnify, defend and save the CON- SULTANT harmess for any oss or iabiity for damages sustained by or on the part of any person or entity which was not caused by the soe and excusive gross negigence or iega act of the CONSULTANT. In Witness Whereof, CONSULTANT and AGENCY have executed this Agreement the date first above written: CONSULTANT Date AGENCY Date -- Submitted by Davis Park, LTSC CDC, C/O DISKovery Center,, 231 E. 3rd Street, G106, Los Angees, CA, 90013; 102

119 5 and c h a p t e r Software Seection Criteria Introduction The Basic Package Some Genera Considerations Extending the Basic Package Evauative Criteria Copyright & Licensing Considerations Shopping Hints Resources Documentation...120

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121 5 c h a p t e r Software Seection and Criteria Software Seection and Criteria "At the cubhouse, young peope become designers and creators not just consumers of computer-based products. Participants use eading-edge software to create their own artwork, animations, simuations, mutimedia presentations, virtua words, musica creations, Web sites, and robotic constructions." Mitch Resnick LEGO/Papert Professor of Learning Research, MIT Media Lab Introduction Having come to agreement about the intended programmatic focus of the CTC, the Steering Committee s next task is to determine what software is required, and pan for hardware acquisition. If the Center Director or Coordinator has been identified, he or she shoud be invoved directy in the process of software panning or, in some cases, the task can be deegated entirey to the Center Director or Coordinator. Software seection is not an easy task but seections shoud aways be refective of the CTC mission; software that does not hep your CTC achieve its mission shoud be avoided. The quantity of commerciay avaiabe software tites is vast and grows every day. Even fifteen years ago, it was estimated that, in the fied of educationa software aone, there were more than ten thousand current tites. Thus any comprehensive review is beyond the bounds of this manua. Whie specific tites are referenced as typifying certain kinds of software, no guarantee is made that any software cited is sti in commercia circuation nor that it represents the best of its specific type. The Basic Package Regardess of its size, constituency, programmatic goas, hardware configuration, or budget, every CTC must make certain kinds of software avaiabe to its participants. These fundamenta computing toos are: 103

122 Center Start-Up Manua word processing and desktop pubishing spreadsheets databases graphics Internet browsers side show or presentation software emai programs and services software to buid homepages software to read or pay specia fies (pdf, mp3, ram, wav, mov) Variousy referred to as productivity toos, appications software, or business appications, such software forms the buiding bocks of computer comfort and ski. They are aso referred to as office software as these are the most common computer appications used in a workpace. In fact, much of the existing commercia software ibrary has been created using combinations and permutations of these toos. Creative teachers and instructors can find ways to use these toos in the service of many disparate objectives such as adut iteracy, job training and job-seeking, pre-schoo education, homework hep, virtua trave, group projects, etc. Some Genera Considerations 1. Hardware connections? Knowing that your center must have this basic software set means facing up to some hardware issues. It s not cear whether increased memory in hardware is driving software configurations or vice versa, but the fact of the matter is that the more recent the productivity too software package, the more memory it requires on a computer hard drive or server. Most software packages wi ist the minimum memory and hardware requirements to run the software propery; be sure to check these requirements before a purchase. If the center contempates serious desktop pubishing, it wi be necessary to have additiona hardware that can scan images (scanners) or even deveop snapshots as digita images by connecting the camera directy with the computer. If sound (music, audio hep, sound effects, etc.) is a feature of center software, participants wi need earphones connected to the hardware system. 104

123 Software Seection and Criteria For fast, efficient use of the word wide web (WWW) and other communications toos requiring transmission and reception of graphic images, either high speed modems are needed to enabe computers to communicate over standard anaog teephone connections or other, more expensive, adapters must be acquired to enabe the use of specia phone ine switching arrangements (e.g., ISDN) or specia communications ines (e.g., T-1, frame reay). Centers using oder equipment can sti do very we with oder versions of many software productivity toos. The processes are generay the same and oder versions, without so many bes and whistes, are often easier to earn to use than newer, more gimmick-aden versions. Centers need to know that their software goas wi affect their hardware choices, and vice versa. For exampe, a CTC s decision to use a server rather than standaone machines may determine what version of a particuar package the center must acquire. For those whose hardware capabiity has been predetermined by circumstance (such as a donation from a company that is upgrading), they wi need to keep firmy in mind the memory capacity and other hardware system imitations when choosing software packages. 2. Bunded or separate packages? Severa companies se a bunded package of these productivity toos. Some popuar bundes you may have heard of are Microsoft Office, AppeWorks, Star Office, Open Office, and 602 Office. Simiary, hardware systems often come bunded or preoaded with a variety of software packages. Aternativey, there are singe packages that contain a variety of software toos. AppeWorks, for exampe, is a singe program that incudes a word processor, a spreadsheet, a database, graphics toos and a graphics ibrary, and communications software. This atter type of package has much to offer a CTC: procedures, menus, keystroke shortcuts are common to a the appications. Furthermore, it is easy to cip from one appication and use that cip in another. The disadvantage, that no one program has a the features of a fu-fedged stand-aone package, may, in the case of a CTC, aso be an advantage for earners who don t need to start out using so many options. The avaiabiity of software donations or other circumstances may resut in a center having separate packages produced by different companies. In most cases, it wi sti be possibe to cip from one and insert in another, but the procedure may not be either direct or easy. 105

124 Center Start-Up Manua 3. Leve of sophistication? It is important not to underestimate the abiity of participants to earn sophisticated and compex programs. Eary in the deveopment of educationa software, it was thought that chidren woud need highy simpified and watered down versions of productivity toos. Now everyone knows that kids can perform compicated tasks that many aduts shy away from (e.g., programming a VCR!) and are ikey to be abe to master compex software much more readiy than their eders. Because participants at a CTC may be ignorant of computers, of reading or writing, of the Engish anguage it does not foow inexoraby that they cannot earn compex or sophisticated processes. It is, therefore, not necessary to find programs that are easy to earn. It is important that the programs be easy to use. For exampe, in an eary version of WordPerfect, four keys had to be simutaneousy depressed in order to mark off a bock of text a fairy routine and commony used function. The outcry from users was intense, and the deveopers responded with a far simper procedure for ater versions. In asking around, find peope who use a particuar program. Find out if they think it is easy to use. Pay ess attention to instructors in commercia training programs (or teachers in schoos) who may te you that a program is easy to earn. This a may seem at variance with the preceding section where the suggestion was made that a package of severa appications but acking some of the features of a stand-aone appication coud be an advantage in a CTC. Not so. The exampe cited, AppeWorks, is a fuy professiona set of programs, as are others of its genre. That the mutipicity of functions is somewhat ess than those incuded with, say, the atest version of Microsoft Word, wi not be of prime importance to the majority of users. Nor is it the case that a appications designed for chidren are inappropriate for aduts or for genera usage. For exampe, KidPix, a drawing and painting program designed as per its name for kids, is an exceent genera purpose introductory graphics program. Many sophisticated features of higher end graphics programs are incuded, and additiona features, designed to make using the program fun for kids, aso make it fun for aduts. 4. Language? Many CTCs wi confront the issue of anguage. With a participant popuation that is predominanty Spanish speaking, or Haitian-Creoe speaking, or Korean speaking, woud it not be important to have these fundamenta productivity toos with text in their own anguages? 106

125 Software Seection and Criteria The resounding consensus among CTCNet affiiates who have confronted this issue is NO! Their other-anguage speaking participants have indicated an overwheming preference for earning to use productivity toos with Engish menus. They fee, understandaby, that the Engish menus wi better prepare them to use these in the workpace. On the other hand, many have indicated that it woud be nice to have some more recreationa types of software avaiabe in their own anguages. There is a piece of shareware that can assist other-than-engish speakers and writers in incuding correct accent marks for communications in their own anguages. Caed PopChar, it wi dispay a avaiabe accented etters. The required accented etter wi appear in the text when the user cicks on the PopChar image. Doubtess there are a variety of simiar products. For additiona information on PopChar, head to: 5. Teaching aids? Introductory On-Screen Tours: Some hardware packages incude introductory tours with the system software; ikewise, some productivity toos aso provide such introductory materia. Some are good; some are not. The Introduction to the Macintosh that used to come with the purchase of a Macintosh computer was exceent. Hands-on exampes were buit in. The text was simpe and enhanced with graphica representation of the keyboard and other needed peripheras. The try-it-yoursef sections were fun and instructive and the feedback for incorrect keystrokes was kind and encouraging. Manuas and Other Texts: Not ony do manuas accompany most software packages, but books and books of expanatory text have been written for many of the more popuar software appications. Whie it is good to have these texts avaiabe in a CTC ibrary, they are not the best earning toos for beginners, particuary those who have ow reading skis. Standard practice in a CTCNet affiiate is to ask participants to come in with some project they woud ike to accompish and to earn the appropriate computer toos in the context of that project, assisted by instructors or other earners. On-screen Hep : Athough most programs provide on-screen hep, using this capabiity has many drawbacks. First, it is often difficut to find the section of the hep that deas with the specific probem the user is encountering. Second, of course, is the reading probem - ots of text. Lasty, some on-screen hep is imited to ists of keystroke equivaents to menu items. For a three reasons, CTC participants may be more frustrated than assisted by on-screen hep. Audio Tapes: Audio tapes have the foowing advantages: 1) the equipment needed (a Wakman or equivaent tape payer with earphones) is inexpensive 107

126 Center Start-Up Manua (and many participants wi actuay own their own); 2) the participant can start, stop, rewind, or fast forward the tape at wi; 3) since the user has ear phones, other participants are not bothered; 4) progress through the tutoria is entirey sef-paced by the participant; and 5) the participant has itte need to osciate between teaching medium and keyboarding. He or she can keep hands on the keyboard at a times. Most computers aso come equipped with CD-ROM drives. The disadvantages are ony that a tape cannot answer randomy posed questions and that most instructiona materia of this sort requires that the user foow a set sequence rather than pursuing a persona project. As such, it is advisabe to have a foow-up discussion after the participant finishes the materia to answer any questions and foster comprehension of the materia. Video Tapes: Popuar, but not effective, video tapes require that the participant constanty shift between the viewing screen and the computer screen. Uness earphones are avaiabe, the tape s audio can be distracting to others (as can the video). It is more difficut for a user to stop, restart, or rewind a video tape. The temptation to use video tapes with groups of peope counteracts the individuaization of earning progress. And of course video tapes have the same disadvantages of audio tapes (see above). CD-ROMs and DVDs: Many new computers come equipped with drives that pay CD-ROMs and/or DVDs. Prices for DVDs are simiar to videotapes yet require equipment you probaby aready have on hand, namey a computer and headphones or speakers. The benefits of using DVDs and CD-ROMs are simiar to those of audio tapes and videotapes, but they aow for interaction with the participant. CD-R & DVD-R: CTCs can use the very simpe toos at their disposa to create their own teaching aids and curricuum for participants. Many new computers wi come with, or incude the option for, what are commony referred to as CD and/or DVD burners or writers. Essentiay another disk drive on the computer, this hardware aows you to pace your own fies and videos onto a CD or DVD. Idea peripheras you may want handy incude a microphone, digita camera, scanner, and DVD video camera. Creating such materias wi be abor-intensive but may be especiay appeaing as specia projects offered to participants, vounteers, interns, etc. Peope: The very best earning aid is other peope: an instructor or vounteer, a tutor, a peer, a young person or a senior anyone who can offer personaized assistance when that assistance is needed. In addition, getting one person excited about earning tends to have a beneficia domino effect on other participants to want to earn simiar materia. For exampe, if a chid creates a web page and shows that page to friends, more than ikey you wi have an eager group of woud-be web deveopers at your disposa. 108

127 Software Seection and Criteria Extending the Basic Package Determining factors Budget, number of computer stations, and hours of operation wi, in part, determine how much additiona software is needed for the CTC. The most important determining factor, however, wi be the wants and needs of the participating popuation. In order better to ascertain these needs and wants, the CTC shoud start off with a modest amount of additiona software in a variety of categories. In choosing this first extension of the basic package, it wi be important to ook for the most versatie packages and those that have appea to a wide range of ages and individua needs. CTCNet choices for an initia seection are marked with an asterisk (*) beow. As the participating popuation becomes famiiar with the software avaiabe, they shoud be abe to be more specific about other tites in other areas that they woud ike to see represented in the CTC ibrary. Software for first time users It is particuary important to have software on hand that can be used successfuy by participants who are sitting at a computer for the very first time. The foowing have been successfu over time in a variety of CTCNet centers with a variety of ages and abiity eves: Print Shop/ Desktop Pubishing (or equivaent): Enabes the user to produce a greeting card, fyer, etterhead sampe, banner, and, in some versions, a personaized caendar. Idea for a first time user of any age since a product can be designed, produced, printed, and taken home usuay within the first haf or fu hour of use. Chidren enjoy making cards as an introduction to the computer to give to a parent, teacher, friend, etc. Once they earn to master this ski it may have an adverse effect on your printing budget, so be sure to specify your printing poicy to participants. Soitaire: Famiiar to many users aready, Soitaire (or Canfied) may even be incuded as part of the operating system of many computers. Because of existing famiiarity with the game, this is an exceent and usuay enjoyabe way to get participants used to controing the mouse, dragging and cicking, and other such very basic computer comfort skis. Screen Savers: These programs are designed to protect computer screen from burned-in or shadowed images of text or graphics that have been eft on the 109

128 Center Start-Up Manua screen for too ong a period. The program is timed to repace the user s screen with a moving graphic (e.g., swimming fish, fying toasters, rotating designs, etc) unti any key is pressed. Choosing a screen saver graphic is a matter of persona taste, but the best of these programs aow you to create your own pattern, and many CTCNet centers have individuaized their screen savers with information about the center itsef. Typing Tutors (*Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing or equivaent): Many, if not most, participants wi arrive at the CTC without touch typing skis. Whie CTCNet definitey does NOT subscribe to the oft-cited opinion that touch-typing is a prerequisite for computer use, we have found that peope acking these skis soon ask if such a tutor is avaiabe. The computer is an infinitey patient drimaster, and most typing programs are jazzed up with graphicay-based speed dris that make earning much more fun than it used to be at a manua typewriter. It is important, even necessary, to make a typing-tutor program avaiabe. Look for one that introduces finger pacement graphicay, that offers constructive feedback (specia keys to work on) and automaticay provides dri appropriate to the user s ski deveopment. Be sure, too, that game-type speed and accuracy test formats are non-vioent and free of gender or ethnic stereotypes. Design-A-Bank Kits: The bank can stand for -a-room, -a-house, -a-game, -agarden, -a-car, -a-pane, -a-dress, -a-toy - whatever; a these and more are avaiabe. The idea springs from graphics and aows peope to induge in wishfu and/or practica thinking, aso gaining experience with the particuar subject area covered by the program. The better ones incude the capabiity for 3-D viewing and/or virtua testing, and many provide for printing out groundpans or patterns or bueprints that can be turned into paper modes. Construction kits (Music Construction Kit, Pinba Construction Kit, *The Incredibe Machine, or simiar): Simiar to design kits, these programs aow the user to construct a mechanism or a piece of music and then pay it or make it run in a virtua environment. Exceent for group activity and for a variety of ages and interests, most contain exampes as we as chaenges, and a stimuate creativity. N.B. Specia purpose packages such as abe makers, business card creators, a caendar-maker, and such may seem usefu additions to a CTC ibrary, but in fact woud be a waste of money since any such appication can quite easiy be created using a wordprocessor or desktop pubishing program. And earning to use a wordprocessor for these sorts of appications broadens the experience and ski of center participants. Digita Music Mixing: The foowing description of digita music mixing software was contributed by Andrew Sears of the Association of Christian Commu- 110

129 Software Seection and Criteria nity Computing Centers (or AC4, on the web at One thing we ve noticed at our computer center is that most urban youth are into music. To hep make technoogy attractive, we ve been having a ot of our youth work on mixing music digitay, and it has been one of the most successfu things we ve done. In fact, we find that most of our youth are more interested in mixing music than even using the web. Both programs we use, aow youth to take thousands of prerecorded tracks of drum beats, guitars, vocas, bass, etc and mix them into their own songs. We then have a CD burner that we et them use (after buying a CD from us for $2) to make their own CD to take home. We ve had a ot of kids do this, and then they show their friends their CD, and then their friends start coming in. The two main programs that we use at our center are: 1. Hip Hop ejay II. Very easy to use and ooks attractive. This program requires the CD to run (but you can share it across a network as described beow). Cost is $39.95, and you can try to get a donation from them for up to 6 copies by sending a request on etterhead. You must be a non-profit socia service organization. Their Web site is Seth Dotterer Voyetra Turte Beach, Inc. 5 Ode Paza Yonkers, NY Acid Music Hip Hop. A itte more advanced and not as easy to use, but you can do more with this and they aso have more professiona toos that can integrate with it. You can get it at shopping.yahoo.com for $39.95, and the company s Web site is They aso give donations to some community based organizations. If you want to share one of these CD s across a network (or other CD s) you can purchase Virtua Drive from Farstone ( This aows you to put an image of a CD on a server and share it across the network so you don t have to keep handing out CD s (and get them scratched). Educationa software Software is no substitute for education. Schoo subject reated dri and practice programs are not part of CTCNet s recommended purchase strategy. Most appications are quite narrow, mutipe choice dominates over origina input, and the content is determined by traditiona schoo curricuum. We see CTCs as providing opportunities for a ages to encounter computer appications that compement and enrich earning activities, thus enhancing sef-esteem. In recent years, deveopers of educationa software have produced more of the open-ended variety where student input can be creative and individua. Unfortu- 111

130 Center Start-Up Manua natey, the best of these packages aso require a teacher we grounded in using them, often making them the centerpieces of month-ong cass projects. For the most part, these programs are not suitabe for use in a CTC due to staff time and imitations of expertise. With these caveats in mind, it is sti possibe to make recommendations of offthe-shef software that has educationa vaue. Preschoo packages: For parent/chid sessions, exceent choices incude simpe earning games for coors, etters, numbers/quantities, time-teing, and concepts such as high/ow, inside/outside, arge/sma, above/beow, etc. There shoud be sufficient variety so that a chid can return to the program happiy time after time, sti deriving peasure and ski from each encounter. For more specific suggestions about software, pease see the discussion on Sept 13-14, 2002 at And note for exampe, in that thread, Mercedes Soto s word of caution that those considering use of technoogy with youngsters under the age of seven shoud read Faiure to Connect by Jean Heay, Ph.D. Simuations: The best known of these is the Sim- series: * Sim-City, Sim- Town, Sim-Theme Park, Sim-Earth, Sim-Ant, and more. Other simuation games are avaiabe onine, such as MUDs, that aow for rea-time game paying with users a over the word. Best for grade- and high-schoo students, the user constructs an environment (a city, a panet-scape, an ant-coony) and the program generates natura reactions to that environment so that the virtua inhabitants either thrive or not according to decisions made by the user together with natura phenomena introduced by the program. Suitabe for group participation, most of these programs are exceent earning experiences and participants enjoy them. Other tites that have received enthusiastic reviews incude Three Mie Isand (managing a nucear pant), and The Incredibe Laboratory (the care and feeding of aien ife forms in a ab environment). There is aso a program simuating the fishing industry where participants manage fishing feets with the amost inevitabe resut that the suppy of fish is totay depeted and the feet owners go out of business. This program is so we constructed that it has been used at corporate retreats as a market-saturation simuation. Lasty, *Fight Simuator which puts the user in the piot s seat of a pane and teaches eements of measurement, physics, and navigation as we as pioting techniques is popuar, as are its cose reatives that dea with driving a car. Pay Detective (Where in the Word is Carmen Sandiego? or equivaent): Many different kinds of programs empoy the you are the detective strategy. Carmen Sandiego, the prototype, has been so successfu that a PBS TV show has been designed around the program concepts. 112

131 Software Seection and Criteria Take a Trip: Oregon Trai, where the student assumes the roe of a pioneer and must pan suppies, devise routes, and coaborate with others in order to survive the western journey, is perhaps the granddaddy of such programs. But today, you can take a trip through the human body, expore the soar system, unearth Mayan ruins, sai with Coumbus a and more. Be sure to check out current software tites from Nationa Geographic and the Magic Schoo Bus series. Dri & Practice: As noted above under Typing Tutors, the computer is a super dri master. The trick is in knowing when dri, or rote earning is advisabe. A genera rue of thumb consists of asking the question, Is this knowedge that you want to have without thinking about it? Touch typing, or keyboarding, is an obvious Yes. Foreign anguage vocabuary, speing, and math facts are aso candidates for dri and practice earning. Whie there are successfu software packages in a these categories (the Math Baster Series is an outstanding exampe), chidren and aduts can gain computer experience by deveoping their own dri and practice programs or aids using wordprocessors and/or spreadsheets. Integrated Learning Systems (ILS): Comprehensive schoo curricuum covering a variety of subjects and often a variety of grade eves has been automated for computer use by a number of different companies (Computer Curricuum Company (CCC), US Basics, and Jostens are three of the better known). Designed to be teacher-substitutes, these programs pre-test students and route them accordingy to appropriate exercises. Monitoring and grading are aso automated. It has not generay been in the nature of integrated earning systems to promote exporation and discovery or to enhance a students' abiity to master computer appications and turn them to their own uses. If a CTC is intent on offering an ILS, its staff shoud: Review the system thoroughy, bearing in mind the evauation criteria given ater in this chapter, Tak with many teachers (use the Internet) who have used the system over time (not just those suggested by the ILS saespeope), and Provide equivaent time in the CTC schedue for students using the ILS to expore and earn to use other broader appications of technoogy. Writing and Reading: The best route toward encouraging reading and writing ski deveopment is simpe wordprocessing, desktop pubishing, emai, chat, and ebooks. There are, however, some off-the-counter packages that go a ways toward engaging the interest of chidren and young peope in acquiring or enhancing these skis. 113

132 Center Start-Up Manua Recreationa software It is difficut to separate recreationa and entertainment software, since the best of either has quaities of the other. A number of the categories described above refer to programs that someone ese might characterize as primariy recreationa, yet because of their specia purpose or educationa vaue, they ve been described under a different abe. Board and/or Strategy Games: Eectronic versions of Otheo, Checkers, Monopoy, Chess, Backgammon, Go, Bridge, etc. are good additions to a CTC software ibrary. Often particuary popuar with seniors, these provide chaenge for those who have troube finding an appropriatey skied opponent. They aso hep deveop strategy and panning skis. And they don t cheat! Look for a version that has different eves from beginner to advanced, that offers cear instructions for those new to the game, and where the graphics are not overy fussy (e.g., for card games, the cards must be easy to read). TV Games: Eectronic versions of Whee of Fortune or Jeopardy are aways popuar and may have some periphera educationa vaue in terms of speing, word sense, and misceaneous information. Try to find types where users can enter their own chaenges for each other. Adventure Games: Simiar to the Take a Trip earning games, in these, the user pays the part of a character in a fictiona (rather than rea ife or historica) environment. A quest is usuay invoved. The most overwhemingy successfu of these is a program caed Myst, created by the same team who deveoped Manhoe (see above). Myst has spawned cubs, specia interest groups on the Internet, books on strategy, and magazine and newspaper artices. It is reativey non-vioent as such games go, is free of ethnic or racia stereotypes, has superb graphics, and is sufficienty compex in terms of its response to user input that it can be payed for hours, even days on end (users can save their adventure progress to date a necessary feature for such a compex program). Eye/Hand Coordination Games: The archetype, Pong, and its successor, Pacman, were among the very first games designed for persona computers. Neither had much to recommend it, apart from being free of ethnic, gender, or racia stereotypes, but they were nevertheess addicting for many. The genre has produced some reay horribe exampes, dominated by vioence and target practice in one form or another, but there is at east one, Tetris, that actuay has some vaue in deveoping, in addition to eye/hand coordination, concepts of spatia reations. Tetris has the additiona vaue of being avaiabe at no cost from a variety of different sources incuding some onine gaming sites. 114

133 Software Seection and Criteria Reference ibraries The advent of CD-ROM disks has made it possibe to purchase entire encycopedias, amanacs, and atases in addition to the dictionary and thesaurus capabiity aready mentioned. A judicious seection of these works is a vauabe addition to a CTC software ibrary since many of the participants wi not own these in book form and students may need them for research. Make sure that any such reference works do not have copyright restrictions. Museum coections are aso avaiabe: the Smithsonian, the Louvre, and many of the other word-famous museums have made their coections avaiabe pictoriay on disk or even from their web sites. And asty, cip-art images, sound cips (music and/or sound effects), and font ibraries, a of which are usefu for desktop pubishing and in the creation of web pages are avaiabe for purchase or downoadabe from the Internet. Such coections may suppement coections that come bunded with other software packages. Evauative Criteria Throughout the previous sections, various criteria have been described in connection with specific packages or software genre. Whie no singe product may meet a of the criteria summarized beow, those that succeed in maximizing the positives and avoiding a the negatives are the better choices. Look for software that... Enabes users to do something they coudn t otherwise do, or to do things better or more efficienty Is muti-purpose and open-ended Appeas to a wide range of ages and interests Is easy to use (not necessariy easy to earn) 115

134 Center Start-Up Manua Offers constructive feedback (both positive and negative) Encourages creative, individuaized, origina input Enhances content through eectronic presentation (very important) Provides instructions or on-screen hep that is cear and usefu Empoys tastefu and attractive graphics that are n n n Non-vioent Free of gender or ethnic stereotypes Representative of user popuation (very important) Provides a tangibe product Is fun to use and gives users a sense of accompishment Has a cear and fair copyright and icensing agreement Avoid software that... Limits user interaction to pressing return or making a choice between presented options Requires simutaneous depression of severa keys in order to accompish a routine or frequenty used function Has arge amounts of text on the screen Does not aow the user to contro sound eves, timing, or other intrusive features Presents content in a vioent, racist, sexist, or condescending fashion Does not significanty add to a user s knowedge base in a meaningfu way Is itte more than an automated workbook (after a, workbooks are much cheaper and easier to maintain) Repeats exaggerated or engthy graphics dispays that have itte to do with the advertised content 116

135 Software Seection and Criteria Copyright & Licensing Considerations Rights: A commercia software is copyright protected. The purchased package wi contain a icensing statement to which the purchaser agrees by the action of opening the package. Consider contacting the vendor if you read this agreement and have any questions. If the CTC is panning to use a oca area network (LAN) to deiver software to a of its computers, it wi be necessary both to be sure, when purchasing, that the software is compatibe with the specific server to be used and aso that the icensing agreement accepts LAN use as ega. Aternativey, if the CTC wants the software to be avaiabe on each station (without using a server), arrangements can be made for a site icense or permission to insta the software on a the systems of the specified site. Both these sorts of arrangements affect the price paid for the software and accompanying icense. If the CTC has connections with business or educationa institutions in the community, it may be that those institutions have negotiated site icense agreements that can be extended to the CTC. Because CTCs must obey the aw for their own protection and must serve as exempars for their participants, it is important that they abide by copyright aws. For this reason, CTCNet centers do not aow participants to remove copies of center software in vioation of copyright aws, nor, in most cases, do they aow participants to bring their own software into the center. In cases where software has been donated to a center, it is imperative that the donor suppy the center with a copy of the icensing agreement together with a transfer of ownership statement. An advantage of the icensing agreement is that a registered owner (registration cards are aso incuded in the software package) can usuay obtain upgrades at far ess than the fu market price. Pubic domain/shareware: Some software is free and not copyright protected. Usuay referred to as Pubic Domain Software, such packages are freey copyabe and/or transferabe. Other software, caed shareware is offered freey to one and a through user-groups or over the Internet with the suggested proviso that someone copying or downoading such a program vountariy send a sma amount of money to the creator/deveoper of the software. Shareware operates on the honor system so CTCs using shareware shoud be particuary carefu to foow the on-screen instructions for remunerating the deveoper. 117

136 Center Start-Up Manua Shopping Hints Start sma suppy the basics and a seection of other programs In choosing the eements of the basic package, it may be advisabe, particuary if job preparation is a CTC goa, to ascertain what business appications are in most common usage among potentia community empoyers. On the other hand, deveoping ski with a particuar word processing program wi certainy make earning a second one much easier, and this shoud be true of graphics, or spreadsheets, or databases, or communications software. When shopping for additions to the basic package, take it sowy, imiting each shopping expedition to one type of program. It wi take quite a whie just to consider the quantity of board games avaiabe, for exampe. Be aware of hardware compatibiity Examine each software package carefuy, noting the type of hardware, the memory requirements, and the required system software. Determine whether additiona periphera hardware such as speakers, scanners, earphones, etc., wi be necessary to make the program perform at its best in your CTC or wi require reguary upgrading equipment. Preview Many of the criteria isted above require carefu examination of software products. Patronize ony stores and/or cataog sources that permit you to preview packages. Software vendors often do not permit returns so be sure to road-test evauation and demo versions of software with CTC participants. Many software companies offer free demos or tria versions of their packages from their web sites. Retai outets speciaizing in computer equipment and suppies offer faciities for trying out software and frequenty have knowedgeabe saespeope who can hep. Uness you are certain that you know the exact tite and version of the software you are ooking for, don t order from a company that doesn t offer this option. Resources Cataogs The minute that you purchase any hardware or software, you wi start receiving 118

137 Software Seection and Criteria cataogs from hardware and software vendors. These make good reading, for center administration and for participants. They ist and describe new software tites, tites that give ideas for future purchases, bargains, etc., but give virtuay no information about program quaity. As per the above Shopping Hint, try to make purchases ony from vendors that offer a tria period. Then use the tria period to evauate the purchase. Use your own experience and that of others whose opinion you vaue to identify reiabe sources. If you re not receiving cataogs from these sources, write and request them. In the fied of educationa software, CTCNet has found Sunburst, Tom Snyder Productions, and Broderbund fairy reiabe regarding product quaity and service. Other software users When soiciting opinions regarding software purchases from other users, remember that they may not have the same criteria that you do, they may not have the same purpose in mind, and, most importanty, they may never have worked with a popuation simiar to the participants at a CTC. Preview their recommendations as you woud any other product. You wi soon discover whether their suggestions are suitabe for CTC use. Magazine, newspaper, and on-ine reviews Magazines devoted to persona computers abound. Often these target a specific type of hardware (e.g., PC or Mac). A incude announcements of new products, software reviews, and sometimes ten best ists. Again, it is wise to get to know your reviewer so that you can more accuratey rate his or her opinions in reation to your needs. Newspapers with arge urban or regiona audiences often have technoogy sections and print software reviews periodicay. The same caveats appy as they do to products described on the Internet or Word Wide Web. Center participants Make cataogs and computer magazines avaiabe to your center participants. Soicit their ideas for products to add to the CTC software ibrary. Get them invoved in the preview/evauation work too. CTCNet CTCNet s emai ists and other on-ine connections faciitate information sharing about software needs and recommendations. Queries from 119

138 Center Start-Up Manua affiiates have incuded questions about recreationa software in Spanish, good earning programs for ESL and Adut Literacy instruction, and recommendations of interesting science software. In each case, the questioner has received ists of suggestions, each coming from a center that has had experience with the specific software tites. For this reason aone, membership in CTCNet woud be a vauabe asset for any CTC. In addition, archives of the CTCNet- America Connects Consortium (ACC) sponsored onine pane focusing on software in CTCs can be accessed from and from Documentation Panning and acquiring software for the CTC shoud resut in the foowing: An inventory (database) of software incuding, as appicabe: version number, date purchased, date registered, price, number of copies, ocation in CTC, intended use. It is extremey important to keep this inventory up to date. It wi be needed for annua audits, and wi serve as part of the orientation of new staff and vounteers. A ist of any hardware specifications necessitated by intended software use: memory size, LAN, peripheras, phone ines or switching devices, etc. Consideration of the types of software needed, such as those in the foowing checkist: Standard programs wordprocessing spreadsheets graphics typing tutor drawing and painting anti-virus programs databases communications greeting card/sign maker screen saver Software designed for: adut education after schoo activities job pacement eectronic commerce pre-schoo education job preparation eder services recreation 120

139 6c h a p t e r Space, Hardware, and Security Introduction Physica Space and Furnishings Genera Ambiance Where Shoud the CTC be Located? How Much Space is Needed? What About Eectrica Connections? Furniture & Furnishings Hardware Digita Music Studios Saving Energy and Money Risk Management Insurance Coverage Exhibit 6-1: Checkist of Start-Up Physica Needs Exhibit 6-2: Sampe Rues Exhibit 6-3: Energy Use FAQ...145

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141 Space, Hardware, and Security 6c h a p t e r Space, Hardware, and Security We need to sit peope down before PCs but remember that the peope come first then the technoogy and ICT appications -- the primacy of human agency, using ICT to add vaue to the ideas of peope and what they wish to achieve, is the determining characteristic of a successfu project/ initiative/program of activity. Andrew McDonad Manager - CCIS Teeport Craigmier Community Information Service Introduction With the focus of the CTC determined and a pan decided on for software acquisition, the next issues facing the Steering Committee and the Center Director/Coordinator are space and genera ambiance; hardware seection and acquisition; and risk management. Physica Space and Furnishings Genera Ambiance Equay important as the avaiabe software wi be the center environment. A successfu center is one that peope want to come to, want to be in, and want to return to. Some of the features that can contribute incude: An open, friendy reception area: Fyers about the center, membership appications (if appropriate), center schedues, and cass registration information shoud be avaiabe and current. A person (paid or vounteer) shoud be there to wecome peope and dispense information. Was can be used to dispay photos of center staff and vounteers (with names and reevant information), ists of sponsors and donors, newspaper artices about the center and its participants. A community buetin board where participants can post notices of meetings, 121

142 Center Start-Up Manua services, or opportunities can further heighten the impression that this pace is of, and for, the community. Some comfortabe, non-computer socia and/or work space: Not everyone wi want to spend every minute at a computer. Some may have to wait for a machine, others may have to wait to pick up chidren. Users may want to take time for a break, to reax, to exchange information with others, to read a magazine, or to do penci & paper work in connection with their computer projects. If possibe, situate this socia space within eye-shot of the center itsef so that peope who may fee shy (e.g., parents) can get a sense of what goes on and may be intrigued enough to participate themseves. Computer pacement to encourage sharing: Frequenty, a participant may see someone ese doing something interesting. Hey, I d ike to earn to do that is a response that you want to promote. Arrange computer stations so that users of one can see the screens of as many others as possibe. Space for coaborative work: Working together with a partner or sma group faciitates earning and essens the oad on the center supervisor. Space the computers so that two or three chairs can be ocated around each. Todder area: Parents often have to bring babies or todders: If space permits, set up a pay area for youngsters and engage a vounteer to supervise. If space is not avaiabe, try to make an arrangement with a nearby daycare faciity so parents can drop kids off for the hours that they wi be in the CTC. Safety and accessibiity: Everyone needs to fee that the center is a safe pace to be and a safe pace to come to and eave. This may mean exterior and interior ighting, it may mean handicap accessibiity, it may even mean that a youth escort service needs to be part of center panning. Temperature and air quaity: Less a necessity for the equipment than for the participants, temperature can rise when ots of peope and ots of heat-generating equipment are concentrated in a sma space. Make sure that ventiation is adequate and insta air conditioning in ocations where daytime temperatures exceed 80 degrees. Wa space: Fi the was with participant work, or jackets from new software offerings, or Cub News, or anything that reates to, honors, or informs the participants. Encourage participants to create specia hoiday or project dispays. Organize a committee to take on this responsibiity and make sure that dispays are updated or changed periodicay. 122

143 Space, Hardware, and Security Staff f space: It is important that center staff (paid and vounteer) have space to ca their own. This can be a desk, or a room. But there must be some space. Amenities: Think about where participants wi hang coats or odge bookbags and other persona paraphernaia. Provide recyce bins for paper (centers generate ots of paper waste). Don t aow food or drink at computer stations. Post this and other center rues prominenty. Persona fies: Provide fiing space for participants who may wish to maintain an individua data disk or printed (hard copy) versions of work in progress. Suggestion box: Consider creating an opportunity for center staff, participants and visitors to informay offer comments and suggestions. In summary, do everything you can to make the space serve the participants needs. An advisory committee that incudes participant representatives from various age groups wi be invauabe in identifying ways to improve center ambiance, service, and software ibrary. Where Shoud the CTC be Located? Much wi depend on the sponsoring organization. If the CTC is an expansion of existing services within an agency such as a Y or community center, that organization may aready have space in mind. A housing compex may have common space or a vacant apartment that can be aocated; a ibrary, reigious, or educationa organization may be abe to rearrange space usage to accommodate a CTC. These same entities may be abe to provide space to an independent group wishing to start a CTC. Storefronts and traiers are other possibiities. One CTCNet affiiate in Los Angees heard that a gas station was cosing down and persuaded the fue company not ony to give them a ong term ease, but to fund the needed renovations. Accessibiity is the key. Peope need to be abe to find the pace easiy, and they need to fee that they can come and go without expense, without anxiety, and without physica obstaces. This means ramps as we as steps, eevators in addition to stair wes. It means a we it exterior. It means a ocation centra to the intended participants; it may mean easy access by pubic transportation. Another key feature is cost. Free space with no strings is great, but rare. More ikey is a case where an existing agency provides space and in return the CTC agrees on a certain amount of use by participants at that agency and perhaps a certain amount of training for agency staff. 123

144 Center Start-Up Manua How Much Space is Needed? There must be room for computer stations (20 square feet per station), a reception area, office, reaxation/work areas, and genera traffic. Restrooms must be incuded or convenienty avaiabe and there must be a way to accommodate stroers, coats, and other persona beongings. In addition, it makes sense to think about possibe expansion. Look for space that is arge enough to aow additiona computer stations together with the necessary additiona staff. To get a rough idea of how many computer stations it wi take to serve the number of participants you anticipate, divide the intended number of participants by the anticipated number of hours per week that the CTC wi be open. For exampe, based on serving 200 peope each week during 40 hours of open time, 5 computer stations wi give each attendee one hour per week but if the same number of peope are expected to come every day for an hour, you need 25 stations. Consider your staffing pan as we: a singe teacher/supervisor can hande up to 10 stations assuming one or two peope using each. And, of course, your budget: for new hardware, about $1500 per system (see Hardware, beow). What About Eectrica Connections? The advice and assistance of a technica expert wi be needed to determine and pan the CTC s exact wiring configuration. The foowing shoud be part of the pan: Foor and wa outets for computers (maximum: 6 systems per outet) and for printers, scanners, and copiers. Teephone connections for reception and office teephones and fax machines. Wiring for a oca area network (LAN) with broadband connection to the Internet. Adequate ighting. Furniture & Furnishings The reception area: Sign outside and on the door teing peope where they are 124

145 Space, Hardware, and Security Desk and chair for reception personne Chairs or benches for waiting peope Fies for participant records Sign in computer or other mechanism (sheet/cipboard) A arge wa cock Dispay area for CTC news, programs, membership advice, etc. One CTCNet affiiate mounted a arge oca area map on one wa of the reception area and encouraged each participant to pace a pin on his/her home ocation. Not ony was this an attractive dispay, it aso encouraged a sense of persona ownership among participants, and it made a simpe and cear method of informing visitors about where participants came from. The computer area: Tabes for the computers and other hardware. Those designed for the purpose often have siding sheves bringing keyboards to the proper height for easy use, and may have troughs to contain the various cabes that otherwise have a messy appearance. Buit-in counters are more expensive and don t give you the fexibiity of changing your arrangement as experience dictates. Consider one or two roing carts for computers. These can be wheeed into areas of greater privacy for those that need it. They can aso be wheeed to other paces in the buiding for presentations, demonstrations, or specia work. One CTCNet affiiate in Boston affectionatey refers to its computer cart as its "Cow" (computer on whees). Chairs for participants (2 per computer) need to be adjustabe if you expect a mixture of chidren and aduts. They aso need to be comfortabe (try before buying). A caution though, chidren can turn chairs on whees into bumper cars! Fies, cabinets, and sheving for software, suppies, participant records and work-in-progress. Indirect, gare-free ighting. Buetin board space for participant work and project dispay. The office The CTC staff needs a professionay equipped workspace: 125

146 Center Start-Up Manua Desks, chairs, fies, suppy cabinet(s), sheving Administrative computers with teecommunications capabiity Teephone(s), fax, copier Hardware Whie software represents the content of your program, hardware is the vehice by which participants have access to that content. New vs. Recyced Hardware Athough the avaiabiity of new hardware may be a draw for participants, there are reasons to consider used or recyced systems: The pros avaiabe for free or for far ess cost often fuy capabe (at one time were state of the art ) even new systems wi be od in a matter of months can be used in combination with new systems for imited functions: n n n cient database and attendance records dedicated Internet stations as a router and firewa The drawbacks the hand-me-down impact may not be abe to run newer software versions may not have enough memory may be difficut to find repacement parts and/or suppies Don't be afraid to decine donations of outdated equipment. Accepting a donations can in the end be a disservice to your cients. Estabish criteria for what equipment you wi accept and turn down offers that do not at meet at east that standard. 126

147 Space, Hardware, and Security Patform Hardware choices begin with patform: that is, wi your center be Macintosh-based, or PC-based, or wi it offer a variety of hardware? The patform seected wi determine what versions of commercia software are needed or vice versa. Macintosh-based? reativey easy to earn to use and maintain preferred by many graphics and mutimedia professionas PC-based? predominates in the business arena reativey inexpensive due to competition between manufacturers Mixed patforms? offers participants broader ski deveopment broader software avaiabiity Note that there are now computers on the market that can read (use) both Macintosh and PC-based software. Capacity and Capabiity The hardware must be abe to run the software you re panning to use. The foowing are genera guideines: Interna hard drives with at east 15 gigabytes (GB or gigs ) of disk capacity are desirabe for newy purchased equipment. For recyced hardware, you may need to purchase a separate hard drive. CD-ROM or DVD drive is needed. Random Access Memory (RAM) shoud provide at east 128 MB of storage; more is preferabe. Additiona RAM can be purchased for oder machines. Keyboards (standard with most systems) with specia features can be purchased separatey. The ergonomic variety is ikey to sow touch typists but may hep in the avoidance of carpa tunne syndrome. 127

148 Center Start-Up Manua Mouse aternatives incude track bas and touch pads. The "mouse" advantage is being abe to substitute a working one for a dysfunctiona one (touch pads are buit-in). Since mouse bas are easiy extracted and may eave the CTC in pockets of youngsters, consider the purchase of optica mice, which aso have the advantage of not deteriorating due to dust buid-up. Scroing whees on mice can be especiay usefu for peope with shaky hands. Necessary Peripheras Printers one for every 5-10 computer systems (these can be inked to a LAN) are absoutey essentia. These are some of your choices: n n n Laser - for business quaity printouts Coor aser - not essentia Coor ink-jet - economica to purchase, expensive to operate because of the cost of coor cartridges. Let the ink dry before touching the print! Copier - participants often want mutipe copies of their work. The cost of copying is typicay ess for a copier than for a printer. The CTC wi probaby need a copier for office work anyway. Monitors Aside from candy-coored pastics, perhaps the most visibe change taking pace in desktop computer hardware today is the proiferation of the fat-pane LCD monitor. Dispacing the traditiona cunky CRT monitor, the fat pane invasion is about more than just sex appea. There are sound ergonomic, economic and environmenta reasons to pursue the rapid depoyment of LCD monitors on the desktop. Before I discuss them, et me try to cear up what they are. CRT = Cathode Ray Tube. This is the traditiona monitor technoogy, empoying the same kinds of parts as your average teevision set. This is a 1920s technoogy! Essentiay, eectromagnets steer the stream of eectrons fired by an eectron gun at the back of the monitor to strike rows of phosphors behind the gass, which gow red, green or bue. LCD = Liquid Crysta Dispay. Genericay termed a fat pane monitor. Comes from the same famiy tree as your digita wristwatch. By fowing tiny eectric currents through segments of each pixe, you can make them change coor. Segments for red, green and bue constitute a singe coor pixe. A backight iuminates a of the pixes. 128

149 Space, Hardware, and Security LCDs are foremost a peasure to work with. They virtuay eiminate eye strain. They save gobs of precious desk space. They offer the sharpest, straightest and cearest pictures. They bombard the user with ess eectromagnetic radiation than CRTs by far. They consume substantiay ess power, consequenty producing very itte heat. Athough working with any monitor under fuorescent ight is an assaut on the senses, LCDs do not suffer from 60Hz ficker. Nor do they suffer from distortion or jitter due to interference in cose quarters with other monitors and equipment. Pubishing mavens tend to decry LCDs; they point out that CRTs are sti better suited to the kind of carefu management of coor baance that professiona quaity output demands. For a but the most exacting high-end coor-baancing needs, there is no reason to fear LCDs. Confusingy, measurements such as diagona size or viewabe area often cannot be easiy correated between LCDs and CRTs. Manufacturers of CRTs commony advertise the diagona size of the entire picture tube, a great dea of which is hidden behind the mask that borders the gass on a four sides. For exampe, the viewabe area of a 17" CRT may reay be 15". The advertised size of an LCD more accuratey refects the size of the picture. Fortunatey, the viewabe area is not as important as the actua resoution of the monitor, because of the higher pixe density that LCD technoogy comfortaby supports. Better yet, those used 14.x" and new 15" dispays wi pack the same number of pixes (typicay 1024x768). That means, that as ong as the density of the 14" dispay does not make text and graphics too sma to see comfortaby, there are no functiona differences among them. The quaity of the dispay is much more significant than its actua size. Unfortunatey, because LCDs are such a visibe new technoogy, manufacturers initiay priced LCDs into the stratosphere, but market economics are finay catching up to that reaity. For exampe, the cost of a new 15" LCD monitor has dipped beow $300, down from $1000 a few years ago. One way that LCDs can indirecty drive up costs is through more expensive graphics cards. Many new LCDs have a digita interface in pace of the customary anaog VGA connection that requires a graphics card with a digita output. Whie the digita route yieds the most pristine graphics, fat panes with traditiona anaog VGA connections abound--particuary at the ow end. The ony caveat in this case is that the picture quaity of an LCD monitor is highy dependent on the quaity of the anaog signa it receives from the graphics card, which varies a great dea among manufacturers. On the other hand, perhaps the recurring costs are more important. The ower power consumption and essened heat oad on air conditioners wi tend to ower the operating costs of LCDs in the form of smaer eectric bis. CRT technoogy is being phased out of production not just because of the technoogica superiority of LCDs, but aso because of the environmenta iabiity. Chock fu of poi- 129

150 Center Start-Up Manua sonous heavy metas and other whoesomeness, many waste management companies won't accept CRTs as common househod garbage, but now designate them as toxic waste that incurs a specia disposa fee. As the cost of discarding a CRT grows, this further heps to tip the baance of costs in favor of more environmentay friendy and technoogicay superior LCDs. LCD monitors are definitey consuming the market share of CRTs. (This section on monitors was contributed by Tom Sobczynski, 8/2002) Necessary Suppies Your panning shoud incude secure storage areas for the foowing: Data disks for participants. Do not aow participants to bring in and use their own disks or software. Outside disks may be contaminated with viruses (see Risk Management). Extra ink and/or toner cartridges as we as paper for a printers, copiers, and fax machines Back up hardware n n n Extra mice (and mouse bas) Extra cabes Any extra keyboards and monitors that you can store Optiona Mutimedia Equipment Amost a necessity for persona pubication and production, add these as your budget aows: Fatbed scanners - to digitize photographs, newspaper artices, and other print materias so that the computer can reproduce them for editing, incusion in documents, etc. Camcorders - to create video sequences for web pages and other mutimedia productions (may require specia software as we). Digita cameras record your snapshots on disks that can be read directy into the computer. Microphones, speakers, and headsets - to integrate spoken sound 130

151 Space, Hardware, and Security Midi-boards or other sound-digitizing equipment for musica effects Headphones Digita Music Studios Some CTC programs have successfuy engaged youth in projects that invove creating and editing music using digita studio techniques. The foowing information was contributed by Trevor Shroeder, the Technoogy Manager for the Inte Computer Cubhouse Network concerning music studios of the Inte Computer Cubhouse program (August 2002 onine pane). The Computer Cubhouse provides a creative and safe after-schoo earning environment where young peope from underserved communities work with adut mentors to expore their own ideas, deveop skis, and buid confidence in themseves through the use of technoogy. Starting with a singe Cubhouse in Boston in 1993, we have grown to serve youths age 10 to 18 in approximatey 75 Cubhouses wordwide (sated to reach over 100 by 2005). You can visit us on the web at In the coection of toos we provide to our young peope is a studio equipped with a the necessary bits to turn out their own musica creations. I' describe our particuar setup, highight why we made those choices, and incude some pointers for those wanting to change things up a bit. The studio itsef is a cosed off space within the Cubhouse. This prevents the work going on in the music studio from interfering with those working in the rest of the Cubhouse. The more sound insuation the better, as members often ike to turn the voume WAY up. Soft surfaces (carpeting on the foor; carpets, corkboard, egg cartons, etc on the wa; noise insuating ceiing ties) aso hep keep the echoes down inside the room and baffe the sound escaping the room. Typicay members wi want to work with their friends, so space in the studio for two to five others is idea. As it's an encosed space, it's aso good to have a window both for checking in on what's happening in the studio and aso to tie the two spaces together for the members. Our base equipment configuration is a PC, MIDI keyboard, microphone, mixer, studio monitors (speakers), headphones, and software. The PC is the center of our digita audio editing setup. Any reasonaby new machine wi do but the more disk space the better. CD quaity audio takes up 175KB/s so a fu CD's worth of stuff is about 600MB. Disks are cheap, buy a nice 40GB or 80GB disk. We equip our audio workstations with a Sound Baster Audigy which provides high quaity (24bit, ensuring no quaity is ost when mixing down to 16bit for CD quaity audio) ow 131

152 Center Start-Up Manua atency (ensuring that ive accompaniment/editing is not thrown off by deay in the soundcard) mutichanne (aowing for different tracks to be assigned to different channes so that mixing may be tweaked in rea time) audio recording/payback as we as an interface to MIDI devices (such as our keyboard). We use Sonic Foundry ACID PRO, Cakewak SONAR XL, and Sonic Foundry Sound Forge (which comes with ACID) for editing. These are mid-range mutitrack recording packages for raw audio and MIDI. We incude both ACID and SONAR because each has its strengths. ACID tends to be very easy to start with and for many peope oop-based composition is just fine. On the other hand, SONAR is more compex but offers a wider range of capabiities incuding good MIDI scoring. If ACID is removed, some other audio editor shoud be added to take the pace of Sound Forge which comes with ACID. A cheaper sound card coud aso be substituted, but it's key that whatever you get be ow atency and have the abiity to payback and record at the same time ("fu dupex"). If you're going to have a keyboard it needs to have a MIDI interface as we. We aso equip our studios with a Roand XP-30 MIDI keyboard. This is a computer controed (MIDI) 64-voice (meaning it can pay back 64 different notes at once) keyboard with a arge patch bank for different sounds. In addition to the abiity to record/ payback scores on the keyboard, many members aso use it as a source of raw audio materia by simpy recording the sounds of the notes as they pay them and then working from there with the sounds themseves. Another MIDI keyboard coud be substituted though the XP-30 is especiay nice because of the arge bank. For vocas we have Shura Beta 58A microphone and mic stand. Finay, for previewing tracks, we have a nice set of studio monitors (JBL LSR25Ps) and a pair of headphones (Sony MDR-V900). Other speakers and headphones coud be substituted to save money. This is a tied together with a Behringer Eurorack MX1604A (4 mono + 4 stereo channes, microphone preamp, dua buses). Again, if cost is an issue, another mixer coud substituted. A typica 4 channe DJ mixer woud probaby be adequate for most things, providing an input for the mic, keyboard, and PC with output back to the PC and monitors. Robotics Some CTCs have been integrating robotics into their technoogy programs. Discussion of such activities took pace in an August 2002 onine pane on hardware ( www2.ctcnet.org/ists/pane12/). In particuar, CTCs have used the robot invention 132

153 Space, Hardware, and Security kits created by Lego Systems of East Longmeadow, MA, which has a product ine caed Mindstorms and Spybots ( According to Youth Technoogy Speciaist Angie Miakovic of the Center for 4-H Youth Deveopment, Our 4-H Technoogy Program in North Dakota has LEGO Robotic sets. We use cataogs from a company caed PITSCO (Science programming materias) which has a separate cataog caed LEGO DACTA which is fied with robot sets. Currenty we have the R2D2 set, the Amusement Park, and the Inteigent House sets. They are just a WONDERFUL resource. But, as someone previousy mentioned, they are not inexpensive. The 3 sets we have cost upwards of about $1000 doars in the end. But, these were aso bought over time. Aso, programmabe bricks and other components don t come with the sets... more often than not they are extras even though they are essentiay the motherboard if you wi, for the robotics set. You can ca PITSCO for cataogs (they are on the web) to see what is out there, but you need to ask for the LEGO division it s a separate department. It s fun to ook! According to one technoogy manager, We have a rea difficuty getting our young peope engaged in robotics not because there is no interest but because there is a perception that it s nerdy or immature (being Legos and a) or too hard. When a mentor, adut, or young person comes in and actuay sits down and does compeing projects on an ongoing basis, especiay if they re stuff that *isn t* in the manua, that often sparks some interest. But it s something that reay takes some ong term exposure to get across to those who aren t aready into it. So to those ooking to get their feet wet with robotics, I woud suggest starting with Lego Mindstorms or Crickets, start sma but structured (themed contests are a typica approach ike Lego sumo wresting), and get in experts to hep you out. A ot of times oca coeges can be your source of experts or expert earners. Loyd Spencer suggests that, FIRST Robotics Competition, First Junior Robotics and 4-H Technoogy Cubs a offer students and mentors the opportunity to discover the rewards of science, math and technoogy through brainstorming, teamwork, project management, and friendy competition. Loyd suggests that to get started you might contact the FIRST Lego League < of a oca 4-H technoogy cub. Internet Connection Here's the kind of soution that coud be appropriate in some ocations: Use a 384K DSL ine to connect a oca area network to the Internet, using a 24 port 100BaseT hub to provide Ethernet backbone for the network, with a router that provides Network Ad- 133

154 Center Start-Up Manua dress Transation (NAT) and firewa capacity. In other ocations, a cabe, T1 or wireess soution may be a preferred aternative. Saving Energy and Money The foowing was contributed by Emiy Sadigh, Communications Coordinator / Researcher, FAS Computer Energy Reduction Program, Harvard Green Campus Initiative, Here are some top tips we have deveoped for saving energy and money: 1. Make sure your computers are turned off f at night, on weekends, and when they are not going to be in use for more than an hour or two. Contrary to what you may have heard, turning computers off when they are not in use wi not damage the equipment and wi probaby extend their ife due to reduced heat stress and mechanica wear. Windows 2000 and XP operating systems offer a convenient 'hibernate' option, which aows you to amost entirey power down the computer but maintain the state of the desktop when it is next turned on. If you have this option, one suggested power scheme is to et the monitor go into seep mode after minutes, depending on your user's needs, and set the computer to hibernate when not in use for more than 1 hour. When turned on from hibernate, the computer presents the desktop just as you eft it: Open programs and windows appear in the same pace. (You may need to enabe hibernate: Go to start --> contro pane--> power options/settings--> hibernate tab --> enabe hibernate.) 2. Enabe power management, particuary for monitors. CRT monitors can use 2/3 of the tota energy of the computer system, so monitor power management is an effective way to save energy without deaing with any gitches that might need to be worked out when you put the hard drive on stand-by. If your CTC doesn't currenty have power management enabed on a its computers (i.e., hibernation, stand-by) we encourage you to start off by using a setting which wi cut the energy use of the monitor but not interfere with the hard drive. The monitor wi go into a ow power mode that it can come out of quicky when the mouse is moved. You may need to devise signs which wi educate users to try moving the mouse first so that they don't accidentay hit the power button and restart the computer. The EPA offers the foowing free software toos: EZ Save Network Based Software Too 134

155 Space, Hardware, and Security for sma organizations with a mixture of operating systems that want to start a comprehensive monitor power management program. EZ Wizard Web Based Software Too for sma organizations without centray controed ogins. End users can enabe power management on their computers in seconds. ( powermanagement/sma.asp?orgtype=sma) 3. Consider purchasing fat-pane monitors. If you are considering the purchase of new computer systems, factor into your decision the ong-term cost and environmenta savings of purchasing a aptop or fat-pane (LCD) monitor. A aptop uses one-fourth the power of a desktop, whie a fat pane monitor uses one-third the power of a reguar CRT screen. These sites give more detais about the benefits of fat-pane LCD monitors: EPA Energy Star: LCDorCRT.htm Tota Cost of Ownership Information: From EPA: LCDCosts.jpg/$Fie/LCDCosts.jpg From Manufacturers: (HP) (NEC) (Phiips) Cacuator/cac.asp(Sharp) De white paper discussing the TCO advantages of fat pane monitors: In any case, seek out Energy-Star-abeed computers, monitors, and peripheras: ( / 4. Minimize printing. Paper production is even more energy-intensive than printing per page, so pan to print ess. Some steps you might consider encouraging users to take are editing and print previewing on screen, saving fies to disk (particuary web pages), reducing margins, and printing more than one page per sheet of paper. For more information on responsibe printing, pease see CERP's printing page, University of Deaware, Steps to Reduce Your Paper Usage ( printess/how.htm), Rice University, Printers ( guides/printers.htm), or Coby Coege Information Technoogy Services on Green 135

156 Center Start-Up Manua Computing ( A one-time expense of severa hundred doars wi aow doube-sided printing on your aser printer, which, in the ong term, wi conserve both paper and energy. Dupex features can be purchased at CDW via the Internet at Using ess paper to print documents aso means faster print jobs and ess time that users must wait in ine for the printer! 5. Keep peripheras off f when not in use. Turn on peripheras (printers, speakers, etc.) ony when they are needed. If feasibe, turn off power strips at night so equipment and transformers do not continue to draw power unnecessariy. Risk Management Risk management encompasses issues of security for the CTC and insurance of the CTC property, empoyees, and the pubic. The Steering Committee shoud investigate and examine any oca reguations that may be germane to risk management and incorporate them in its panning. The best way to minimize risk in a CTC is to promote a sense of ownership and pride in the CTC among its participants and in the community at arge. Certain routine measures can, however, be taken to secure the CTC, its staff, visitors, and equipment, and thus protect the CTC from unrecoverabe oss and from certain types of caims. Risk to systems, software, & data Center management shoud be aware that there are risks to data and content on disk drives as we as to ife, imb, and equipment. To address risks to data and software, the CTC shoud: Prohibit the use of disks or software brought in by participants. Insta virus protection software on a systems. Educate participants about the dangers posed by viruses and the effects that virus introduction coud have on the abiity of the center to function. Encourage CTC staff and participants to monitor internet advisories regarding new viruses that may enter the center s system through internet usage. Be sure to have effective procedures in pace to easiy restore system and appication software to a stabe condition if they have been corrupted. 136

157 Space, Hardware, and Security Insurance poicies that guarantee against oss of data and software due to viruses are avaiabe, but are expensive and thus not recommended to CTCs that take reasonabe precautions such as those outined above. Risk to ife, imb, and equipment Damage or harm coud come to the CTC buiding/room/space, its hardware, software, furnishings, personne, and participants. Such harm incudes theft, vandaism, accidents, aberrant behavior, and natura disasters. For exampe, an overhead pipe may burst, putting a number of systems out of operation and damaging cothing and persona possessions of participants. Someone may trip over a cabe and fa. Or a participant (or staff member) may have cause to caim sexua harassment or chid moestation. Estabishing a risk management program means first, treating the risk as rea; second, estabishing preventive measures designed to minimize risk; and third, insuring that staff and participants are knowedgeabe regarding those measures and do their best to foow the specifics of the preventative program. Exampes of preventive measures incude but are not imited to: Minimizing the opportunity for accidents Estabish rues of behavior such as No Running. No Ba-paying. No Food or Drink by the Computers. Post these rues in an obvious pace. Make sure a CTC users are famiiar with them (if necessary, read the rues out oud to them). Make certain that staff (incuding vounteers) understand, abide by and enforce the rues. Aow participants to hep create and add to the rues to cutivate a "sense of ownership." String cabe over the ceiing instead of on the foor. Contain extra cabe ength in bins or behind stations. Use extra twist ties (ike the ones found in your grocer's produce department) to bunde ong cords and wires. Have avaiabe ro-out carpet or mats by any outside entrance. Use power surge protectors on a systems. Reguary check any overhead instaation of pumbing or wiring for defects. Limiting harm to empoyees and the pubic Provide escorts for any person eaving the buiding after dark. Provide escorts for any senior citizen coming to or eaving the CTC. 137

158 Center Start-Up Manua Ensure that more than one person staffs the CTC in the evening. Arrange for additiona poice attention to the CTC neighborhood (offer casses for the poice). Hire a security guard, if appropriate. Educate a staff and vounteers as to appropriate behavior with young chidren and persons of the opposite sex. Minimizing opportunities for theft and vandaism: Limit, and maintain a ist of a peope who have keys to the CTC. Change the ocks periodicay and immediatey after any empoyee is separated invountariy. Insta a buzzer system and keep the CTC ocked otherwise. Secure computers, keyboards, printers, and other hardware to desks or tabes. Lock a portabe equipment in cosets when not in use. Store software backups in a secure space or off the premises. Keep the ights on at a times when the CTC is not in use by participants. Insta an aarm system. Insta security cameras inside and/or outside the CTC. Consut with oca poice for additiona suggestions. Once the risk management pan has been determined, distribute copies of the pan to a staff, assigning and scheduing routine impementation. Insurance Coverage Before purchasing any insurance, the Steering Committee shoud consut the oca fire department, panning office, and heath department to earn what reguations wi govern the CTC. These may incude fire or zoning codes, occupancy imits, or ceaniness reguations. A CTC can insure its empoyees, visitors and property by purchasing an insurance poicy or by sef-insurance. Sef-insurance requires the CTC to set aside a certain amount of money to cover any caims against it and to protect CTC empoyees, visitors 138

159 Space, Hardware, and Security and property from damage or harm. When a CTC rents or eases space, the owner may have property insurance. In a ikeihood, such insurance wi have to be augmented by the CTC to cover staff and CTC property. Generay, insurance coverage appicabe to a CTC is of 3 types: Liabiity insurance Definition. Liabiity insurance protects a business against awsuits and other caims arising from harm to persons on the business property. In genera, a iabiity insurance poicy contains a yeary maximum coverage. This means that the insurance company wi not pay any caims that exceed a certain amount within a year. Coverage. A commercia genera iabiity poicy incudes persona injury caims (such as sips and fas), fire damage, and medica payments. Liabiity insurance woud aso protect a business against caims arising out of contracts it enters with others, such as the ease of the property and eevator maintenance agreements. A business can aso choose to cover empoyees under the iabiity insurance. This woud give empoyees coverage for any bodiy injury or property damage empoyees cause during their empoyment. Property insurance Definition. Property insurance protects a business against damage to the buiding, furnishings, and equipment. Most property insurance uses a deductibe system which requires the insured to pay a portion of the oss up to a certain amount-the deductibe. The insurance company pays the rest of the oss. Coverage. There are four types of coverage: basic, broad, specia, and difference in condition coverage. n n n Basic coverage incudes osses caused by events such as fire, ightning, exposions, smoke, vandaism and mischief, and sinkhoe coapses. Broad coverage incudes osses covered in basic coverage and aso water damage, gass breakage, and damage caused by freezing and faing objects. Specia coverage incudes everything not excuded by the poicy. Specia coverage is the most comprehensive because in the 139

160 Center Start-Up Manua event of oss, the insurance company must find an excusion in the poicy to deny the caim rather than the insured having to find a coverage in the poicy which appies. n Difference ference in Condition coverage usuay incudes coverage for those occurrences excuded by the other types of coverage, such as earthquakes, tida waves, and foods. Workmen s Compensation insurance Definition. Workmen s Compensation insurance protects a business from injuries to or inesses of empoyees arising from the workpace. Coverage. The CTC must ca the state department of abor to find out its obigations regarding this type of insurance. The extent of coverage and its imits vary from state to state. Documentation Space A foor pan An inventory of a furniture and furnishings purchased or otherwise acquired (with date, price or vaue, and suppier) A pan outining potentia expansion capabiity Hardware An inventory of a purchases and acquisitions, with mode numbers, registration numbers, dates, sources, purchase price or vaue, warranties A ist of sources for maintenance and repair for each type of equipment Risk Management A risk prevention pan, incuding staff assignments and responsibiities A ist of appicabe insurance poicies, incuding numbers, agents, emergency phone numbers 140

161 Space, Hardware, and Security Exhibit 6-1: Checkist of Start-Up Physica Needs Space Needs and Utiization rent partition was heat, ventiation, air-conditioning instaation of cosets/secure space Hardware computers (incuding monitor, keyboard, and mouse) printers server service contracts modems scanner additiona warranties Computer Suppies disks back-up media (e.g., tape, zip disks) toner cartridges Furniture computer tabes sign-in tabe chairs for desks, computers, tabes ighting for a areas a arge wa cock fiing cabinets carpet roing carts work tabes, desks couch buetin boards coat racks anti-static foor covering CTC signs (interior and exterior) Eectrica Considerations expansion of power capacity instaation of eectrica outets teephones computer cabes extension cords teecommunications ines instaation of overhead ights teephone instaation computer wires surge protectors 141

162 Center Start-Up Manua Office Suppies white and coored printing paper (etter/ega) pads of paper crayons ruers toiet paper first aid kit white and coored photocopy paper (etter/ega) pens/pencis coored markers fie foders soap/paper towes ceaning equipment Office Equipment copier computer fax printer modem 142

163 Space, Hardware, and Security Exhibit 6-2: Sampe Rues Wecome to Pubic Access at The Somervie Community Computing Center When you sign in, you agree to abide by the foowing: 1. A users must sign in before sitting down to work. 2. If you are abe, pease contribute $2.00 for the use of the computers, it reay does make a difference. 3. No food or drink at or near the computers! 4. If the appication you are using has sound, pease turn it off or use headphones. 5. Users under the age of 14 are wecome in the center unti 7:00, when they are asked to eave. 6. Chidren under the age of 10 must be accompanied by an adut. 7. Aduts and youth have equa access rights to the computers during the times both are present. 8. The Center staff and vounteers reserve the right to ask anyone to eave the Center at any time for any reason. 9. Copying software from any of the computers and/or intentionay deeting or atering contents of the hard drive wi be cause for expusion. 10. Users of the center are asked to remain in the abs, the ha ways connecting the abs and the restrooms to avoid disturbing other casses. 11. No Roerbades (or other skates) in the abs. 12. When the vounteers ask you to finish up because it's cosing time, pease be considerate and do so. 13.The computer abs are ony open for pubic access during posted hours; if you arrive before pubic access hours begin, pease wait in the front ha. 143

164 Center Start-Up Manua 144

165 Space, Hardware, and Security Exhibit 6-3: Energy Use FAQ 1. How much damage can my computer operations cause the environment? One typica computer system eft on a day resuts in the emission of 1600 pounds of CO2 in a year. It woud take 100 to 500 trees to offset that amount of extra CO2 reeased into the atmosphere! The energy it takes to power 15 computers for one year emits as much greenhouse gases as a 4WD Ford Exporer does in the same time period. 2. How much does it cost to suppy eectricity to a computer on 24/7? One computer eft on a day can cost more than $110 a year to power. 3. I've heard that turning off f my computer is bad for my hardware. Is this true? No. Studies conducted at the Lawrence Berkeey Nationa Laboratory ( have found that hard disks are not affected by frequent shut-downs. In fact, your hardware may actuay ast onger due to reduced heat stress and mechanica wear. 4. Don't computers use ess energy when they're "iding" anyway? Why shoud I use an energy management program? Unfortunatey, this isn't true. Computers use about the same amount of power whether in use or not (about 45 watts for your CPU and 80 watts for your CRT monitor). The CPU draws ony sighty more energy when under heavy use, ike opening up an appication. As a resut, an energy management program is very important in order to reduce wastage. 5. What about screen savers? Don't they save energy? Screen savers were deveoped in order to engthen the ife of monochrome monitors. Technoogica deveopments have made them obsoete: they certainy don't save energy or the environment! Disabe your screen saver today and repace it with monitor power management. 6. Isn't it true that when you turn your computer on, a power surge consumes so much energy that eaving your equipment in norma operating mode wastes ess energy than turning it off? f? No, start-up current surges are of very short duration and at most they consume a few seconds of average running time energy. 145

166 Center Start-Up Manua 7. Where can I find more information about green computing? Many universities and coeges are working to reduce their energy consumption and have created informationa websites. Some of these incude: State University of New York at Buffao UB Green Program on Green Computing ( greencomputing.htm) Coby Coege Information Technoogy Services on Green Computing ( Tufts Cimate Initiative Computer Energy Saving Initiative ( tci/computers.htm) University of Michigan Guide to Green Computing ( Radciffe IT Energy Conservation and Waste Reduction in Technoogy ( Missouri University's Guide to Green Computing ( University of New South Waes, Austraia, PC UNSWitch Turn Off Your PC Campaign ( Thank you for your efforts! ******************************************** Emiy Sadigh Communications Coordinator / Researcher FAS Computer Energy Reduction Program Harvard Green Campus Initiative Hoffman Laboratory, Harvard University 20 Oxford Street, Cambridge MA (617) [email protected] 146

167 7 Scheduing, Outreach, and c h a p t e r Evauation Scheduing User Projections Scheduing Structure Community Outreach What Shoud the CTC Pubicize? Deveoping an Outreach Pan How can a CTC Reach its Target Audience? Evauation & Assessment Exhibits 7-1, 7-2, 7-3: Sampe Center Schedues Exhibit 7-4: Genera Reease Exhibit 7-5: Vounteer Evauation Form Exhibit 7-6: Participant Questionnaire Exhibit 7-7: CTC Press Reease Exhibit 7-8: Senior Citizens Open Up New Words Exhibit 7-9: Project Evauation Form

168

169 7 c h a p t e r Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation "Over 30 Bosnian refugee famiies have received recyced computers. The computers have heped them earn Engish, the kids are getting better grades, and the parents have gotten better jobs. Many other ow-income famiies and those with other socia and economic barriers are receiving first time exposure to computer technoogy -- this program is heping to bridge the 'Digita Divide' in our community." As submitted by Bruce McComb and Ronda Evans Reaizing Every Community Asset (RECA) Foundation, Kennewick, Washington Introduction This chapter outines the remaining issues that the Steering Committee shoud consider in order to make the CTC operationa. The Steering Committee can use this chapter as a resource to hep it: determine the schedue for operations; design a community outreach and marketing strategy; and pan for reguar sef-assessment of the CTC s success and operations. Scheduing The CTC operationa schedue must be responsive to projected participants' needs, must refect the focus areas determined by the Steering Committee, and must be reaistic in terms of the demands it makes of staff, space, and budget. 147

170 Center Start-Up Manua User Projections User projections are the CTC s best guess of how many peope are going to use the CTC. The projections wi vary by program area and by season, by time of day and by day of the week. For exampe, wi there be fewer peope or more peope using the CTC during the summer or during hoidays? The data gathered and taied about community interests and needs (see Chapter 2 and Chapter 3) may be usefu in estimating how many peope are ikey to use the CTC. Look at: The immediate neighborhood popuation, the tota constituency of the agency incorporating the CTC, etc. The number of neighborhood agencies that are ikey to bring casses or groups to the CTC, and the size of those groups. The participation eves in any piot program that has been estabished. Projections for casses, trainings, or workshops Reaize that in a start-up operation, being unabe to serve a those who might want to come to the center provides a powerfu argument for expansion. Constraints The Steering Committee wi, of course, want to estabish a schedue that maximizes the number of hours and times of day and week that the center is open, yet it wi inevitaby be constrained by the foowing: The amount of money it has for operations and staff The number of vounteers it can recruit and manage Whether vounteers can manage it independent of paid staff Scheduing Structure The proposed schedue must refect the focus areas determined by the Steering Committee. But equay important, accommodating neighborhood residents needs means taking their work and iving schedues into account. 148

171 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Possibe Groups Open Access Pre-schoo with Parents Schoo-aged Oder teens Aduts, ESL groups, and Immigrant popuations Seniors Possibe Times Determine consistent weeky schedue. Short morning casses. Morning abs for tots and parents. Afterschoo casses. Afterschoo and/or weekend abs. Specia cub or project sessions on Friday and Saturday evenings. Afterschoo and/or evening casses. Afterschoo, evening, and/or weekend abs. Specia cub or project sessions on Friday and Saturday evenings. Day and evening casses. Day and evening abs. Late morning or eary afternoon for casses or abs. Important Considerations: It may be advisabe to set aside a generay avaiabe time such as Saturday mornings for CTC orientation. This woud be a time when participants can be introduced to the CTC, when vounteers can be given orientation sessions, and when eaders/teachers of participating neighborhood agencies can receive training in using the center. If a focus is job preparation, schedue some casses after schoo for in-schoo teens, some casses in the evening for working aduts who may nevertheess want to deveop job skis, and some casses during the day for unempoyed peope. If the focus is adut education, again, provide both day and evening sots to accommodate those who are and are not empoyed. If pubic access/ab times are to be incuded, schedue some for young peope ony, some for aduts ony, and some for anyone. Pan for avaiabiity during both day and evening times. Sometimes offering ess open ab time serves as an incentive for participants to use it wisey and may spark their interest in signing up for casses to earn more about the computers. Be sure that those staffing open access times, both paid staff and vounteers, can hande the inevitabe variety of persona and technica probems that may arise, especiay if they wi be the ony avaiabe staff. 149

172 Center Start-Up Manua If seniors participate in a oca unch program, consider arranging to have unch deivered to the CTC one or two days a week and schedue senior activities around the unch period. Soicit feedback from participants regarding the schedue; if you want them to return they wi be your best source of scheduing information. Do not forget that CTC staff wi need both time for preparation and ceaning up, but aso time for persona breaks. Exhibits 7-1, 7-2, and 7-3 are schedues in use by CTCNet affiiates incuding one from a start-up program (can you guess which it is?). If the Steering Committee is proposing to open the CTC to neighborhood organizations, their scheduing needs must be taken into account. The CTC schedue can either make certain bocks of time avaiabe to outside organizations (such as a day of the week when the CTC woud otherwise be cosed) or it can soicit the requirements of these organizations and schedue its activities around them. How this is done wi generay depend on whether these outside groups provide an important revenue source for the CTC. Schedues can be changed bi-monthy, or by season (in fact, this is recommended), but once estabished for a given time period, they shoud be reiabe. If the CTC is to be cosed due to an emergency or a hoiday, ampe notice shoud be given to participants and to the neighborhood. Copies of the schedue shoud be avaiabe in the reception area and shoud be posted in ocations where members of the community are ikey to see them (supermarket buetin boards, aundromats, community centers, other community agencies, and buiding foyers). A oca newspaper might be prevaied upon to pubish the schedue of pubic access hours. If the CTC has a Web page, the schedue can be posted there as we. Community Outreach Community outreach or pubic reations is the process of pubicizing the activities and accompishments of the CTC. These activities are criticay important to generating community interest in the CTC and to increasing the visibiity of the CTC. Utimatey, a successfu pubic reations campaign wi resut in a substantia amount of goodwi towards the CTC and continued and increased financia support. Guiding community outreach and impementing pubic reations campaigns for the CTC are among the tasks of an outreach coordinator. This person can be an empoyee, a 150

173 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation member of the Steering Committee, a vounteer, or someone hired for specific periods or occasions but shoud have some experience in media presentation. Accessibe outreach and promotiona materias and pubic information. A printed materias and information shoud be avaiabe in accessibe formats to meet the individua needs of patrons. For exampe, make materias avaiabe in an eectronic format that can be easiy converted to Large Print or produced and distributed on CD or disk or audio tape. Materias shoud aso be avaiabe in the primary anguages of the surrounding community. Effective Communications Strategy The Benton Foundation's Communications Capacity Buiding Program recenty reeased a tookit tited "Strategic Communications in the Digita Age," featuring a section caed "Think it Through: What it Takes to Design & Fund an Effective Communications Strategy." The foowing content is taken from this section (see Additiona Contact Information at this end of this chapter for more information). "Communications is much ess about the technoogy or medium chosen as a vehice and more about advancing the cause of your organization. An effective communications strategy refects your organization s mission, goas and objectives, and is we integrated into daiy operations. It requires a cear articuation of audience, carity of message, and choice of media patform. It aso consists of an ongoing feedback reationship between panning and evauation. Panning. Good panning is key to the success of your project. This is true whether it s for designing goas and objectives for your organization, mapping out a communications project, or figuring out what your Web site shoud ook ike. Audience. Identifying your audience, then understanding as much as you can about them is key to your communications pan. Considerations incude: Who do we want to reach? What s the best way to reach them? What characteristics do they share? These detais and more wi guide your communications effort. Message Shaping. Your message has to be appropriate for your various audiences and patforms. For exampe, the way you communicate your organization s message to the press might be very different from the way 151

174 Center Start-Up Manua you communicate with your members. Writing for the Web is very different from writing for print and radio. Media Choices. The media (or patforms) that you choose to disseminate your message wi be impacted by decisions you make about who your audience is and what message you have for them. Simiary, which patform you seect wi aso impact your message and imit your audience. In addition, as media patforms increasingy go digita and start to converge, opportunities for using mutipe patforms increase. Evauation. A good communications strategy takes evauation very seriousy. This component is often overooked, but is highy regarded by funders. Make sure that you keep evauation in mind when you create and impement your communications pan. Funding. No matter how great your message is or how we you have panned your communications efforts, nothing gets done without the right resources financia and otherwise. But good panning, and strong integration of technoogy and communications into your organization s objectives wi hep get you the support you need. What Shoud the CTC Pubicize? The First Year -- CTC Activities & Accompishments The first year goas of the CTC s marketing strategy shoud be to: create a brochure for the CTC stating mission, basic services, genera hours of operation, and contact information introduce itsef to the community become a famiiar organization in the community broaden its participant base generate interest in its activities among the community A pubic materias shoud contain a statement that refects the grantee s accessibiity poicy. For exampe, the organization s brochure shoud contain a statement that reads - XYV, Inc. compies with the Americans with Disabiities Act. A XYZ, Inc. materias are avaiabe in aternative formats upon request. The Steering Committee shoud be aware that organizing activities of the CTC are its first pubic reations acts. After organizing is competed, the CTC shoud 152

175 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation try to pubicize every activity and accompishment as widey as possibe. The kinds of activities that shoud be announced to the pubic incude the: estabishment of the CTC appointment of the Steering Committee hiring of CTC staff grand opening of the CTC schedue, incuding pubic access time casses offered foundation and grant awards in-kind contributions from neighborhood institutions accompishments of the students, such as getting jobs, passing Engish fuency tests, earning GEDs after attending GED preparation casses at the CTC any partnership and/or eectronic commerce activities it undertakes. For exampe, if the CTC is set up to receive outsourcing contracts, then this fact shoud be advertised not ony in genera circuation media but aso in speciaized pubications that may generate new business. Likewise, if the CTC is seeking to provide sma business support, then this activity shoud receive simiar marketing treatment. The Second Year & Thereafter After the first year, the pubic reations goas of the CTC shoud be to maintain its visibiity in the community, to further promote itsef, and to broaden and continue to stimuate interest in the activities of the CTC within the community. The CTC, therefore, shoud pubicize noteworthy activities and accompishments. These shoud incude: new program offerings new partnerships the appointment of new Steering Committee members creating CTC web pages on the Internet success stories of participants 153

176 Center Start-Up Manua feature artices on staff and specia vounteers a Year in Review piece about the CTC any foundation or grant awards specia attention the CTC receives from government officias, corporations, the media, or community organizations designing a ogo pubishing a monthy newsetter about the CTC The CTC s activities and accompishments wi invove most CTC staff members and users. In order to use their names and photographs in artices, press reeases, and video footage, the CTC must obtain a genera reease (Exhibit 7-4). If the CTC operates on a membership basis, a genera reease can be incuded in the membership form. Note that having a reease in hand does not exempt you from notifying participants of their incusion in PR materias. Inform them in advance if possibe and make copies of any print materias avaiabe to them. Deveoping an Outreach Pan After the Steering Committee decides what activities and accompishments to boast about pubicy, the CTC must consider a community outreach strategy. This means: Who shoud know about these activities and accompishments in the community? The ist of neighborhood institutions deveoped during Community Mapping is a good starting point. Why does the CTC want them to know? For exampe, the CTC is having a grand opening and wants to encourage community residents to attend. What do they need to know? Using the above exampe, the CTC wi want to pubicize the ocation, the opening day, whether food and refreshments wi be provided, the CTC program areas, the grand opening s sponsor, who to ca with questions, and how to become a member. How shoud they be tod? For exampe, return to Exhibit 2-2 and for each organization isted, identify the form of communication that is ikey to be the most effective way to reach the organization s members or empoyees. Means of communication can incude: n n informa conversations; addressing community meetings; 154

177 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation n n n n n putting up posters; distributing fyers; etters of invitation; providing copies of the business pan; and, working with the print and broadcast media as discussed in the next section. An exampe of the Steering Committee s concusions might ook ike this: CTC Target Audience for Marketing The Purpose of the CTC Marketing Efforts What the CTC Shoud Pubicize How the CTC Wi Market Itsef Pubic housing residents -To attract participants -To attract vounteers -Its purpose -Program areas -Hours -Vounteer/staffing needs -How to participate -Fyers -Meetings -Artices in community newsetter -Radio and TV PSAs -Onine istings Loca churches, synagogues, and mosques -To attract participants -To attract vounteers -To encourage the donation of funds and equipment -Its purpose -Its ocation -How to participate -Letters to cergy -Have representatives speak at services How Can a CTC Reach its Target Audience? Managing the CTC s pubic reations Open and reguar communication between the CTC Steering Committee, Director and outreach coordinator is crucia to the timey dissemination of information. The outreach coordinator needs to be aware of a CTC activities so that pertinent information is circuated prompty throughout the community. It is unimportant that the outreach coordinator be present at the CTC as ong as he or she is networked with the Director and Steering Committee and wi know CTC news. 155

178 Center Start-Up Manua Creating media opportunities The CTC wi want news of its activities to obtain the widest circuation possibe within the community and shoud rey on the community outreach opportunities expored in the previous section. The CTC must identify and contact various types of media in order to get this type of exposure. In addition, the CTC shoud identify the print and broadcast media avaiabe in most communities: Newspapers, incuding daiies, weekies, supermarket papers, high schoo and coege papers. In addition to standard opportunities, the CTC wi want to earn about any specia sections, such as community activities sections, specia Sunday editions on technoogy, and Person of the Week feature story opportunities. See Exhibit 7-7 for a sampe press reease. Teevision stations, incuding networks with community news and cabe stations. The CTC wi want to know if stations offer free airtime for Pubic Service Announcements (PSAs). Radio stations, incuding network stations and coege stations. The CTC wi want to find out about PSAs, tak shows that woud be interested in interviewing the CTC Director or Chairman of the Steering Committee and a community partner, and opportunities for getting on-the-air during a teethon. Pubications of the various CTC community partners, incuding corporate newsetters, schoo newsetters for staff f and administration, and fyers of community-based organizations. A press reease shoud be written each time CTC partners with a neighborhood institution and this press reease shoud be paced in that neighborhood institution s newsetter or fyer, if one exists. Community buetin boards or kiosks. These woud be paces to post the schedue and CTC staff openings for both paid and vounteer positions. Trade pubications. The CTC shoud identify trade newspapers, magazines and other pubications (such as journas of higher education and phianthropy) in which to pace artices and press reeases. The CTC may gain pubicity and, perhaps, offers of technica assistance and funds. Magazines. Find out if a monthy magazine is pubished in your area. Media contacts ist. Create a oca media contact ist describing the type of media (radio, print, teevision, etc.), name of pubication, contact person, address, teephone and fax numbers, emai address, web site, pubication deadines, and preferred method of submission. 156

179 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Showcase your CTC by Buiding a Web Site In the game of pubic reations, it does not hurt to be your own best cheereader. One of the easiest and quickest ways to get your message about the CTC across to a arge amount of foks is to buid a web site. Such foks incude participants and staff, potentia participants, donors, researchers, prospective empoyees, community members, funders, students, vounteers, interns, etc. According to Susan Tenby from TechSoup, in her artice "Why the Web?" (see Additiona Contact Information at this end of this chapter for more information): "A creative and sustainabe web presence is becoming essentia to nonprofits. Whether your organization is using the Web for fundraising, information retrieva, for communication or for pubicity, it can provide a cost-effective way to reach thousands of peope instanty." According to Tenby, a web site is: a means to pubicize and promote your organization. By putting everything from contact information to a description of your ser vices and your phiosophy on the Web, you aow peope a over the word to discover you, understand what you do, and contact you if they need to. a forum to share artices and other written information with mem bers, cients, funders, and the genera pubic. a way to attract new participants. If you impement features such as message boards, it can aso buid community among existing members. a potentia source of onine donations becoming increasingy vita as a source of information about an organization Spend some time to effectivey pan out your web site before actuay buiding the site. The most effective web site is integrated into the arger communications strategy of the CTC. As such, it may be necessary to invove the CTC staff, board, and other interested parties to pan a site that wi compement your agency's mission and be integra to your strategic pan. Invoving these foks wi aso encourage buy-in for the project and hep make sure that everyone's voice has been heard. 157

180 Center Start-Up Manua CompuMentor (see Additiona Contact Information at this end of this chapter for more information) has created a New Web Site Deveopment Worksheet containing the foowing questions to frame your thinking about the CTC web site: What is your message? What is it you want to say on your site? Who are you targeting? Who is your audience? Who woud use your site? Why woud they come to your site? What is the budget avaiabe in your organization for web deveopment? How much for setup and how much for maintenance? What are the ways that you coud get funding for your web site? Do you know what type of web site you can afford (arge-scae database type, or onine brochure type?) How can you present your point of view effectivey? fectivey? What kind of voice is appropriate for your audience? What kind of content wi be avaiabe? What are your featured categories? Shoud your site be consistent with other coatera materias in your organization? Do you have severa other sites that you want to emuate? What wi your web site accompish? Wi your web site be a research of a deveopment too? What woud your site's main use be? How wi it improve what you do have? What wi be the benefits of onine exposure? What wi it bring that you don't aready have? Can you do it in-house? How wi you reassign staff duties to provide for ongoing maintenance and updating? If not in-house, do you know whether you woud ike an individua consutant or a web design firm? Mariyn L. Gross offers a sensibe set of tips in an artice "The Nonprofit Web Site: Tips for Attracting and Retaining Visitors": Evauation & Assessment The Steering Committee needs to know whether its pans for the CTC are working and what the CTC can do to improve its effectiveness. Estabishing procedures to provide this sort of information is caed making a sef-assessment pan or engaging in formative or process evauation. Funders, too, ike to know that their grantees are tracking resuts. Tracking resuts is caed summative or outcome evauation. Too often, CTCs put sef-assessment and evauation on the back burner, ony to find ater, when an evauation is required under a particuar grant, that procedures have to be imposed on an aready functioning operationa pan. 158

181 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Sef-assessment in the area of accessibiity is critica. Accessibiity is a continuum, and the most important step in increasing it may we be an accurate assessment of current access reaities. It enabes a center to accuratey depict itsef in this area as we as deveop a pan to move forward. It is recommended that in each area of center operations, one staff person be assigned to assessment and the deveopment and impementation of accessibiity pans. The best course is to buid strategies for data coection and opportunities for participant feedback into the operationa pan for the CTC from the very beginning. Think about instituting some or a of the foowing: Membership appication to track participant demographic date (often hepfu for writing grant proposas and obtaining funding) Sign-in/sign-out procedures to provide a record of who uses the CTC, how often, and for how ong Participant foders to contain journas of computer use, work-in-progress, data disks, and copies of competed projects Teacher/instructor ogs to incude pans for casses together with foow-up notes, anecdotes regarding specific occurrences or specific accompishments of participants, and cass evauations fied out by participants Vounteer ogs to describe tasks assigned and accompished, difficuties encountered, suggestions for change A comments box prominenty ocated to enabe participants to make suggestions, requests, and even offer criticism Reguary schedued meetings that incude groups of participants, vounteers, and staff to provide opportunities for direct feedback Appointing a participant representative to the Steering Committee Virtuay a CTCNet affiiates have procedures in pace to record attendance. For smaer centers, a dedicated computer provides a good mechanism. The sign-in program can be tied to a database that can generate weeky or monthy reports. Of course, if the center is arge, or if a arge group arrives a at once, the computer sign-in can be time-consuming. If the arrivas are in a group and there is a group eader, the eader can enter the information for everyone. Paper and penci wi do when a dedicated computer is not avaiabe. If paper and penci is it, it is very important to summarize the attendance information daiy or at east weeky. Otherwise it becomes too cumbersome to go back through sheets and sheets of paper and the task often remains undone. 159

182 Center Start-Up Manua A particuary effective and easy technique for coecting attendance data was devised at Paying To Win s Harem Center. The center operates on a membership basis. Each member answers certain questions that constitute a basic member profie. This information is entered into the membership database. The member is then given a membership card with a bar code. Each time the member arrives and eaves, s/he passes the card through a barcode reader and the attendance data is automaticay coected. The database can then be used to print out periodic reports showing breakdowns of center use by any of the categories in the member profie. The Somervie Community Computer Center takes a different approach to assessment and evauation. Its Steering Committee decided to conduct a fairy intensive evauation, but to do this during one and ony one month each year. During May, questionnaires are given to a participants, a vounteers, and a teachers who staff or use the center. The questionnaires (see Exhibits 7-5 and 7-6) provide data for both sef-assessment and outcome evauation. Note: CTCNet, as part of its obigations under the grant from the Nationa Science Foundation, conducted a research and evauation effort that incuded intensive study at four CTC sites together with a quantitative study of a CTCNet affiiate programs. One of the goas of this research was to provide affiiates with instruments and mechanisms that wi assist them in their own research and evauation. This and other studies, incuding an evauation tookit, can be found at: Documentation The business pan wi incude the foowing information from Chapter 7: One or more weeky schedues Sampe pubicity materia (fyers, brochures, a sampe newsetter) Assessment impementation pan 160

183 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Additiona Contact Information Benton Foundation, 1625 K Street, NW -- 11th foor, Washington, DC, 20006, [email protected], Sheeta Singh, c/o CompuMentor, 435 Brannan Street, Suite 100, San Francisco, CA, 94107, [email protected], Susan Tenby, TechSoup.org, 435 Brannan Street, Suite 100, San Francisco, CA 94107, [email protected] 161

184 Center Start-Up Manua Additiona Resources Outreach Basic Press Outreach for Not-for-Profit -Profit and Pubic Sector Organizations Benton Foundation Strategic Communications in the Digita Age Business Benefits of Accessibe Web eb Design CAP - Grand Opening Guide Designing and Marketing Your Programs Evauating Your Outreach Efforts forts How to Get Pubicity - Internationa Schoos CyberFair Making the Net Work Tookit Guideines for Web Design UK Onine Centres Marketing Tookit Usabe Web eb -- Tips and Techniques for Buiding Reader-Friendy Web eb Pages 162

185 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Evauation & Assessment ACC Assessment Toos for CTCs CTCNet Evauation Tookit (doc) Evauating Your Programs Evauation Think It Through Evauation Resources - America Connects Evauation Tookit A Work-in-Progress (pdf) United Way Checkist of Nonprofit Organizationa Indicators 163

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187 165 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3:00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 The Future the Chidren s Capita Museum Mon. Tues. Adut Casses KIDS ONLY LAB Adut casses Wed. OPEN LAB OPEN LAB Thurs. Adut Casses Youth Casses Adut Casses Fri. ADULTS ONLY LAB OPEN LAB Sat. OPEN LAB 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3:00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 Exhibit 7-1 Sampe Center Schedue Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation

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189 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-2: Sampe Center Schedue Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 9:00 9:00 Seniors Seniors Seniors Seniors Seniors 9:30 9:30 ACT/SAT 10:00 H.S. 10:00 GED Youth GED Youth GED Youth GED Youth GED Youth 10:30 proficiency 10:30 test prep. 11:00 11:00 GED Aduts GED Aduts GED Aduts GED Aduts GED Aduts 11:30 11:30 12:00 12:00 12:30 12:30 1:00 Empoyment Empoyment Empoyment Empoyment Empoyment 1:00 1:30 Enhancement Enhancement Enhancement Enhancement Enhancement 1:30 2:00 Empoyment Empoyment Empoyment Empoyment Empoyment 2:00 2:30 Enhancement Enhancement Enhancement Enhancement Enhancement 2:30 3:00 3:00 3:30 After Schoo After Schoo After Schoo After Schoo After Schoo 3:30 4:00 Recreation Recreation Recreation Recreation Recreation 4:00 4:30 OPEN ACCESS 4:30 5:00 5:00 Youth Youth 5:30 5:30 Tutorias Tutorias 6:00 6:30 OPEN ACCESS OPEN ACCESS 6:00 6:30 7:00 OPEN OPEN ACCESS ACCESS 7:00 7:30 7:30 8:00 8:00 8:30 8:30 9:00 9:00 167

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191 PLAYING TO WIN, INC.: The Harem Community Computing Center 169 9:00 Monday Tuesday Wendesday Thursday Friday Saturday 9:00 9:30 Hamiton Madison Poice Athetic League Poice Athetic League Metropoitan 9:30 ADULT & TEEN Houses 15: yrs. od 15: yrs. od Community United WORKSHOP HOURS 10:00 20: yrs girs 10:00 Methodist Church 20: 8-11 yrs. od 10:30 Metropoitan 10:30 Hospita CAP East Harem Urban 11:00 15 teens Center The Nurturing The Nurturing 11:00 East Harem Urban Ctr. ADULT & TEEN 20: 6-12 yrs. od Coective Coective 20: 6-12 yrs. od WORKSHOP HOURS 11:30 12: 6-12 yrs. od 12: 6-12 yrs. od 11:30 12:00 12:30 Hamiton Madison 12:30 Houses Chidren's Aid Society 20: 5-6 yrs. od coed 1:00 Staff Meetings Barnard S.T.E.P. 20: 9 & 10 yrs. od 20: yrs. od boys Greater Brownsvie OPEN HOURS 1:00 (through Aug. 3) 8-13 yrs. od 12:00-2:00 1:30 1:30 2:00 Manhattan & Bronx 2:30 Martin Luther King Team Lounge 10: yrs. od Towers Day Camp 3:00 30: 6-12 yrs. od The Bridge 12 Aduts 3:00 3:30 ADULT & TEEN WORKSHOP HOURS 3:30 4:00 4:00 MINDBUILDERS OPEN HOURS OPEN HOURS OPEN HOURS 20: :30 4:30 5:00 5:00 5:30 5:30 6:00 SMALL BUSINESS WORKSHOP 6:00 6:30 ADULT & TEEN & WORKSHOP HOURS ADULT & TEEN ADULT & TEEN 6:30 7:00 WORKSHOP HOURS WORKSHOP HOURS (to be announced) 7:00 7:30 7:30 8:00 8:00 12:00 2:00 2:30 Exhibit 7-3: Sampe Center Schedue Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation

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193 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-4: Genera Reease Form I,, for vauabe consideration, do hereby irrevocaby give my consent to, to use my name, any photographs of me invoved in CTC activities as we as any of my invovement in activities conducted by the CTC at any time for editoria, iustration, promotiona, advertising, and other simiar purposes in connection with the CTC s pubications and other activities. Appicant Signature: Date: Parent/Guardian Signature: 171

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195 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-5: Vounteer Evauation Form Somervie Community Computing Center VOLUNTEER EVALUATION 1. What do you think the best aspect of the Pubic Access program is? 2. Who which peope get the most out of pubic access (for exampe, teens who knows computers and want to get homework done, or sef-motivated seniors who...)? 3. What do you think needs to be improved? Tak software, hardware, hours, setup, Internet, whatever... (and use the back if you need to). 4. What do you ike most about being a vounteer? 5. What do you ike east? 6. If you coud change any one aspect of being a vounteer during Pubic Access, what woud it be? 7. When did you first start as a vounteer here? 8. If you are no onger a vounteer, when did you stop? 9. Why did you first start as a vounteer here? 173

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197 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-6: SCCC Participant Questionnaire 1) How many times in the past 6 months have you used the computers here? Once 6-10 times 2-5 times More than 10 times 2) What kinds of software have you used here? (pease check a that appy) Graphics Spreadsheets Database Typing Desktop Pubishing Word Processing Tutorias Educationa/Games Internet Scanning CD-ROMs Other 3) Is there any software program that we don t have which you fee we shoud add? What program(s)? 4) Which tasks have you used the computers at the SCCC for? (pease check a that appy) Deveop job skis Buid resumé Get comfortabe w/computers Emai/surfing web Print documents Have fun Homework Use educationa software Learn a specific program Other 5) If you use the Internet here, what have you used it for? (check a that appy) E-mai Job searching Homework/Research Chatting Fun Poitica activism Practicing Engish Genera information 6) If we offered a specific cass to the pubic, which one topic woud you choose? (pease choose ony one) Intro to Mac Graphics/desktop pubishing Intro to PC & Windows95 Scanning Advanced Mac/PC cass Internet for work and fun MS Office (Word, Exce, PowerPoint) Intro to programming Meeting job recruiters Making a web page 7) How woud you describe the environment at the SCCC? (e.g. noise eve, atmosphere, etc.) 8) I am Femae Mae 9) My age is: under over 60 10) My ethnic background is: (e.g. African-American, Pacific Isander, Haitian, etc.) 11) The eve of education I ve competed is: some eementary schoo some high schoo high schoo dipoma 2-year degree 4-year degree graduate work 12) I do do not have a physica disabiity. 13) My yeary income is: Under $10,0000 $10,000-$25,000 $25,000-$45,000 over $45,000 14) The tota number of peope I ive with and/or support is: 15) My first anguage is: 16) I do do not receive some kind of federa or state assistance. Pease Fip Over To 2nd side! A information you write on this form is competey confidentia. Thanks for taking your time to hep us out! 175

198 Center Start-Up Manua 1997 SCCC Participant Questionnaire Page 2 17) Do you have access to a computer esewhere? If so, why do you come to the SCCC? 18) Has earning computers make a difference in your ife? If so, pease describe how. And if this is your first time using computers, what do you hope to accompish? 19) Have you found a job as a resut of earning computers at the SCCC? If so, pease te us the story! Is there anything ese you d ike us to know? Pease be encouraged to comment on any improvements you d ike to see, anything that was particuary hepfu or usefu to you that you haven t aready mentioned. Aso, fee free to discuss particuar vounteers whom you found especiay hepfu. thanks a ot for heping us out! A information you put down is competey confidentia. Pease put in the Evauations Box at the SCCC or mai to SCCC, 167 Hoand St., Somervie MA

199 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-7 CTC Press Reease FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: [Name] [Tite] [Teephone (evening and daytime)] [Fax] [Emai address] [Web address] [Name of CTC] Offers Technoogy Access for [Locas, residents of interest] [City, State, Date] [CTC] pays a vita roe in bridging the digita divide in [community] with [event: its new hours, new program, e.g.]. Community technoogy centers ike [Name of CTC] are one pace where peope can get ow- or no-cost access to technoogy such as the Internet. According to a recent Department of Commerce study, there is sti a arge gap in use between those who can easiy afford technoogy access and those who cannot. Fuy 86.3% of househods earning $75,000 and above per year had Internet access, compared to 12.7% of househods earning ess than $15,000 per year. The October 2000 study aso found that Back (23.5%) and Hispanic (23.6%) househods were ess than haf as ikey to have Internet access than White (46.1%) and Asian American and Pacific Isander (56.8%) househods. Without access to a computer in the home, where do peope go to get connected? In [city or other ocaity] you need ony ook as far as the [Name of CTC] ocated [pace] to see community technoogy at work. [Insert here quotes / stories from your participants on why they visit the center: what services they use, what their persona goas are. For exampe, [ I ike to use emai says Jane Doe, a 66-year od resident of Residents Via. I have a granddaughter at Springfied State University, and I can te her how her cousins are doing. In genera, I just ove staying in touch with my famiy this way. My odest daughter cas me the cyber granny. ] [Insert major services, what popuations are served, how many years the organization has been serving the community.] Over the past decade, more and more Community Technoogy Centers (CTCs) have 177

200 Center Start-Up Manua been estabished around the United States to offer basic IT training and computer access (often either at a ow rate or at no charge) to those iving in ow-income or disadvantage areas. Such avaiabiity gives peope the chance to enhance their IT skis or gain skis to make them marketabe in the job workforce. Just as important: CTCs give community members a pace to meet and understand that they are not facing adversity or chaenges on their own. CTCs are paces that aow men and women to increase their own effectiveness and opportunity, said Karen Chander, Executive Director of the Community Technoogy Center s Network, or CTCNet ( You can go to a Community Technoogy Center if there s one in your neighborhood and immediatey start taking casses even if you don t have a dipoma. Because CTCs empower peope with an understanding of technoogy, they, in turn, are abe to empower a community to make a positive change and make its members fee better about themseves. For chidren, it becomes a safe haven for earning and interaction. For young and oder aduts aike, it provides a ocation to succeed in areas they never expected and to share experiences. In essence, a CTC quicky becomes a community s patform to a arger word of opportunities. # # # For additiona information, contact: [a contact information] [Summarize services one ast time] [CTC History (try to do this in one short paragraph)] Submitted by Marissa Martin, Project Coordinator,, CTCNet 178

201 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-8 Outreach Fyer SENIORS CITIZENS OPEN UP NEW WORLDS! The City of Seatte s Human Services Department and the Mayor s Office for Senior Citizens ( ) offer unique training casses caed Seniors Training Seniors. These four, 2-hour casses open up a new word to seniors as they earn about the computer, e-mai and the internet (word wide web). There are eight training centers ocated in the Greater Seatte Area. Adut earners attending are greeted by their peers Seniors who have been trained to teach a unique curricuum specificay designed for the oder, yet wiser, popuation. You do not need to have a computer at home to attend. Students fee right at home as they begin hands-on earning from day one with senior instructors and assistants who provide a reaxed, fun and non-threatening atmosphere. Learning the computer, e-mai and internet gives a earners an opportunity to rediscover the word and connect to friends and famiy and myriad of resources (trave, art, associations, cubs, etc). Isn t it time for you to see what you have been missing? Go ahead, pick up the phone and ca the center cosest to you. Leave your name, phone number and which center you want to attend a friendy person wi back to register you for the next avaiabe casses. Casses wi be offered through June, and begin again in September. Garfied Community Center E. Cherry St. Rainier Beach Community Center Rainier Ave. S. Midtown Commons E. Union Waingford Sr. Center Sunnyside Ave. N. South Park Community Center th Ave. South West Seatte Senior Center S.W. Oregon Deridge Community Center Deridge Way SW Centra Area Senior Center th Ave. South Submitted by The Department of Information Technoogy for the City of Seatte 700 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2700, Seatte, WA

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203 Scheduing, Outreach, and Evauation Exhibit 7-9 Project Evauation Form CTC Support Project VOLUNTEER PROJECT EVALUATION Many thanks and appreciation for your skis and work as a vounteer. The CTC Support Project (CTCSP) commits to ongoing effort to maintain and improve the quaity and efficiency of the Vounteer Matching Program. We woud ike to hear from you about your experience serving as a vounteer for our CTC. Pease answer the foowing questions. Your feedback is important to us and thank you once again for your time. Your Name: Duration of Project: / / to / / Project Description: Name of Assigned CTC: Approximate the tota hours of service: Pease rate the CTC Support Project in terms of: Exceent Good Fair Poor The ease of the onine sign-up process The efficiency of staff in responding to your vounteering The abiity of the CTCSP staff to pace you in a CTC that matched your skis, eve of interest, and experience The communication and support you received from the staff at the CTCSP during the match Pease rate the center in terms of: The ease of ocating and commuting to the vounteer site Feeings of safety and comfort Avaiabiity of resources (e.g. work space, materias) Pease rate your interaction with the center s Definitey Somewhat Not Reay Definitey staff/members: Not The center s staff expained your duties and responsibiities as a vounteer The staff were supportive and made themseves avaiabe at a times The staff acknowedged and thanked you for your work Do you fee that your service had a positive impact on the center? 181

204 Center Start-Up Manua Were the foowing resources usefu? a. Orientation session/meeting at the CTC pacement site: N/A b. Onine vounteer orientation materias (FAQ and tips): N/A c. The CTC Support Project Website: N/A d. The monthy project opportunities emai ist: N/A What other resources woud have heped you? Based on this experience, woud you consider being a vounteer for the CTCSP again? Yes No Why or Why Not? Pease share with us your overa experience as a vounteer and ways that the CTCSP staff can work to improve the experience of future vounteers. (If needed, pease use back of sheet) Note: Comments may be used on the CTC Support Project website or other materias. Submitted by Community Technoogy Center Support Project (CTCSP) at CTCNet 182

205 8c h a p t e r Budgets, Funding and Sustainabiity Introduction First Steps A Word about Start-up Expenses The Expense Projection Worksheet: Section by Section The Income Projection Worksheet The Grant Soicitation Process Soiciting In-Kind Donations A Word on Sustainabiity Exhibit 8-1: Keys to Successfu Panning, Impementation & Sustainabiity Exhibit 8-2: Panning and Sustaining a CTC Worksheet Exhibit 8-3: Expense Projection Mode:... Exhibit 8-4: Income Projection Mode:...

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207 8 c h a p t e r Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity I may not be what you might ca a computer expert, but I have used the PC to change my ife in a positive fashion. It has been a bridge to the past and to the future for me, and my friends. If I can do it anyone can." Een Wood, as submitted by Craigmiar Community Information Service (CCIS), Edinburgh, Scotand, Introduction Finay the chapter you ve been waiting for... how to find money to start and operate the CTC. Sorry, there is no magic formua. There is no guaranteed source of funding. But every CTCNet affiiate center is testament to the fact that it can be done, and every affiiate wi have suggestions about how your Steering Committee shoud proceed. First comes the budgeting process. This must have two parts: funds needed for startup, and funds needed for operation. A start-up budget detais the one-time costs of setting up the CTC and the sources of funds that wi be used to cover these costs. An operating budget detais the ongoing costs of operating the CTC and the ikey sources of funds that wi be used to meet these costs. In formuating the budget, the Steering Committee shoud start with its idea. It shoud then ook carefuy at the various sources of revenue avaiabe to the CTC. The idea in budgeted expenses may have to be revisited and some compromises made if the gap between expenses and reasonaby expected revenue is too high. It shoud aso be noted that there are funding sources avaiabe to individuas and famiies to provide assistive technoogy as appropriate. It wi be highy advantageous to use spreadsheet software for the work of this chapter. Not ony wi a spreadsheet make the task somewhat ess aborious, but it wi provide an eectronic record and tempate for recording Budget vs. Actuas during the year in 183

208 Center Start-Up Manua preparation for deveoping the foowing year s budget. Exhibit 8-1 is provided on CTCNet s Web site ( as a prototype worksheet on for projecting expenses; Exhibit 8-2 ( provides a prototype for examining sources of income. This chapter wi expore each exhibit in-depth foowed by an examination of potentia sources of revenue and aspects of proposa writing. First Steps Downoad Exhibit 8-1 from the CTCNet Web Site to set up a spreadsheet worksheet for your CTC. You wi need ony the coumn headings and the ist of ine items at the eft to start with. The foowing sections of the budgeting part of this chapter wi take you through the categories and suggest formuas that can be entered in appropriate coumns. [Aternativey, make severa copies of Exhibit 8-1, and use penci and a hand-hed cacuator.] You wi note, on the worksheet, a right hand section abeed Income Sources. For the moment, these incude ony three coumns: In-kind Start-up, In-kind Monthy and an Other coumn where you make notes about specia funding sources. The In-kind income coumns are extremey important. Your CTC wi inevitaby depend to some extent on contributed services or goods. In each case where you have a pedged contributor or anticipate vounteered services, you wi be making a matching pair of entries in the spreadsheet, one under expenses and one under income. The resut is: a more reaistic budget (you'd have to purchase these goods or services if they weren't contributed) evidence of support (funders being approached for grants and/or doar contributions wi be impressed that you aready have substantia support) a eg up on your income/revenue panning (see Exhibit 8-2: Income Projection Worksheet) A Word about Start-up Expenses Start-up expenses incude the cost of getting everything ready before you actuay open the CTC. There are two kinds of start-up expenses: Capita expenses and one-time expenditures such as renovations to the space, purchase of office equipment, furniture and furnishings, and utiity deposits as required by utiity companies such as eectric, heat, phone, etc. 184

209 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Expenses that wi continue through for the ife of the CTC such as saaries and benefits, professiona fees, space and utiities, equipment maintenance and repacement, software and computer suppies, promotion & outreach expenses, teecommunications costs, educationa materias, and misceaneous others. The cost of hardware can be assigned to either category. If you are panning to acquire a of the hardware before opening the CTC, cost is a capita expense, and operating expense is imited to equipment maintenance and repacement. On the other hand, you may be panning to start with a sma number of computer systems and peripheras and add as demand and resources indicate. In such a situation, it makes sense to consider hardware purchases among the on-going expenses. On the worksheet, you wi see a coumn headed Start-up Amt. As you work through the spreadsheet, section by section, you wi enter appropriate expenditures in that coumn. When you have competed the entire worksheet, you wi have a start-up budget as we as monthy operating amounts to be entered into the fina mode. The Expense Projection Worksheet: Section by Section Personne This section has four sub-sections: Saaried persons, houry empoyees, benefits, and professiona fees (on which no benefits are paid). It is extremey important to incude, in the ist, a anticipated vounteer assistance. Vounteer services are important in-kind contributions. You probaby coudn t operate your center without them so they must appear in your budget. As noted above, whenever you enter an expense representing vounteer services, you wi immediatey post the same tota for each on the income side in the appropriate In-Kind coumn. Saaried First, the formuas: Under monthy (ce G5 in the mode), write a formua (e.g., E5*K5/12) that mutipies the annua base by the percent of time and divides the resut by 12. Copy that formua down the coumn for a saaried empoyees (ines 5-8 in the mode). 185

210 Center Start-Up Manua Use a sum function to tota the monthy and start-up coumns on the ine foowing the arrows (ine 9 in the mode). Second, enter the information for each empoyee: name, position, % of time, annua base saary. The formua previousy entered wi provide the entry under monthy. Third, if that empoyee is to be hired before the center is in operation (as is ikey with either the Center Director or the Outreach Coordinator), determine from your timetabe (see documentation for Chapter 1) the number of months assignabe to startup. In the Start-up coumn, enter a formua taking the monthy amount and mutipying by the number of months the person wi be empoyed before start-up. Exampe: The Center Director wi be empoyed for two months before the CTC opens. The Outreach Director wi work 20% time for the same period. Saaried Position % Time Annua base Monthy Start-up Dae K Center Director 100% $27,00 $2,250 $4,500 Lou M Outreach Director 20% $24,000 $400 $800 Houry Here you wi enter data regarding peope who work on an houry basis. These may be teaching assistants, part-time receptionists, cerica personne, janitoria personne, or other. It is ikey that you wi incude here your reguar vounteers in whatever category of service. Your monthy formua (coumn G) wi mutipy the # of hours by the houry rate. You wi have to estimate the number of hours in a month (you can use 21 working days per month, or 4.2 working weeks to hep you out). Again, you want to put a sum formua at the bottom of both monthy and start-up coumns. Exampe: A part-time receptionist wi be empoyed for 10 hours each week and wi come in for two hours of training before the CTC opens. Line 12 in the mode wi show: 186

211 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Houry Job #Reg hrs Rate Monthy Start-up Amt Chris C Reception 42 $6 $252 $12 Fringe benefits Most benefits can be cacuated on a percent of wages paid. On each ine, you must find or determine the rate, and then in the monthy coumn, mutipy the sum of your monthy saaries and houry wages by the appropriate rate. In the start-up coumn, use the sum of the start-up saaries and houry wages and mutipy by the rate. List on the income side in the In-Kind coumn, any amounts under monthy or start-up that resut from isting vounteers on the expense side. Remember that if you were actuay paying for such services you'd have to pay for benefits as we. Thus by contributing services vounteers aso contribute to fringe. One of the items under benefits is Vacation. The CTC must have a vacation schedue for staff (see Chapter 4), and may have to hire temporary personne in repacement. The cost of the temporary personne is what goes on the Vacation ine. Professiona fees Lawyers, accountants, and other professiona consutants usuay charge a fee based on days. Others may charge by the hour. Honoraria, if and when paid, are usuay for a particuar meeting. Estimate the number of occasions (day, hours, or meetings) on each ine for the month. Enter the rate. And again, in the monthy coumn, enter a formua that mutipies the number of occasions by the rate. If the CTC has been abe to acquire pro bono services (free services), enter the cost on the expenses side as if it had to be paid, and enter the same amount in the In-Kind coumn on the Income side. It is ikey that ega services may be high during start-up and ower during reguar operations. Adjust accordingy. Tota personne Put a formua in the monthy and start-up coumns that sums the four subtotas above. Be carefu not to sum the entire coumn, just the subtotas. 187

212 Center Start-Up Manua Other Operating Expenses (OOE) Site costs For start-up amounts, uness major renovations to space are panned, one month s expenses wi probaby be sufficient. Even if the CTC has been given free or reduced-rent space, enter the going rate for an equivaent square footage, and ist the difference between that and what the CTC must pay in the In-Kind coumn. Estimate the monthy utiity costs from what others with simiar space and oad pay. If you are unsure, over-estimate to start with. Water and sewage rates are usuay obtainabe from a oca Buiding Department or Sma Business Bureau. In many urban ocations, garbage cannot be haued by the Department of Sanitation and a private contractor must be engaged. Maintenance suppies incude mops, buckets, sponges, brushes, toiet paper, paper towes, and ceaning suppies. Try to get an estimate from an agency with simiar space. Security and insurance Most of these costs are monthy or yeary. Divide any yeary cost by 12 for the monthy amount. Remember that if the space is used prior to opening, you must enter appropriate amounts for the start-up period. Hardware & software Even if the tota compement of hardware is to be purchased as part of start-up costs and so wi be isted in the worksheet section foowing Other Operating Expenses, some amount shoud be incuded in the budget for repacement and/ or expansion. If you put down $200/mo, you'd be estimating $2400/yr. for repacement expense. Hardware maintenance shoud incude the cost of any maintenance contracts on computers, printers, or other peripheras, or an estimate of what repairs wi cost (this estimate shoud increase as the hardware gets oder), and assistive technoogy toos and upgrades. 188

213 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Software purchase for start-up wi probaby be arger than the monthy amount. Say 30 pieces constitute the panned ibrary and the CTC intends to start with 20 of these. Put the cost of 20 in the Start-up coumn and the cost of one piece in the monthy coumn. In estimating computer suppies, try to find an operating center of simiar size or a commercia venture that rents computers by the hour and ask for their hep. Office expenses Equipment maintenance incudes maintenance contracts on copiers, fax machines, or other office equipment. Equipment repacement is, as it is for hardware above, a set-aside toward the inevitabiity of repacing the piece of equipment. Stationery refers to etterhead, enveopes, business cards, abes anything printed with the name of the CTC. If named individuas are to be isted on stationery, don t order a year s suppy a at once. The names may change. Some of this cost can be assigned to start-up expenses as can probaby a month s worth of copier paper and misceaneous suppies. Communications On-ine service is the monthy charge the CTC wi be paying for its Internet connections and wi depend on the type and nature of that service. Teephone incudes monthy bis for cas and faxes. If a pay phone is to be instaed in the CTC for participant use, there wi be a monthy charge for that as we. Postage and shipping must incude estimates for reguar mai, for dissemination of outreach and PR materias, and for overnight mai charges. CTCNet If you are reading this, it is a reasonabe assumption that your CTC is, or is about to become, an affiiate member of CTCNet, so annua membership shoud be in the budget. You can find updated membership information at Costs for attending meetings shoud incude transportation and, if needed, costs of substitute personne. Regiona meetings are usuay haf- or one-day affairs and within car or pubic transport reach. The CTCNet Annua Conference wi probaby require air or train fare and a 3-night stay in conference odgings. 189

214 Center Start-Up Manua Outreach and pubic reations Media advertising incudes ads paced in newspapers, on radio and/or teevision. It coud aso incude posters, or pacards in buses and subways. The CTC probaby won t do much of this for rea doars, but may be abe to get free advertising through pubic service announcements, the oca press, or even the Advertising Counci. If such is the case, don t forget to match the estimated cost with an entry in the In-Kind incomes coumns. Brochure and newsetter estimates can be obtained from oca printers. Others can incude banners (or specia exterior dispay), or any specia materias (e.g. fim processing costs) required for presentations at conferences or meetings. Since the CTC wi need to aunch its outreach campaign during the start-up phase, a generous portion of outreach and PR costs can be isted under Start-up. Educationa materias Books incude reference works, texts devoted to specific hardware, software, or the Internet. If a focus of the CTC is job training or adut education, other books may be necessary. Periodicas incude magazines and newspapers. The CTC shoud have a judicious coection of magazines devoted to technoogy. Subscription to a oca daiy or weeky newspaper is aso a good idea. Try for gift subscriptions and ist both the expense and the in-kind contribution. Trave, Professiona Deveopment, and Recognition Think about fied trips for participants, reward dinners for vounteers, open house sessions at the CTC, regiona or nationa conferences (in addition to the CTCNet conference) that staff shoud attend. Fund-raising may aso ca for trave, but CTCs shoud not have to wine and dine funders. Disabiity Accommodation Estimated costs shoud be provided for improving access for peope with disabiities and functiona imitations. Sometimes making ADA-reated changes is reativey inexpensive and easy; the majority of modifications cost ess than $500. To estabish sources of funds, be sure to: Determine if your organization s government funding sources have additiona monies avaiabe for barrier remova. 190

215 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Create a ine item in every budget for reasonabe accommodation and barrier remova. Don t forget to incude these ine items in grant proposas and contracts. Some access-reated changes can be made immediatey, and some wi be made over a period of severa years so a permanent ine item in the budget is important. Funders wi most ikey aow these costs. An exampe of anguage for the budget narrative is: $ xxx.00 Reasonabe accommodation and barrier remova: to improve access (grab bars in bathroom, raiing for steps); to contract for sign anguage interpreters as needed; to caption the video used to teach computer skis; to modify a work station; to purchase assistive technoogy; or to reproduce print materias in arge print and on audio cassette. Other Misceaneous fees incude bank charges, municipa fines for non-remova of snow, or any of the other itte things that one finds one has to pay for. In addition, it wi be hepfu to get an accounting system in pace to track expenses. Discretionary funds are usuay estimated at a percent of operating expenses (3-10%) and are reserved for specia emergency expenditures. Tota other operating expenses As with personne, enter totas in both monthy and start-up coumns of the subtotas in a the categories under Other Operating Expenses. Again, take care to tota ony the subtotas, not the entire coumn. Grand tota personne and OOE The sum of monthy Tota Personne and monthy Tota Other Operating Expenses wi be the monthy operating nut for the CTC. To ook at the estimate for operation of the CTC for a year, mutipy this number by 12. You wi need a simiar tota in the Start-up coumn, but this wi eventuay be added to the One-Time Start-up Costs tota of the next section. 191

216 Center Start-Up Manua One-Time Start-Up Costs In a categories, continue to enter cost of donated equipment or services, and then make a simiar entry in the In-Kind coumn. Site preparation -- Most of the items here wi be contracted by the CTC. Furniture -- In this section, ist for each item, the number of pieces and the estimated cost of each. Use a formua to find the tota cost (mutipy number of pieces by cost of each). Office equipment -- Foow the same procedure as with furniture, above. Computer equipment -- Again, foow the same procedure as with furniture in reference to a purchasabe items. For cabes and instaation, you may have a contractua amount. Totas Insert a tota for a the startup costs isted. You don t have to worry about subtotas here; just tota the coumn from Site Preparation on down. Then, under GRAND TOTAL START-UP, sum the Grand Tota Personne and OOE and the Tota One-Time Start-up Costs to get the Grand Tota of Start-up. CONGRATULATIONS! The hardest part of the worksheet is done! But now... The Income Projection Worksheet First steps Using Exhibit 8.2, construct a spreadsheet (or make copies for penci and cacuator work). On the TARGETS ine, enter the Grand Totas for both Start-Up and Operating Expenses from your Projected Expenses worksheet. Note that the tota Operating Expenses shoud be for a fu year. If you haven t aready done this, mutipy the monthy grand tota on the Expense worksheet by 12 and enter the resut. In-Kind Under INCOME, the first category is In-Kind. A the subsections from your 192

217 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity worksheet appear here. Enter the subtotas from the expense worksheet in the matching Start-up or Operating coumns on the Income worksheet. You ve aready put some figures in the In-Kind coumn. Tota these now, both for Start-up and On-going Operations. Center revenues This is where you wi enter money that the center earns through its operations. Notice that the Start-up coumn is X d out. If the CTC wi not be charging any fees or soiciting any contributions from participants, this section can be skipped. Otherwise: enter the estimated number of members the CTC wi have in a year enter the amount of the membership fee (add rows for different types of membership) in the Operating coumn, enter a formua that mutipies the number by the fee Foow the same process for the remaining appicabe items. Government grants Itemize here any federa, state, or oca pubic funding for which the CTC is or wi be appying. Enter the tota amount requested, then a percent representing the ikeihood of receiving the grant, and in the appropriate coumn mutipy the amount requested by the rate of ikeihood. Funding can sought from oca, state, and federa funding sources. Usuay, any government appication process requires evidence of the CTC s track record. Furthermore, projects for which the CTC is requesting funds must cosey match the funding criteria of the grant-making department. In contempating appication for government funding, a coaborative proposa with a more estabished non-profit, such as a coege, university, or ibrary, may be the preferred route. Loca and State The community mapping process (see Chapter 2) shoud have identified specific oca government agencies and their grant-making resources. The Steering Com- 193

218 Center Start-Up Manua mittee shoud inform itsef about the potentia of securing funds from any Community Deveopment Bock Grant program or other oca initiatives. Federa funding Foowing are some of the grant-making federa agencies. Visit appropriate government agency web sites or write requesting guideines reating to grant avaiabiity. Congressionay-approved grant-making programs are aso described in the Federa Register. A number of federa agencies maintain Web pages that describe funding avaiabiity, most of which are accessibe from FirstGov ( Do remember that a federa monies come with obigations to compy appropriatey with non-discrimination reguations. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Deveopment (HUD). The property owner of HUD-insured or HUD-assisted housing deveopments may appy to HUD for permission to use certain funds under certain conditions. Be sure to check HUD s Neighborhood Networks web site for possibe funding opportunities ( U.S. Department of Labor. Offers funding primariy for empoyment and training programs and purposes ( U.S. Department of Education. Funding for educationa programs, educationa research, ibrary programs, adut education. There is a specia office for Educationa Technoogy. Be sure to research the Department s CTC program ( U.S. Department of Heath & Human Services. Grants for preschoo and afterschoo activities. Check with your oca HeadStart and Even Start programs for more information ( U.S. Department of Commerce. Offers grant support for eectronic commerce. The Department web site wi be your best bet for current information ( Maintains an annua competitive grant program under its Nationa Teecommunications Information Administration (NTIA). Look for the Technoogy Opportunities Program (TOP) at Foundation grants Itemize here any grant appications the CTC is or wi be making to private and corporate foundations. Foow the same procedures as with Government Grants above, entering the tota amount appied for, a ikeihood rate, and then the resuting product. 194

219 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Athough there are occasiona exceptions, most private and corporate foundations award grants ony to non-profit organizations that are quaified for designation as not a private foundation under IRS code section 501(c)(3). If the CTC has been incorporated as a non-profit, or if its parent organization aready has 501(c)(3) status, then it shoud pursue grant funding. Sources for information about foundations incude: The Foundation Center is a nationa, nonprofit cearinghouse for information on private and corporate foundations and grants. The Center assists in matching foundation interests with nonprofit needs by pubishing reference books on grantmakers and disseminating information on grants ( The oca pubic ibrary shoud have manuas isting foundations by ocation, kind of activity, and eve of funding. Begin with the foundations in your state. Ask the ibrarian for assistance in ocating directories such as 1000 Foundations, Computer Grants Directory, Directory of Computer and High Tech Grants, and Nationa Directory of Corporate Giving. The yeow pages teephone book under foundations. Other neighborhood non-profit agencies that may be wiing to share their grant-seeking experience. Loca business associations (e.g., Chamber of Commerce) may make hepfu oca referras. Note: The United Way is a eading funding organization worth investigating. Many corporations, however, do not award grants to United Way fund recipients. Business & industry cash contributions Itemize here any cash contributions anticipated from oca businesses. A supermarket chain may offer to match 5% of participating shoppers purchases during a specific week. The oca Chamber of Commerce may hep organize a canvassing of oca business peope. A oca restaurant may designate a specia day when a percent of its saes wi be donated. 195

220 Center Start-Up Manua Coaborations and subcontracts The CTC may have identified other neighborhood agencies that are appying for grants, either federay or from private foundations. If another agency is the prime appicant but the CTC is incuded as a recipient of grant funds, the income potentia shoud be itemized here. Specia events Fund-raising events are abor intensive and the doar return is usuay not high, but they are extremey usefu in heightening community awareness of the CTC and they aso give many peope the opportunity to support the CTC with reativey sma contributions. If the purpose of an event is to heighten awareness of the CTC and get a ot of peope invoved, begin a tradition of an annua event such as a bike trip, a wakathon for which peope coect pedges, or an auction (where, among other things, a Web page designed by CTC members can be auctioned). Other ideas incude a dance, a bock party or a fair where CTC members can dispay and se their work or where CTC members who are sef-empoyed can se their goods and contribute a percentage of the proceeds to the CTC. Itemize on the income worksheet any such events that have been or wi be panned during the year. Provide a goa amount and a ikeihood rate and enter the product as a tota in the appropriate coumn. Direct mai Every CTC shoud mount an annua or even semi-annua soicitation of funds by mai. Steering Committee members shoud not ony be counted on for contributions but aso for ists of their friends and associates. The soicitation can be in the form of a etter reating some particuary touching CTC success story. A contribution form shoud be incuded giving suggested amounts. Space can aso be provided for peope to ist friends and associates who shoud be added to the ist. Records shoud be kept (use a database) of contributions received, and these shoud be acknowedged. In the beginning both the ist and the rate of return wi undoubtedy be sma, but in time this method shoud not ony be reduced to a science (saving abor) but produce increasingy rewarding resuts. A good target amount for a first year can be found by taking the number of peope on the Steering Committee and mutipying by 100. The ikeihood rate 196

221 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity can then be estimated by a judicia guess as to how many Steering Committee members actuay coud or woud contribute $100. Other Itemize here any other fund-raising schemes the Steering Committee may have dreamed up, for exampe: Hiring a Direfctor of Deveopment or consutant to design fund-raising pan Individua contributions Teethons Contribution boxes in oca computer hardware and software retai stores Contribution enveopes maied in the monthy coupon package often distributed ocay by a direct mai agent (try to get that agent to cover the cost of the contribution enveope) Note: Door-to-door canvassing of residences, whie used by some, is not recommended, particuary in urban areas. It requires a arge number of vounteers and an even arger suppy of pubic reations materias. Totas When the ast brainstorm has been squeezed out of the Steering Committee and a resources checked and doube checked and a appropriate entries made, enter a tota in each of the Start-up and Operating coumns. Margin (shortfa) The amounts here are found by subtracting the TARGET amounts at the top of the worksheet from the TOTAL amounts you just entered at the bottom. If there is a positive resut (margin), that s good news. More ikey is that a negative amount, or shortfa, wi show up. A shortfa figure means that the Steering Committee wi have to revisit the Income worksheet and identify additiona sources, or that it wi have to revisit the Projected Expenses worksheet and make cuts in the budget, or both. Unfortunatey, the task of budgeting for the CTC is not over unti the expenses and income either zero out or a pus margin has been achieved. 197

222 Center Start-Up Manua The Grant Soicitation Process Soicitation of funds and in-kind contributions invoves both informa and forma means. When a Steering Committee member asks a business associate or friend to contribute funds or to make an in-kind contribution, this is informa fundraising. A request from a friend or ongtime associate is a very effective means of raising money. Each Steering Committee member shoud be asked to be responsibe for raising a set amount of funds, whether in cash or in-kind contributions. Forma soicitation from private and corporate sources requires a four step process. Step 1: Define the project. Know exacty what you are requesting the funds for: What is the need being addressed? What is the goa of the program? How wi the project achieve this goa? How wi progress/achievement be measured? Step 2: Research Use the sources suggested earier in this chapter to begin a database of potentia funders that you wi add to periodicay as you get new referras. Each record shoud contain the foowing information: Name of foundation Street Address Teephone and Fax numbers Emai and Web addresses Name and tite of suggested program officer Name of person who referred you to this program officer Grant-making areas (e.g., youth, edery, educationa technoogy, etc.) Geographic area of concentration (e.g., particuar city or state) Range of grants awarded and size of average grant 198

223 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Preferred method of initia approach (e.g., phone ca, etter, proposa) Deadines for appication Space to record your actions with their dates: (phone cas, etters, proposas submitted (with amount requested), acceptance/rejection, resubmission, etc.) Next steps: Ca each foundation and ask them to send their atest annua report. If your research has not given you the name of a program officer to contact, this is a good time to ask for that, and any other information you sti need. After reviewing the annua report, ca the identified program officer. Remember that foundations not ony want to give their money away, but they are required to do so. Their job is to identify the best or most promising recipients, so more often than not they are wiing to engage in preiminary exporations over the phone. In some instances, a program officer may even be wiing to make a site visit before asking for a fu proposa. In other instances, the program officer may be abe to make recommendations of other foundations to which you can appy. Step 3. Write, and send, the proposa Proposa writing can be arduous and time-consuming. For this reason, it is hepfu to have a master-proposa that can be sent to many foundations aong with an individuaized cover etter specifying the particuar way in which the CTC program matches the foundation s grant criteria. The CTC Business Pan, outined in Chapter 9, provides a the major eements of a master proposa, and, if word-processed and preserved on disk, can easiy be cut or added to if a particuar foundation or corporation has specia requirements. Be carefu to note on each foundation record the version or date of the master proposa sent. You do not want to send the same proposa twice to the same foundation. Likey eements of a master proposa incude (compare the above with the Program and Operations sections of the Business Pan): A summary. In the business pan, this is caed the Executive Summary. A narrative. Five to six pages incuding the foowing parts: n statement of need what issues the CTC is addressing 199

224 Center Start-Up Manua n n n project description what the CTC is and is trying to do statement of capabiity strengths and timetabe for the CTC pan staffing pan who wi do what A budget. Identica to the Financias section of the Business Pan. Attachments: Resumes of senior staff, a roster of the Steering Committee, press cippings, etters of support, and brochures or PR materias, a copy of the CTC s 501(c)(3) designation from the IRS, and, if the business pan itsef is not to be used as the master proposa, a copy of that document. Step 4: During the review process: If you have not yet met with the program officer, ca a week to ten days after sending the proposa to request a meeting. Inform a members of the Steering Committee that the proposa has been sent to this foundation and ask them to pursue any contacts they may have with the foundation s officers or board. Athough the foundation may take months to consider and respond to your proposa, keep the program officer informed by sending press cippings, news of other grant awards or equipment donations as they occur. Invite the program officer to any open house or specia event that the CTC is sponsoring. After acceptance : Upon notice of acceptance, write a thank-you etter. Upon receipt of grant funds, write another thank-you etter. Continue sending news cipping and invitations to specia events. Be diigent about meeting deadines for requested reports. About six months after the grant, ca and ask about procedures for reappication. After rejection: Ca the program officer and try to find out why the proposa was rejected. Ask how the proposa coud have been more effective. 200

225 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Ask when the CTC is eigibe to reappy. Write a note thanking the program officer for taking the time to tak with you. Continue sending news cippings and invitations to specia events. Soiciting In-Kind Donations The process is not dissimiar. Corporate sources can be added to your foundation database. Try to estabish phone contact before sending a proposa. Discuss your needs and try to estabish if a rea potentia exists. Suppose you have been asked to send a proposa requesting a hardware donation. Prepare a pan that incudes the foowing: a statement of how the software and hardware wi benefit your program (for exampe, it might faciitate educationa tasks, administrative tasks, or pubic access to the CTC); a description of minimum acceptabe standards, the number of hardware systems you need and can physicay accommodate, required peripheras, operating systems, and other software required for the intended use; the number of staff abe to use the equipment and the number remaining to be trained; sources of assistance in providing staff deveopment, program deveopment, and technica assistance; and, the amount in the budget to support the above activities. Once the contribution has been committed, get detais of any donation from the donor. Such detais incude: n n the name, tite, address, and phone number of the donor; how the donated systems and software differ from the pan with respect to type, components, memory, practicaity of use, need for staff deveopment, and so forth; the working condition of the hardware; the ega right of the donor to give the CTC the software and the ega right of the CTC to use it; and, the donor s wiingness to pay for the deivery of the equipment to the CTC. If the donated equipment is severa years od, before acceptance, research the avaiabiity of repair services and spare parts. 201

226 Center Start-Up Manua With regard to any in-kind donation of hardware, do not agree to provide the donor with a written doar evauation of the donation. Do not accept a ower grade or earier mode than that which the CTC aready owns uness there is a specific use for it. Finay, do not accept equipment in poor condition uness the funds are avaiabe to repair it and such repair wi be cost effective. A Word on Sustainabiity Funders, users, and neighborhood institutions are a going to want to know that what the CTC is asking them to invest in or to partner with is going to be sustainabe or around beyond the first year. When deveoping the CTC s budget and the financia pans sections of the business pan, be sure to emphasize how sustainabe the Center wi be after start-up and the first year s operations. In fact, as described in the Financia Pans section of Chapter 9, the CTC wi have to provide annua budgets for the first three years of operations to refect sustainabiity. Experienced non-profit fundraisers wi quicky te feow grantseekers that buiding a reationship with the funder is the cornerstone to a successfu funding reationship. Look for ways that wi buid your reationship with oca funders. More often than not, peope give to peope, not to words on paper. Obviousy, muti-year commitments of money or in-kind contributions make the CTC more sustainabe and wi provide everyone with a degree of comfort that their investment wi prove worthwhie. Documentation The process a CTC uses to soicit funds needs to be carefuy documented. The spreadsheets created for estimating expenses and income are actuay so important that the CTC shoud preserve them in severa ways: on a hard drive, on an archive disk, and in hard copy. Research on corporate and private foundations shoud resut in a database. Lists needed for canvassing oca business and industry peope shoud be maintained. 202

227 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Additiona Resources ACC-Resources-Sustaining a CTC Aiance for Nonprofit Management FAQs by Topic America Connects Consortium Pane on Sustainabiity Basic Guide to Non-Profit Financia Management CTCs Keys to Successfu Panning, Impementation & Sustainabiity Deveoping Your Fundraising Pan DOC Iinois Web Site Foundation Center - Your gateway to phianthropy on the Word Wide Web Grants Coection Orientation Manua Managing Your Nonprofit s Finances and Taxes 203

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229 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Exhibit 8-1: Keys to Successfu Panning, Impementation & Sustainabiity Resource Paper Prepared for: "TeeCommunity 2000," 3rd Annua Community Network Technoogy Conference, December 11-12, 2000, Omni South Park Hote, Austin, Texas Presenters: Pau Lamb, Founder, Street Tech, San Pabo, CA, Michae Roberts, Director, Information Technoogy Initiative, United Neighborhood Houses of New York, New York, NY, The Scope A community technoogy center (aso caed by many other names incuding: computer abs/rooms, computer earning centers, CTCs) in its broadest possibe form is a mutipurpose education and training faciity that can provide a wide range of computer technoogy reated services to many different kinds of peope. There is no one idea type or mode for a computer technoogy center. CTCs are ocated a over the United States in churches, housing projects, job training centers, settement houses, cabe pubic access centers, sheters, schoos, human service organizations, museums, etc. Some are stand-aone programs in their own site. Others are a part of a arger organization. Some CTCs are fuy staffed with paid, we trained program managers, computer instructors and computer systems support personne. Others are staffed soey by vounteers (incuding senior citizens and coege/high schoo students). Some CTCs are equipped with fairy modern, networked, muti-media computers with high speed Internet access, aser printers, scanners and digita cameras whie others have outdated computers, sow printers and dia-up Internet access. Guiding Mission Over the past years, community technoogy centers have been at the fore front of a growing community-based, nationa movement. Their shared mission is to provide underserved popuations in rura and urban communities with access to free and/or ow cost computer and information technoogy resources. Officiay more than 450 CTCs are members of the Community Technoogy Centers Network (CTCNet), the premier nationa membership organization that is one of the eary pioneers in this movement. Countess other community based computer instructiona programs quiety 205

230 Center Start-Up Manua exist throughout the country unaffiiated with CTCNet or other community technoogy consortia. Their Potentia When carefuy panned and successfuy managed, community technoogy centers can have a major impact on the ives of peope as we as support the skis deveopment and earning goas of an organization's programs. They can operate up to six days a week, eight hours or more a day, serving over a thousand individuas a year. Community technoogy centers can: 1. Provide an opportunity for participants and staff from different programs within an organization (i.e., community-based, muti-service agency) to earn computer skis. In such cases, the services provided by the CTC to each program within that organization are vaue added (FUNDABLE) components of those programs. 2. Serve as an income generating resource through fees for courses, membership dues and use of the CTC by outside groups or individuas. 3. Pay a significant roe in upgrading the empoyabiity skis of by providing computer technoogy resources to underserved community residents and groups. How a computer technoogy center is panned and utimatey impemented depends on many factors incuding: an organization's priorities, needs (and those of the peope/ groups it serves), budget, resources (staff, physica site), panning skis, and an abiity to get good answers to very technica questions. 206

231 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Exhibit 8-2: Panning and Sustaining a CTC Worksheet Participants Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More Who wi the CTC serve and why? Potentia groups incude: Agency program participants, drop-ins from the community, chidren, youth, aduts, seniors, famiies, the homeess, unempoyed youth/aduts, at risk youth, agency staff (staff training), staff from other organizations. Programs/Services Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More What kinds of programs and services wi the CTC offer to the targeted group? Types of services incude: schedued computer appications casses; computer workshops; advanced technoogy training (for exampe: A+, Network+, MSCE, Cisco) for specific empoyment opportunities; open access (use of computer equipment & software for sef-paced earning/practice by groups mentioned above); group technoogy projects by youth in after-schoo programs; renting CTC faciity to outside groups, etc. 207

232 Center Start-Up Manua Staffing Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More How do you identify a diverse (skis, ethnicity, gender) staff that is sensitive to the differing socio-economic backgrounds, cutures, anguages, educationa eves and earning styes of the peope attending the CTC? What is the staff's roe in fostering a wecoming environment in the CTC that is safe, professiona and refects the diversity of the surrounding community? How do you ensure that staff has the opportunity to upgrade their skis in ine with the new technoogies and software they wi need to train others to use? How do you retain good staff? Management Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More What days/hours wi the CTC be in operation? How wi the CTC be staffed - Fu-time, part-time, vounteers, student interns (paid, unpaid)? Who wi be responsibe for scheduing the use of the CTC? Who wi be responsibe for maintaining computer systems (incuding instaing software, troube-shooting, configuring computers and printers, ceaning systems)? How wi the CTC be promoted throughout the community and/or within its parent organization? 208

233 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Computer Systems Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More What kinds of computers, printers, scanners, etc. wi be in the CTC? How wi the computer systems be configured (networked or stand aone)? If systems are networked, what is the strategy for providing appropriate eves of access to various users to computer appications and fies? What kinds of appications wi be instaed on the computers? Who wi maintain the computer systems and other equipment in the CTC? Physica Space Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More Where wi the CTC be ocated in the organization, or if a stand-aone center, in the community? Physica ayout of CTC? Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More Appropriate furniture for computers, printers, peripheras, sitting, software, books, etc.? Security of room (doors, windows) and computer systems? Ventiation (heating, air conditioners, pipes)? 209

234 Center Start-Up Manua Budget Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More How much wi it cost to operate the CTC in the first year? In the second year? Purchase and maintenance of computer systems and peripheras Supporting staff saaries - instructors, consutants, computer network support Software, computer iterature, disks, computer paper, toner, etc. Furniture Phones and Internet access Membership fees, conferences CTC utiities Specia events Funding & Sustainabiity Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More How wi the CTC be supported? Main sources of funding are: Grants - Federa, state and oca government, private foundations, corporations, oca businesses, individuas Fees - from casses, pubic access use, membership fees Donations - equipment and other computer reated items, individua time (vounteers) 210

235 Budgets, Funding & Sustainabiity Assessment and Evauation Don't Know This Competed or Area of Strength Want to Learn More How wi you document the use, vaue, effectiveness and impact of the community technoogy center's programs and activities on the individuas and groups who participate in such computer earning activities? How do you use these findings to improve the quaity of the programs offered through the CTC? How do you use these findings to secure additiona resources for the CTC? 211

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237 9c h a p t e r Preparing a Business Pan Introduction The Business Pan: Process and Outine The Business Pan: Section by Section Program Operations Financia Panning Presenting the Business Pan Exhibit 9-1: Cash Fow Worksheet Exhibit 9-2: Draft Business Pan

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239 Preparing a Business Pan 9c h a p t e r Preparing a Business Pan "The purpose of this program was to provide the adies from the hafway house with basic but marketabe job skis. Many of the adies have spent time in jai, been addicted to drugs and have had various other hardships in ife. Some have never even had a job that required any specific experiences or skis. Now, a of that is changing thanks to the CTC." Written by Janeen B. Gah, reviewed by Jacob Ortiz Howard University Center for Urban Progress -- Community Technoogy Center Washington D. C. Introduction Creating business pans has not been one of the routine tasks of non-profit directors or boards as it is in the for-profit sector, but, as non-profits are forced to mode themseves more and more after for-profits, it is not a bad idea to ook at and perhaps earn from some of standard for-profit strategies. Not a business pans foow the same outine, but a contain simiar eements. The process and outine that foows is presented ony as a guide and wi be most appropriate for those Steering Committees and CTC Directors who have itte experience in deveoping documents of this nature. For an aternate structure, Exhibit 9-2 presents a business pan deveoped by one of CTCNet s affiiate members. A business pan is a verba picture of your project. It tes other peope what you are going to do and how you pan to do it. It ets others know that you are serious about your project, and that you have taken time to consider a the reevant pieces. A business pan can serve the CTC in a number of ways: As a guide to hep set up and run the CTC To iustrate, to partners and funders, why you need their hep 213

240 Center Start-Up Manua As a boierpate for fund-raising proposas As background materia for staff and vounteers As documentation accompanying the yeary forma audit As a basis for deveoping CTC budgets for ensuing years, and, In HUD funding appications, as a substitute for a Computerized Community Connection Pan (CCCP). The CTC Steering Committee and management staff shoud reexamine the business pan annuay. Experience may dictate changes or require that certain sections be competey rewritten. The Business Pan: Process and Outine Schedue a series of meetings of the Steering Committee (or sub-committees) with CTC management staff to work through each section of the business pan. The documentation deveoped in the course of working through the preceding chapters wi form the basis of your business pan. In particuar, the materia on budgeting and fund-raising (see Chapter 8) is absoutey necessary for preparation of the financia section of the business pan. Assembe your documentation according to the outine in the foowing tabe, and provide a package to each person who wi be working on the pan. The documentation wi be used to produce the Business Pan narrative (see beow). When the narrative has been competed, you wi write an executive summary to precede the narrative, assembe the specified attachments, produce a tabe of contents, design a cover page, and bind the entire product in a manner befitting its importance. Pease note that athough different funders may require different documentation requirements, this particuar pan covers a range of basic requirements and is especiay hepfu in a time crunch. 214

241 Preparing a Business Pan Business Pan Section Subsection Documentation Chapter Source Operations Organization, governance and staff Organizationa chart Staffing pan 1 4 Timeine 1 Start-up needs and/or on-going operationa needs Communications and outreach Sef-assessment and program evauation Possibe probems and soutions Staffing pan Software and hardware pans Space pan 4 5 & Financias Start-up expenses 8 Start-up income 2 & 8 On-going expenses 8 On-going support 2 & 8 Projections (3-yr) 215

242 Center Start-Up Manua The Business Pan: Section by Section Program This section describes the program focus for the CTC and expains why it is the right program for the intended participants. It has five subsections: mission statement, needs assessment, program description, community partners, user projections, and fees. Needs assessment The narrative in this section must answer the question, What are the important needs among intended participants? It must aso set the stage for the program section to foow, convincing the reader that a) adequate data has been obtained, and b) that the data points strongy to the program focus identified. The narrative shoud: incude the mission statement of the CTC, speing out the vision, mission, and vaues of the program. Aso mention of the vaue of incusiveness and diversity, non-discrimination, etc. define the community to be served: existing agency cients? residents of a housing compex? neighborhood residents generay? participants from coaborating community agencies? community demographics and statistics? describe the steps the Steering Committee has taken to determine community needs (conducting focus groups, interviewing members of the community, deveoping partnerships and coaborations with other community agencies) summarize the resuting data Actua reports may be incuded as attachments. Program description The narrative in this section answers the question, In what areas wi the CTC focus its program and what offerings wi it provide to address the identified community needs? This section forms the basis for operationa sections to foow: staffing, scheduing, financing, etc. The reader wi need to be convinced that a) a variety of aternatives have been considered, b) other community 216

243 Preparing a Business Pan resources have been taken into consideration, and c) the resuting program is the idea program for the community to be served. If the Steering Committee has deveoped a mission statement, it can be used (or referred to and incuded as an attachment) here. The narrative shoud go on to describe, for each program area: the name of the program (e.g. open hours, GED instruction, job preparation, etc.) the scope, goas and objectives of the program (what wi participants be doing?) the hours when the program wi be offered the staff (paid and vounteer) who wi supervise the program, and the anticipated outcomes These descriptions need not be ong or overy detaied. A description of an afterschoo program might ook something ike this: The goa of the afterschoo program wi be to broaden the computer knowedge of grade schoo chidren by introducing them to software appications not generay part of their schoo curricuum. The program wi be supervised by one teacher for every ten chidren and wi be hed every afternoon, Monday through Friday, from 3-5:30 pm. The activities wi center around mutimedia projects using sound and visua imaging. The chidren wi use the Word Wide Web as a resource for project materias. The resut wi be that chidren wi do better in schoo, wi improve their anguage and communication skis, and that fewer wi get into troube. Community partners This section wi summarize the Steering Committee s work in mapping community assets and estabishing partnerships and coaborations with other community agencies. It wi answer such questions as: How were the community partners identified? "What specific coaborations have been estabished? What is the roe of each partner and what wi that partner expect in return? How wi the reationship be sustained? As you review the documentation from Chapter 2, remember that community 217

244 Center Start-Up Manua partnerships can take many forms and reap many different kinds of benefits: inkind contributions of space, hardware, software, furnishing, or renovations; participation by professionas and agency representatives on the Steering Committee or its subcommittees; technica advice and assistance, computer maintenance and repair; vounteers for a variety of staffing needs; an agency that wishes to bring its participants to the CTC; and so on. The narrative shoud be very specific and incusive as to the pedges made by each partner. Support etters and MOUs from each partner (individua or agency) shoud be incuded as attachments. User projections This section shoud answer these questions: How many peope wi attend in each of the CTC program areas? What increase in participation is anticipated as the CTC becomes estabished? What wi a weeky (or monthy, or seasona) schedue ook ike? How wi the schedue change during hoidays and vacation periods? In preparing this section, remember that a projection is ony a best guess. As months of operation go by, you wi accumuate attendance figures that wi improve the vaidity of your projections for ensuing years. In the initia stages, the projections wi be based on information from the focus groups, any preregistration figures from coaborating agencies or advertised casses, and the resuts of any piot program. The narrative shoud mention any currenty envisioned caps on participation due to space, budget, or staffing restrictions. Narrative statements can be as simpe as: Six seniors from the Community Center unch program attended the focus group. Five of these indicated that they woud attend Computer Orientation casses. Since over 100 seniors are invoved in the unch program, we anticipate an additiona 10% of these to register for the casses in the first month. It wi be appropriate to incude as attachments sampe schedues showing the various offerings, the times these wi be avaiabe, and the anticipated number of participants in each. 218

245 Preparing a Business Pan User fees The purpose of this section is to indicate any revenues that can be anticipated from fees charged or contributions soicited from participants. The documentation resuting from the work outined in Chapter 8 together with the user projections above shoud provide this information. The narrative can foow an outine such as: Membership fees are for aduts and for chidren under 16. It is anticipated that the CTC wi have an initia membership of 50 and wi tripe in size during the first year. Outside groups that use the center to offer their own casses wi be charged per participant per session. Arrangements have been made with organizations to bring casses for week sessions, resuting in an estimated of revenue. Participants in pubic access sessions wi be asked for a donation of, but any amount wi be accepted and no one wi be turned away for ack of a contribution. Based on user projections for these sessions, we estimate revenues of per week. Shoud any participants use the CTC for business activities, they wi be asked to contribute % of their earnings to the center. Athough no such profit sharing is anticipated during the first year, this may be a source of revenue in the future. The tota anticipated revenue from user fees during the first year of operation is. If no fees are to be charged for membership or casses, and it is not the intention of the Steering Committee to ask for participant contributions, this section need not be incuded. Operations This section of the business pan outines the nuts and bots of your pan for getting the CTC started and keeping it going. It has the foowing sections: organization, timeine, start-up needs, on-going needs, communications, and possibe probems and soutions. Organization This section wi answer the foowing questions: 219

246 Center Start-Up Manua What body wi govern the CTC? Who are its members? What are their major responsibiities?" "Who wi be in charge of the day-to-day operations of the CTC? To whom is this person responsibe?" "What other staff wi be required? What wi their duties and hours be? To whom wi they be responsibe? What is the nature of the performance review process? What strategies wi be empoyed to reward and recognize staff and vounteers? The narrative shoud describe the governance structure and incude the chart of organizationa structure deveoped as documentation in Chapter 1. In describing the day-to-day administration, the staffing pan deveoped in Chapter 4 wi be hepfu. The narrative shoud summarize the tasks to be performed by paid fu-time and part-time staff and by vounteers, together with quaifications required for each. It shoud detai hours, saary, and benefits for staff, and, in the case of vounteers, incude pans made for coordination and supervision as we as pans for support and recognition ecognition. Timeine This section answers the questions, When do the steps in the process of setting up the CTC happen? Who is responsibe for making them happen? A sampe timeine was given in Chapter 1. Your Steering Committee modified this to form its own timetabe and the resuts were documented. Review that document now and make any additions, subtractions, and other adjustments according to what has taken pace and what future actions have been panned. The narrative shoud reproduce and annotate your timetabe, indicating period for accompishment of the task, deadine, and positions of peope (staff and/or committee or subcommittee chairs) responsibe for seeing that the task is competed. Start-up needs The purpose of this section is to demonstrate care of panning and consideration of a reevant detai. The narrative shoud reassure the reader that a start-up aspects of the CTC have been considered and panned for. It may be the case that a CTC that has been in operation for some time is ony now getting around to 220

247 Preparing a Business Pan deveoping a business pan. In this case, the section on start-up needs wi not be incuded in the business pan. Start-up needs incude a items, services, and expenses that need to be acquired and/or paid for prior to opening the CTC, incuding space, staff, equipment, and suppies. Start-up needs do not incude items, services, and other expenses to be acquired or supported after the CTC has opened. The narrative shoud ist the needs (space and utiities, saaries, software, hardware, furniture and suppies) and indicate what the timing and arrangements are for acquiring each. For exampe, the Steering Committee may have engaged a Center Director 3-4 months in advance of expected opening. Not ony the saary and benefits for that period, but aso the costs of that person s workspace, necessary equipment and suppies wi be regarded as start-up needs. A more detaied ist of start-up needs can be incuded as an attachment. This shoud incude itemizations of software, hardware, and suppies as we as necessary furniture and furnishings purchases. It shoud specify the pre-opening cost of space, utiities, and aterations. It shoud incude any expenses reated to outreach, promotion, and, of course, associated fees and saaries. In addition, it shoud ist any necessary modifications to make the faciity accessibe to peope with disabiities and functiona imitations. On-going needs Again, the purpose of the section is to convince the reader that you ve thought of everything that every contingency has been covered. The on-going needs are the day-to-day expenses of running the center and cover, at a minimum: Space (rent, utiities, security, insurance, maintenance, trash remova) Staff (incuding saaries, benefits, and perks for vounteers) Outreach and promotion Equipment and furnishings (repair and repacement) Software (acquisition, upgrades, and repacement) Computer and office suppies On-ine services and internet accounts Periodicas and reference materia 221

248 Center Start-Up Manua Specia events budget These can be summarized and described in the narrative, and a more detaied isting can be made avaiabe as an attachment. Communications and outreach Readers of your business pan wi want to know how you intend to inform the community of the existence and ocation of the CTC and its intended services, membership options, hours, and casses. As noted in Chapter 7, a popuar misconception about CTCs is that you put computers in a room, open the doors, and peope come. In fact, there are many reasons that this simpy doesn t happen: peope don t know about the CTC; they don t think it s there for them; they are shy about their sef-perceived ignorance; they have no idea what being abe to work with a computer can do for them. So pubic communication and outreach is an essentia piece of your operations pan and hence of your business pan. Marketing and Outreach is discussed in detai in Chapter 7. Use the documentation to inform the narrative for this section: What media wi you use? What promotiona materias wi you generate? What meetings are targeted for persona presentations? What kinds of promotion can be expected from community partners? How wi you approach intended participants who may not read, who may speak a different anguage, who sedom eave their homes, or who cannot hear or see? The narrative shoud incude a description of the process you went through to deveop your outreach pan, and it shoud provide specific answers to the kinds of questions isted above as in the foowing exampe: We pan to communicate with oca reigious institutions. We woud ike to encourage service attendees to come to the center. We woud ike to open the door for these institutions to donate funds or provide interested and abe vounteers. We pan to te them personay about the CTC, what it intends to offer and whom it intends to serve. We pan to make contact by etters and phone cas to appropriate cergy and reigious eaders and hope to be permitted to speak at services and distribute brochures and fyers to attendees. Reigious institutions that we have been in touch with incude,, and. 222

249 Preparing a Business Pan Sef-Assessment and program evauation Readers of the business pan wi need assurance that the CTC is monitoring its own performance. This section describes the steps that wi be taken to accumuate data and examine quantitative and quaitative outcomes in reation to the goas and objectives specified in the program description. Refer to the sef-assessment pan deveoped as documentation for Chapter 7. Possibe probems and soutions It is important to discuss what might possiby go wrong with your panning. The object here is twofod: a) to give the reader a sense that your pan is rea - not just pie-in-the-sky that you know things wi go wrong, and b) to add further substance to the impression that you reay have considered a the contingencies and are prepared. This particuar topic has not been directy addressed in the preceding sections of this manua. By working through each chapter, the Steering Committee and Center Management team have probaby arrived at a good idea of what obstaces to program success may ie in wait. Bite the buet and make a ist of these. Here are some possibiities: Hardware breakdown or mafunction no technica assistance present Not enough participants OR too many participants Scheduing pan not appropriate for those who most want to use the CTC Faiure of fund-raising initiatives Inabiity to recruit and retain effective vounteers Space probems: too hot, too cod, not enough space, access difficuties Understaffing, inabiity of staff to respond to participants, staff turnover Pick two or three that seem most ikey to occur, given your panning, and write a short paragraph describing each and indicating strategies and mechanisms that the CTC wi empoy to overcome the obstace. Here is an exampe: Participants resent and rebe against rues estabished for the CTC. They refuse to sign in OR they insist on bringing their own software OR they take sodas and food to the computer stations, 223

250 Center Start-Up Manua or otherwise behave in bizarre and threatening ways. The center director wi meet with such participants and expain the rationae for the CTC rues, and soicit their cooperation. If behavior is not improved, the center director wi deny these participants further access. Financia Panning The object of this section is to demonstrate the capabiity of the CTC to raise sufficient revenue to support its expenses. The narrative wi summarize what the previous section projected in terms of expenses and income. You wi be attaching a cash fow worksheet (see Exhibit 9-1 and documentation from Chapter 8) detaiing expenses for start-up and on-going costs over at east one year. The narrative in this section must describe the strategies the CTC wi use to achieve sufficient income to match these expenses. If the business pan were being prepared by a for-profit technoogy center, the preparation of the cash fow worksheet might necessitate returning to the User Fee section (above), and adjusting the fee schedue so as to bring revenue into baance with expenses. Since the CTC is being estabished to serve peope who otherwise woud not have the opportunity to use technoogy because they can neither afford the technoogy itsef nor the training, it is unikey that a fee structure designed to support the center woud aow the CTC to achieve its fundamenta goa. Other revenue options have been discussed in Chapter 8. Preparing the cash fow statement Exhibit 9-1 is a competey fictiona cash fow worksheet, yet by examining it carefuy, you wi probaby have a good idea how to use the budget information arrived at in Chapter 8 to prepare your version. You wi have 15 coumns across. The first wi be used to identify your ine items. The next wi specify expenses and income for start-up. Foowing wi be monthy budgets for operating expenses. The ast coumn wi give the tota for the year. In the first coumn, the ine items wi parae the sections (not a the ine items) in your worksheets. An additiona item in the Cash In section is Bank Interest. This is isted under other on Income worksheet in Chapter 8. Since the income worksheet prepared in Chapter 8 shows annua figures, you may want to use your timetabe and the grant decision dates from your funding research to pace anticipated grant amounts in the months where they are most ikey to come in. This wi give a sense of reaity to this statement. Simiary, if 224

251 Preparing a Business Pan certain expenses are payabe annuay or quartery, you may want to enter the appropriate amount in the month when payment is due. The Cash Fow ine shows the difference between the Tota Cash In ine in the upper portion and the Tota Cash Out ine in the ower section. Note that it is not unusua for this figure to be negative. What is important is that Ending Cash not enter the negative area. The Cash Fow figure in the fina coumn represents the Beginning Cash figure for the foowing year s Cash Fow Statement. The financia narrative Athough both income and expense projections are just that guesses it is ikey that readers of the business pan wi be more interested in the probabiity of the CTC s being abe to meet expenses than in questioning the expenses themseves. The narrative wi describe the budgeting process undertaken by the CTC. It wi aso describe the research effort made and underway to uncover appropriate sources of support. Shoud the cash fow statement indicate negative cash fow areas, the narrative must address concretey the ways in which the CTC proposes to address these areas, and shoud incude as many aternative income sources as possibe aong with conservative estimates of return from such aternative sources. For exampe, suppose that the estimate of start-up costs produces the foowing situation: Start-up Costs $14,600. Anticipated revenue $12,500. Nationa Bank $4,500. Housing Authority $500. Foundation Grant $7,500. Shortfa ($2,100.) It woud not be reasonabe to anticipate raising this money from bake-saes or washing cars or mowing awns or shoveing snow or even a combination of these. Why? Because the return is sma for the organizationa effort invoved, and because the sum needed woud invove an effort over a considerabe ength of time. More reasonabe might be a statement such as: To meet this shortfa, the CTC wi secure $100 contributions from twenty-one oca businesses. Each wi receive a certificate of appreciation of their efforts as founding members of the CTC. 225

252 Center Start-Up Manua Presentation and revision Uness an accountant has been working with the Steering Committee on the business pan, the competed draft of the Financia section, the narrative and the cash fow statement shoud be given to a person famiiar with financia statements for review and feedback. Appropriate changes shoud be made. Even after the section is competed to everyone s satisfaction, it is important to use the cash fow statement (or the expense and income projections from Chapter 8) throughout the year to monitor and adjust the projections. This shoud be done monthy, using actua income and expense figures from CTC operation. Examination of the Budget vs. Actua statements shoud be a reguar feature of Steering Committee meetings. They wi aso be invauabe in determining more reaistic projections for foowing years. Presenting the Business Pan With a the interna sections competed, the time has come for some finishing touches to make the business pan easy to read, substantiate the contents with attachments, and make it ook ike the important document that is. Be aware that some funders receive a arge amount of grant appications and may specificay request that you not send additiona attachments. Check with an individua funder before sending in additiona documents. Attachments Suggestions have been made throughout the chapter for attachments. These incude any documentation used to support the narrative, brochures, fyers, etters of support, press reeases that aired or are in print from oca media, statements from participants, a foor pan for the CTC, support etters from coaborators and those who have pedged in-kind support, an organizationa chart, resumes of senior staff, personne poicies, and, of course, your cash fow statement. Executive summary The executive summary is the first item readers wi see after the Tabe of Contents. It shoud excite the interest of readers so they continue reading the pan. It must be short, not more than two pages and preferaby imited to a singe page. And it shoud present the highights of the pan starting with an introduction of the entity presenting the pan. Make sure you answer the foowing questions: 226

253 Preparing a Business Pan Who Are You? (Describe the Committee or Sponsoring Agency) What are you panning? (Describe the CTC) Why are you panning it? (Describe the need) How wi you do it? (Describe your pan) When wi you do it? (Describe your timeine) What wi happen? (Describe anticipated outcomes) Tabe of contents The tabe of contents appears after the cover page and shoud ist in order the sections of the business pan starting with the Executive Summary. Subheadings may be incuded under Program, Operations, and Financia Panning, as appropriate. Page numbers shoud be provided incuding a page number where the Attachments start. Cover page The cover page states the name of the CTC, the name of the sponsoring agency or of the Steering Committee members, the fact that this document is a business pan, and gives the month and year of pubication. Binding and distribution Choose a binding that ooks professiona and yet is not expensive. Three ring binders or veo binders are appropriate and aow you to insert coored tabs as section separators. These binders can be purchased at office suppy stores and the assemby can be done by the Committee or CTC staff. There is a further advantage to this type, namey that extra binders can be used for other purposes. Spira binding is nice but has to be done professionay. A oca printer can give you costs. If you go this route, you need a good estimate of the number of copies required. Cost wi probaby diminish as quantity increases, but on the other hand you don t want to have a coset fu of unused or outdated business pans hanging around. In estimating quantity, think about the foowing peope who wi need copies: Steering Committee members and/or Board members of the sponsoring agency 227

254 Center Start-Up Manua 228

255 Preparing a Business Pan Additiona Resources A Proposa Writing Short Course Appe - Education - Technoogy Panning Guide Business Panning (for nonprofits or for-profits) Education Leadership Tookit - Change and Technoogy Panning Nationa Center for Technoogy Panning Sampe grant proposa from Pugged In Strategic Technoogy Dynamic Panning for Organizationa Effectiveness fectiveness TechAtas - the tech panning too for nonprofits TechBuider echbuider,, GrantWriter riter,, Technoogy Panning YouthSpace -- Sampe CTC Business Pans 229

256 Center Start-Up Manua 230

257 Preparing a Business Pan Exhibit 9-1 Cash Fow Worksheet Startup Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 7 Month 8 Month 9 Month 10 Month 11 Month 12 Tota Year 1 Beginning Cash Cash In: User fees Fundraising Grants Vaue of In-Kind Contributions Interest on Savings Account Tota Cash In Cash Out: Start-Up Expenses: Utiity deposits Office Equipment Computer Hardware Computer Software Renovations On-Going Expenses: Saaries Heath Insurance FICA Workers Comp Unempoyment Insurance Professiona Fees Insurance Teephone Water Eectricity Rent Security Equipment maintenance On-ine services Advertising Printing Postage Newsetter Equipment Repacement Suppies Educationa Materias Tota Cash Out: 0 46,000 16,500 3,125 65, ,000 15,000 2,000 3,000 3,000 1, , ,360 32, ,613 2,473 1, ,270 30, ,523 2,223 1, ,230 28, ,423 3,323 1, ,180 26, ,330 2,030 1, ,130 24, ,225 2,185 1, ,245 22, ,122 1,882 1, ,195 20, ,007 1,967 1, ,345 17, ,688 1, ,330 15, ,756 1, ,280 12, ,429 1, ,230 9, ,529 1, , ,190 1, ,275 1,920 1,200 46,000 23,700 15,481 88, ,000 15,000 2,000 3, ,000 3,400 2, ,200 2,800 2,600 1,400 2,100 11,200 1,250 2, ,200 1,215 1,430 84,395 Cash Fow: 32,265 (1,797) (2,007) (1,857) (2,100) (2,060) (2,313) (2,378) (2,642) (2,524) (2,801) (2,796) (3,085) 3,906 Ending Cash: Pease note that these numbers are purey for exampe. They are not based on any actua situation. You wi need to get estimates for a of your center s costs as described in the financia section of the manua. 231

258 Center Start-Up Manua 232

259 Draft Business Pan Exhibit 9-2: Draft Business Pan Draft Business Pan Prepared by New Beginnings Learning Center, Pittsburgh, PA Staff Director certified teacher, B.A. - Carow Coege, M.A. - University of Notre Dame 33 years experience teaching and administration eementary through coege and community education programs training and experience in community organizing hired Apri, 1991 Computer teacher B.A. Geneva Coege experience teaching a eementary and high schoo grades experience working in community education and community service programs training and experience in current technoogy, hardware and appications hired January, 1995 Assistant/Secretary experience in secretaria work experience working community programs continuing education credits in computer technoogy hired August, 1995 Uniqueness Storefront - street access Location - connecting two communities; one mixed residentia, one ow income pubic housing Hub for a number of activities which incude preschoo casses, pubic schoo coaborative activities; JTPA youth empoyment casses; church youth programs; Pittsburgh Literacy Counci adut tutoring provides a safe, constructive community aternative pace for chidren to enjoy out of schoo time integrates earning and using technoogy with other earning activities eectronicay networked with oca pubic schoos and community centers networked with the Community Technoogy Centers' Network, formery Paying to Win, an internationa community technoogy access program Site for video conferencing job training in coaboration with Three Rivers Empoyment Service. This training is unique on the East Coast. 233

260 Center Start-Up Manua Video teeconferencing capabiities open opportunities for a variety of other community possibiities incuding communication between neighborhood groups, agencies, heathcare and other services and gang peace negotiations in a safe, non-threatening environment. Strengths Need Six years presence in the community as a technoogy and tutoring center training hundreds of chidren and youth in the use of computer. A history of coaboration with other community programs, institutions and agencies incuding Breachmenders, Inc., Friendship Church, Open Doors community - schoo coaborative, Pittsburgh Pubic Schoos, Carow Coege, University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Meon University, City of Pittsburgh, Hi House Association we quaified staff State of the art technoogy incuding two Pentium computers with arge memories, aser and ink jet printers, a Loca Area Network, a Wide Area Network and dedicated ISDN ines for internet and teeconferencing, Word Wide Web, and a growing software inventory. We have our own Web page and Internet accounts. Exceent ocation between two diverse communities and on the border between the residentia community and the university district of Pittsburgh Technoogy, incuding communications and eaning technoogy is mushrooming a over the word. For peope in ow income communities access is prohibitive because cost of wiring, software, hardware and maintenance is beyond their means cf. Market Research and Assumptions, p.6 knowedge of and famiiarity with technoogy and the cuture of computers is becoming increasingy important for iving, empoyment and maximum access to educationa resources. There are thousands of chidren, youth and aduts in the Hi District area who wi not have adequate access to technoogy without this resource in their community Community access centers are evoving from this need a over the country and in Europe. Goas Expand and renovate physica space to accommodate increasing cientee and growing technoogy Transition to broader service, broader use of technoogy Network with a variety of schoos, community agencies and Community Deveopment Corporations for education, job deveopment and economic deveopment activities 234

261 Draft Business Pan With these new inkages, to become an interconnected, networked community mode to be dupicated with adaptations in other parts of the city, county and country Deveop a serious fund raising pan which incudes a three to five year transition grant Cutivate wider coaboration with other efforts in the Pittsburgh Pubic Schoos, Pittsburgh Partnerships for Community Deveopment, Pittsburgh Partnerships for Job Training and Deveopment, community agencies and programs such as Hi House and Youth Fair Chance Change demographic focus from an autonomous earning center whose primary service focus is youth 3-15 years od, to a center connected to other centers and oca schoos whie we serve chidren and youth, teenagers, young aduts and parents / guardians and other famiy and community members Change scheduing from four days a week, primariy after schoo, to five or six days weeky with more daytime activities Methods Recruit renovation crew, funds from church partners for physica upgrades Additiona simutaneous activities for technoogy use More days, hours More diverse programs, popuation youth aduts market study - what do businesses need; what do individuas need to buid a business specificay job-reated ski deveopment casses reated specificay to coege prep ski deveopment specific to economic deveopment, owning businesses, franchises data entry, word processing, desktop pubishing; architecture/construction Funds Sought *Funding is being sought to secure the foowing positions and costs: Staff Director 30, ,719 Assistant 22, ,700 Computer Teacher(2 24, ,700 Group Tutors 3, Benefits 17, ,500 Tota 96, ,

262 Center Start-Up Manua Overhead Update Technoogy 3,000 +3,000 Rent 3,900 +1,500 Gas 2,200 +1,100 Eectric 1, Teephone 1, Maintenance/ Security Janitoria Hardware Maintenance Tota 13,050 +7,450 Program Computer Software 1,500 1,000 Grand Tota 111, ,069 Budget Narrative A. Director/Fundraiser Deveops programs; oversees staff; programs; communicates with board, other agencies and outside coaborators; deveops reationships with, writes proposas for funders, maintains reationship with Presbytery, immediate and broader community; carries out goas and direction as approved by the Friendship Ministries board B. Assistant Assists director in daiy program operations; oversees activities; maintains physica order of the center; keeps statistics on registration, attendance and progress of students, attends to cerica, secretaria tasks C. Computer Teacher Teaches casses; foows up on attendance at casses; deveops curricuum with director; orders, maintains hardware and software; stays abreast of deveopments in hardware and software and other community programs and resources Sources of funding Pittsburgh Presbytery Individuas Churches, church-reated organizations In kind contributions- i.e., Breachmenders - rent reduction Foundations Schoarship Fund 236

263 Draft Business Pan What investors receive in return: Participation in the activities of the earning center A state of the art, eading program with the potentia to enhance the quaity of ife in our city, the quaity of pubic education and the empoyabiity of an at risk sector of our society An annua report for accountabiity Annua open house Avaiabiity of tours of faciities, programs Periodic updates with sampes of projects and anecdota reports of activities Use of funds and doar amount: - $600 wi give one person a one year schoarship - See attached budget Mission Statement The New Beginnings Learning Center 1990 Mission Statement New Beginnings Learning Center is an education program designed to enhance the academic and socia skis of neighborhood residents. Through equa access to earning resources such as computers, tutoring, and the ibrary, the New Beginnings Learning Center stands as a visibe commitment of neighborhood and church to empower students and parents/guardians as they seek to enhance the quaity of their ives. The New Beginnings Learning Center is a tangibe demonstration of Christ's reconciing ove. It provides a critica ink in the network of youth programs in the West Oakand community. Vision The vision for New Beginnings incudes transition to broader service, broader use of technoogy, networking with a variety of schoos, community agencies and CDCS for education, persona deveopment, improved job opportunities and economic opportunities. With these new inkages and coaborations, to become an interconnected, networked community mode to be dupicated with adaptations in other parts of the city, county and country. 237

264 Center Start-Up Manua YEAR I YEAR II YEAR III Activity hours change -Add a.m. casses; evening casses -additiona open hours more evening and Saturday casses stabiize and evauate # of users 200 in (25% increase) 300 (20% increase) stabiize and evauate 330 (10%) # staff -increase computer teacher from 1/2 time to fu time -1/2 time director -increase assistant from 1/2 time to fu -1/2 time director stabiize and Objectives and Strategies 1. Increase the number of users and programs offered using computer appications such as data base, spread sheet, word processing, internet, teeconferencing and other programs Strategy - Offer casses for specific interests, popuations a. SAT- coege preparation casses b. Remedia casses specific to skis need This coud be coordinated with schoos c. Literacy programs with the Pittsburgh Literacy Counci d. Introductory & intermediate casses in computer appications and internet use for aduts e. Casses in desktop pubishing f. Coaching in writing a business pan g. High schoo remedia casses h. G.E.D. test preparation 2. Increase the number and quaity of reationships in oca and goba networks a. teach casses in how to use networks b. provide passwords, maiboxes for internet c. schedue open hours for use d. do coaborative programming with schoos, agencies and organizations in a networks; i.e. - etter writing; other cooperative projects 238

265 Draft Business Pan Program Description History Friendship Community Church was paced in the heart of the West Oakand/Terrace Viage community by Pittsburgh Presbytery in Located in a dense urban area immediatey adjacent to Pittsburgh's pubic housing deveopment, the church has estabished a ong history of reaching out to meet needs and support famiies of the neighborhood. One of Friendship's major emphases has been on youth. For the past ten years, an after schoo youth cub and a summer youth program that serves over 85 chidren have given neighborhood youth from five to fifteen years od enriching experiences through recreation, art, trave, music, and Christian study. These activities ed the peope of Friendship Church to recognize the need to boster the education component of the youth program. Thus began the founding of the New Beginnings Learning Center in the fa of 1989, for the purpose of enhancing, encouraging and supporting the academic performance of community youth. One of the objectives of the center is to hep make the possibiity of coege or vocationa training a reaity for youth who are unikey to consider such aternatives without earning and technoogica exposure beyond that of the norma schoo situation. The Center The Learning Center, since 1994 a program of Friendship Ministries, Inc., a nonprofit corporation of youth programs of Friendship Community Presbyterian Church, is a two room storefront ocated across the street from the church. It has a computer cassroom designed to motivate students and give them access to computer technoogy and practice which they may not otherwise receive. A one-on-one tutoring/ mentoring program utiizes over twenty five vounteer tutors from the community and oca coeges, universities and area churches. Around 100 students ages 3-16 are currenty invoved in our forma programs with severa students on the waiting ist in need of some academic assistance. Others just stop in to borrow ibrary books or pay various strategy games with other chidren. Currenty aduts are aso registering for our computer programs aso. In addition to our many vounteers, a part-time computer teacher augments the current staff of one fu-time director, a part-time secretary and two part-time group tutors who meet with 4-5 chidren each four days a week after schoo. The Center's inkages with pubic and private schoos have been instrumenta in tracking students' progress, assessing their needs, and cosing gaps between schoo, community and home. We draw chidren from over fifteen pubic and private schoos in the area, incuding A. Leo Wei and Madison Eementary, Margaret Miiones Midde and Scheney High Schoo. These schoos educate most of the chidren from our immediate community. 239

266 Center Start-Up Manua Situation Anaysis 1. Our strengths are marked by technica opportunity, stabiity and experience cf. page2 2. Our weaknesses incude our need for staff; materias and programming to maximize our potentia impact in the community 3. We are in a ocation that affords us an exceent market opportunity since we are in a community with hundreds of peope with a bare minimum of technoogy and access. cf. attached artices 4. As members of the Paying to Win/Community Technoogy Network internationa community computing network for five years, we are in an exceent position to know the needs and possibiities nationwide. Our onine networking and program panning with the Pittsburgh Supercomputer Center, the City of Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Pubic Schoos via the Common Knowedge project, the Hi House Association, and other community technoogy programs situate us we for broader impact and opportunity in our region. Market Research & Assumptions 1. Opportunity: A survey we conducted in 1995 shows a 92% interest in this type of earning center; 89% of those surveyed said they woud send their chidren and/or grandchidren to such a program; 73% said they thought their neighbors woud send chidren. cf. attached report 2. Consumer profie: The 1989 census shows that the median famiy income for peope in the community the earning center serves is $5,400 in Terrace Viage and between $10,000 and $17,000 in West Oakand. Unempoyment is 42% in Terrace Viage and 11.6% in West Oakand. Less than 15% of the adut popuation of Terrace Viage attended coege, about 30% in West Oakand. Thirty two percent of the popuation of Terrace Viage is between 5 and 15 and 25% is the age group. This gives us a arge poo of chidren, youth, young aduts and aduts who are underempoyed, unempoyed and under-educated from whom to draw for our services. cf. attached census figures 3. The barriers this effort encounters and wi continue to face incude: - Fear: fear of technoogy; fear of success; fear of the unknown - Depression: for a variety of socia and persona reasons. This can suppress motivation and turn into anger. - Preoccupation with surviva - Life contingencies that frustrate efforts to succeed, i.e., unempoyment, underempoyment, famiy, heath, persona issues; access to transportation, poor orientation to socia expectations 240

267 Draft Business Pan 4. Geographic Market factors - Area The West Oakand Terrace Viage wi be our primary target for users with a minimum of 90% of our usage by peope of this area. Census figures show that this area has an abundance of peope who coud use this service. Outside community peope wi be charged additiona user fees beyond initia registration fee with the exception of persons who make arrangements through the Hi District network coaborations. 5. Recruiting (How) a. Identify popuation Aduts - community agencies, organizations, churches, word of mouth Youth - schoos, churches, youth organizations Chidren - schoos, adut references, youth, organization b. Satisfying an expressed need Identify specific needs for programs with surveys of given popuations and institutions and deveoping programs answering those needs community surveys institutions who have identified needs needs identified by coaborations with other agencies, etc. conversations with current students market needs pertinent to the popuation served vaidated by neighborhood network connections c. Contact/outreach/promotion onine networks persona networks community eaders, networks institutiona contacts through announcements, distribution of fiers, buetin boards, recommendation of specific persons Service and Deivery How do we treat peope/how do we keep programs meaningfu to the cient after successfu marketing: 1. Programs shoud be carefuy panned, monitored, reviewed in staff meetings and retreats. 2. Programs shoud be carried out with sensitivity to the students' needs. This requires adequate staff with good panning, individuay and coectivey; stabe, consistent organization; knowedge of the materia and how to effectivey communicate the goas and skis of the program to the students. The earning center wi be a pace for questions, probem soving, sometimes discovering answers, aways knowing the dignity, respect and creative experience of pursuing one's own questions in the context of a supportive group with competent mentors. 241

268 Center Start-Up Manua To achieve this goa the earning center wi increase staff as noted in the chart on page 5. Staff wi be screened for competence in their areas of service, sensitivity to the community served and abiity to work with the tota staff. Staff wi meet biweeky for 1 1/2 hours to evauate and pan, and they wi converse daiy, as possibe, on the status of programs. Written course evauations wi be given to every student to be returned and used for future panning. Creative probem soving, which incudes staff and students wi be an integra part of training, teaching and phiosophy of the center as opposed to a static, didactic mode of teaching/earning. Once a year, in August, staff wi meet for a three day period to review the prior schoo year's programs; to evauate and pan for the coming earning year. At this time they wi review and revise the earning center business pan and create additiona panning documents as necessary. At this time, they wi: 1. review the needs, resources and budget of the center 2. review the needs of the community as perceived through persona experience, feedback from the students and input geaned from other sources mentioned in the marketing pan 3. deveop project programming for the coming work year 4. present the above recommendations to the Friendship Ministries, Inc. Board of Directors for approva 242

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