Moving Ahead with Internet Technology

I tend to be a rather reflective individual, and living life by a semester schedule helps me evaluate smaller chunks of time somewhat frequently.  Over time, however, I’ve come to learn that looking back is only really valuable if I take the good and the bad experiences and apply them as lessons for the future.  This can be a model not only for personal growth but also for academic or professional success.  During the last few months of IT, we’ve explored the evolution of the Internet, evaluated the uses of various online tools, and considered the application of technology in the public sector.  But where do students and young professionals go from there?

The tools that have been most useful to me working with students in a University office include are those applications to which the students already have easy access or already know how to use.  Updating Facebook for publicity has been critical this year.  However, in terms of administration and organization, I’ve been taking advantage of the students’ GoogleApps accounts and have introduced them to viewing events on my calendar, signing up for events on a spreadsheet, completing surveys and other forms, sharing documents, and I have maintained basic communication through e-mail and the chat tool.  The process of scheduling training dates has also been simplified using Doodle, and one student even introduced DropBox as a method for picture and file sharing among the student employees and volunteers.  For my job in the Honors Office, my strategy for using and integrating new technological tools is evaluating the needs of the staff and students, assessing what tools are already available, and introducing those tools that are easiest to learn and implement quickly.

These are lessons I have learned on the job in the past year, and as I head into my summer internship with the American Heart Association and one day into a nonprofit career post-graduation, I recognize I will have to follow my same 1-2-3 strategy to evaluate, assess, and introduce technology in the workforce.  One of my responsibilities for the internship includes updating and monitoring the Facebook page for the various regional offices in regards to the Heart Walk.  They have already seen the need to be visible on the social media scene.  However, in what ways could they be more tech-savvy for advertising and fundraising?

I visited the AHA website and clicked around a bit to see what features were available for visitors online.  What did strike me was that the site lacked the “Connect” toolbox present on so many organization websites (which allows easy access to Facebook, Twitter, RSS Feeds, Delicious, etc).  Is this a sign that they are not connecting all their online media tools in a central location for easy access?  If I happened across the website, would I also know to look for the organization’s presence elsewhere on the web?  The more tools to which I was exposed in IT class, the more I have looked for features available on the websites of different organizations.  For example, the National Council of Nonprofits and Nonprofit Technology Network offer users easy access to their social networking sites.  This should be a goal of major organizations, to aggregate all online tools and show users that they are actively present on the web.  Somehow, increased web accessibility promotes a positive public perception of the organization’s overall capabilities.

As I look ahead to my professional career in the nonprofit sector, I believe that organizations will continue to integrate technology more and more into their administrative, marketing, and fundraising operations.  Just looking at TechSoup, Nonprofit Technology News, and Nonprofit Tech, I recognize that the sector is trying to provide resources for its organizations to grow in recognition, operate more efficiently, and develop their fundraising capabilities.  There is an expanding toolbox for nonprofits, large and small, online that is accompanying the sector’s overall greater professionalization of management, human resources, fund raising, and community outreach.

After being exposed to applications useful to the public sector and learning the increasing role of e-democracy, I have come to expect more out of the government offices and nonprofit organizations I encounter in public and online.  I truly hope that my experience this semester learning about technology and making use of the tools currently at my disposal are just the beginning of my access to professional development opportunities in technology and my ability to integrate new tools on the job for my staff and managers to use.

For further access to websites or resources that assist nonprofits in technology development, visit the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society and select the categories most useful for you or your organization!

How Much is Too Much?

Three weeks ago at work, I developed an online form through GoogleApps and invited freshman Honors students at the University of Delaware to nominate and recognize the year’s top Russell Fellow (their peer mentor who builds community in the residence halls) for the Woody Sprague Award.  In creating a web-based form and e-mailing the link to the students, I received nearly 85 responses and nominations from students for their Fellows.  This number was about double the response rate from last year and even greater than previous years!  As my boss and I discussed how we would review the nominations, both of us were thrilled to have so many student nominations pointing out the significant impact of the Russell Fellows.  However, my boss verbalized the thoughts I wasn’t stating out loud: with more responses, the ability to select the winner will be much more difficult.  This was a good problem to have, but we couldn’t help but wonder if we had made the nomination process “too easy” for students.  Would we have been guaranteed an easier decision-making process if we had continued with the old method that required students to e-mail or hand in the form to the office?  Would those nominations have been more discerning or impactful because the students needed to “go the extra mile?”

This conversation came just two days after several students in the Monday evening IT class presented a project that prescribed putting local government meetings online and opening an forum for discussion with citizens and political leaders.  The question was raised if providing an easier method for citizens to access the town meetings and interact with local politicians would overload the officials or even allow people who are not as politically savvy participate.  Once again, as the response rate and citizen participation in politics increases, government officials are left with the same “good problem” I discovered at work.  Democracy is based on citizen participation, so what is the issue with welcoming those who may not otherwise engage in politics or the local decision-making process?

Based on class discussions and readings about electronic democracy, or e-democracy, it appears that the electronic age has inspired a desire for direct democracy—greater access to the political process inspires people to want a vote on every issue, to have greater control over the political process.  Yet, how efficient is this?  In the political process, referendums were developed to allow citizens to vote on certain laws and changes, but ultimately the American political system is a representative democracy.  Where should we draw the line in participation, or is there even a line to draw?

Increased citizen participation through e-democracy can take many forms: rulemaking, consultation, campaigning, and advocacy.  Initiatives such as those proposed during the in-class presentation do exist as electronic town hall meetings (such as those in New England and Minnesota).  However, providing a forum for citizen participation in the legislative process is not a new concept.  Instead of citizens picking up and going to the town meeting, they can just sit at their computer from home and interact with officials in that manner.  Some would argue that more people will participate because they can do so from their own homes; however, time and level of civic interest still remains a factor in participation.  The same highly-educated, wealthy individuals who participate in public are the same citizens who participate online.  While the internet increases access to the political process, it still remains that those with knowledge and interest will be the ones engaging online.  The difference is not as much in who is participating but how they go about doing so.

I am eager to learn whether political participation will increase over time due to the use of technology or if these changes through e-democracy are merely necessary to meet people where they operate now on a daily basis.  How much will these changes encourage civic engagement and how much of it is merely a reflection of the overall shift toward technological means in society?

How much was the response rate to my GoogleApps survey a reflection of the technology available at their fingertips and how much was dependent on the students’ positive opinions of their Russell Fellow?  Once again, discovering the motivation for participation is the key to discerning whether e-democracy is a long-term fix to civic engagement or a reflection of the times.

Wanting Quality Connections, Not Mere Quantity

The Peer-to-Patent program, as explored in Noveck’s Wiki Government, demonstrates how people can come together and connect to provide a government service (reviewing and approving patents). The argument is that new technology promotes the development of social networks and therefore provides new opportunities for collaborating ideas to improve efficiency and expand capabilities. Utilizing the skills of users to review the patent proposals not only increases the variety of experts but saves a lone bureaucrat from processing the proposal without the knowledge to provide a thorough evaluation. Similarly, sites like Wikipedia promote this community review process in which experts or researchers verify publicly posted information.

In many ways, the quality of information and resources available are improving with the use of technology. However, as the proponent of strong verbal communication and interpersonal skills, I question whether the quality of interaction is increasing along with the number of interactions people are having on the internet.

Many of my views are shaped by my parents, a teacher and a lawyer, who taught me at a young age how to shake hands, look people in the eye, and hold conversations with adults. I believe I was primed to network and socially interact before I could even define those concepts. Therefore, when I first read a segment of Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone, I completely understood his suggestion that people are interacting with one another less and less and are becoming more distrustful of their neighbors. He asserts that while more people go bowling, fewer people are bowling together in leagues and choosing instead not to associate with organized groups. As we discussed in class, people are still organizing groups online; however, I wonder if technology has been used as a substitute for associations that require physical or verbal human interaction.

In a literature review of Rich Ling’s “New Tech, New Ties,” it becomes evident that certain social norms are being obliterated and this raises other questions on the appropriateness of some behaviors. The use of the cell phone in public, for example, can make people less approachable and therefore promotes a “keep to yourself” attitude. People begin to exist within their own spheres or rules of behavior without regard to those around them. Therefore, while technology increase the number of ways to communicate and the frequency of some communication, the fundamental rules of human interaction are being altered.

I can view the number of friends I have on Facebook or the number of connections I have on LinkedIn, and in a world where technology is being used more and more in the job search, I could be in very good shape. However, as I searched for my summer internship, I saw more and more the need to pick up a phone, make a call, and set up a time to meet with people face-to-face. Technology can begin the connection, but the interaction must deepen from there for a relationship to endure.

Tying this back to the idea of Peer-to-Patent and Wikipedia as revolutionary online tools, I always remember how my high school teachers and later college professors warned that Wikipedia was a good “starting off point.” I will not negate the functionality of these community forums and editing tools; however, I will continue to believe that technology can as a spring board for deeper connections with lasting social or political impact.

Goodbye, Pledge? Hello, Shelfari!

I believe one of my least favorite chores involves whipping out that old dust rag and hitting the shelves with my can of Pledge. Of course, I do love the fresh lemony scent that fills my apartment after wiping down the furniture, but having to remove all the books and trinkets to sort and clean isn’t the most desirable of tasks. Wouldn’t it be just be great if there was a shelf out there that didn’t make me sneeze? In a virtual world, maybe!

Two years ago, my sister, who is an elementary teacher, showed me an online tool introduced to her during one of her professional development classes in technology. Shelfari, as it is called, allows users to list the books they have read, are reading, or intend to read and put them on their virtual bookshelf. For my sister, she was able to include books she has read for school (elementary, high school summer reading, college novels and textbooks), for pleasure (fiction and nonfiction, in book clubs and solo), and for work (teaching resources). Through this tremendous variety of books on her shelf, she is connected to so many different networks of users, from those who teach young children to those who enjoy a good work of historical fiction in their free time!

I created an account for professional and academic use to sort through all the books and textbooks I have been using for my graduate classes. Not only can other users see that I have these books at hand (fellow students could ask to borrow one for a class), but I can view other users with similar preferences in the field. One user, “Foundation Center,” also recommended one of my books, and after looking into the user profile, I learned that it lends books related to nonprofit management. That’s a perfect resource for someone still in school or for a nonprofit administrator who wishes to obtain a resource without purchasing it due to budgetary constraints.

Shelfari also allows users to post their bookshelves to a website or blog, as I have done. The advantage to this is that my classmates, who may have never heard of the website will stumble across it on my blog and have another access point to my bookshelf. I recognize that the tool is all about resource sharing, providing recommendations, and making connections among users. This would be particularly helpful for educators, students, academic professionals, organizations that promote literacy and learning, and even for organizations who engage in resource sharing.

My recommendation is to check out the site and explore the ways it can be used for your academic or organizational needs. Unfortunately, Shelfari won’t remove the dust from the bookshelf in your living room, but it will allow you to sort through the resources you own or hope to access for personal or professional use.

E-Government: It's All About the Relationships

Beth Simone Noveck’s book Wiki Government explores the ways in which government has been able to use technology to its advantage: improving service delivery, promoting democratic exchange, and strengthening civil society. According to Darrell West, “E-government refers to the delivery of information and services online through the Internet or other digital means.” Thus E-government maximizes the utility of the tasks government is already committed to achieving and strengthens connections. In the simplest of terms, E-government builds and strengthens relationships, characterized by the interactions among government agencies, businesses, citizens, states, and nonprofits.

I think about how I regularly benefit from some of the government’s use of technology. Growing up, I watched my dad sit down with his check book and stuff an envelope for each of our utility providers. Now, every time I want to pay my electric bill, I merely log on to the city of Newark’s website and watch the money disappear instantly from my bank account. The ease of this process is undeniable, but because the task has become simpler, I also find that I push off paying my bills until the last minute. However, while E-procurement at times enables me to meet certain responsibilities “later” (which isn’t always the best for being proactive), I also begin to think about how much it benefits the city accounting office on the other end. At the end of the day, fewer papers to file or checks to cash is a help to local bureaucrats. Nevertheless, this shift from the paper-shuffling logistical tasks requires a more tech-savvy workforce, even at the lowest levels of local government.

Aside from the convenience of E-government, from filing my tax return online to driving through the EZ-Pass lane (a private company serving government transportation services), there is also tremendous value of this technology for law enforcement. E-enforcement encompasses the cameras used to track for highway violations and the software that detects those who avoid paying use tax. However, enforcement isn’t just developing the pre-existing government services like traffic control. With increased cyber crime, law enforcement has had to develop its intelligence out of necessity. Thus technology has not only shifted the delivery of government services but has expanded the role of government in order to match the growth of these advances.

All of this comes down to relationships. As a citizen, it is easier for me to use government services, at least in terms of paying my bills. I experience the benefits of a private-public partnership with EZ-Pass. Through my current work and upcoming internship with a nonprofit, I am aware of how government is able to funnel grant money more easily to the organization. The relationships and networks among government and the various sectors of society always existed. We now have the privilege of improving the efficiency of these connections and enhancing service delivery in everyday life.

Technology on Generations and Communities: PEW Research Reports

The Pew Research Center is a "fact tank" that collects information on American attitudes and trends.  PEW Internet focuses on the effects of information technology and the internet in shaping society and behaviors in America.

The following reports explain the use of technology by different generations of Americans and a variety of community and civic organizations:

Generations and Their Gadgets (PEW Research Center)
by Kathryn Zickuhr, Feb. 3, 2011

The difference in technology use among generations is directed primarily in the degree to which various functions are used.  While more Americans own and use the same tools, the Milennials both own more devices and take advantages of the capabilities than older generations.  For example, cell phone use is widespread, but while basic functions like making calls and taking pictures is common for all users, younger users take advantage of advanced internet and messaging features.  The same trend occurs with most other gadgets as well.

It is obvious that older users will be less likely to use modern features of technology; however, this can have an impact on the involvement of older Americans in civic life and community organizations.  While the baby boomers are the fastest growing Facebook users, society still needs to be concerned about maintaining ties with the older boomers, the silent generation and beyond.  The tools for social engagement have changed, but not everyone is able to keep up.

Thus, this report presents challenges for those interested in community development among various generations and populations that lack the social networking and technological skills of the younger generations.


The Social Side of the Internet (PEW Research Center) 
Lee Rainie, Kristen Purcell, Aaron Smith, Jan. 18, 2011

According to the response by 27 different organizations, more Americans are involved in volunteer and community groups, and more internet users than non-internet users participate in these organizations.  The internet and the use of technology has allowed for greater involvement in civic, religious, and social activities.  Respondents reported that the internet has allowed them to connect with others, reach out into the community, become informed of important issues, impact society, raise funds for their organizations, and plan and implement activities.

For smaller organizations and groups, the internet has provided a tool for outreach and growth.  Social networks and tools like Twitter have allowed these groups to be more vocal about their missions and has provided opportunities for individuals to stay connected.

As someone who was dismayed by Robert Putman's description of more Americans "bowling alone," that is refraining from community involvement, I believed technology would increase this retreat from participation in society.  However, this report describes how technology may actually help to engage Americans in community life once again.

If You Tweet Them, They Will Come

Working with students in my job, I see the tremendous need for posting updates and utilizing social networks, especially through Facebook.  Most of my employees and volunteers don't seem to use Twitter, but I am constantly being presented with this tool as an option by my professors and other professionals who post comments quite frequently.  My question, as supervisor for several groups of students whether I should take advantage of the tools they already use or introduce them to new forms of technology.  Already I have tried new applications, including Doodle for scheduling and GoogleDocs for file sharing and forms.  But how much more can they handle?  And what would be most useful for mobilizing and updating my staff and volunteers?


I stumbled across an article discussing five tools to mobilize volunteers for nonprofit organizations.  With plans of working as a nonprofit manager, I found this piece a good reminder of how to use technology in the workplace.  I had never before heard of Ning, which is an online tool for creating your own social network or online community.  At this stage in the game, GoogleMaps won't be terribly useful for my work because our student activities tend to be hosted on campus, but I see how this would be helpful to point to event venues sponsored by nonprofits. The article continued to present the usefulness of Twitter, which I still hope to see used more for my current and future professional needs.  The other two suggested tools, Facebook and blogs, are tools that I currently use, and therefore the article reinforced what I already put into practice.  Nevertheless, I am interested in seeing how some of these other tool would work in a nonprofit organization, where the need for volunteers and public support could be addressed using these forms of technology. 

"Five Ways Social Media Connects Nonprofits to Volunteers" from Yahoo Associated Content http://tinyurl.com/4fm9pl4