Ana Gabriela Espinosa Martinez
Associate Researcher
Telmex Digital Culture Center
Mexico City, Mexico

Ana is an associate researcher at Telmex's Digital Culture Center. She is responsible for the design of educational and cultural projects. A current project that she is working on is called "Schools in Action." The goal of the program is to incorporate digital technologies in school and after-school environments for children from 6 to 15 years. She also contributes to the production of educational materials and software for children and teachers.

Prior to working at Telmex, she was a producer and scriptwriter for educational websites and television. Ana received her degree in education from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM). While at University she designed and developed of several educational projects using information and communication technologies.

Ana has strong appreciation for the arts, and enjoys painting and music. She also enjoys going to the movies, practicing yoga and traveling to interesting sites in Mexico.

Carolina Kaufman
Computer Clubhouse Manager
Little Haiti Housing Association
Computer Clubhouse, Miami, FL

Video Interview with Carolina (38sec, 225k, Real Media)

Carolina has worked with youth aged 8-18 for the past six years in the Computer Clubhouse environment and is now a Computer Clubhouse manager. In 2002, she moved from Boston to Miami to start a Computer Clubhouse program, and in 2004, she became the manager of the Little Haiti Housing Association Computer Clubhouse program.

She is committed to working with youth and technology and would like to see young people learn about science, engineering and physics in ways that they wouldn't necessarily do in school.

She is now in the process of opening up another Clubhouse in Florida, and is interested in developing her professional skills to assist Clubhouse mentors and staff provide engaging, creative and challenging activities for young people

Originally from Bogota, Colombia, Carolina was raised in San Juan Puerto Rico and has attended school in the United States, Puerto Rico and the Middle East. She received a bachelor's degree from Wheaton College, MA in Studio Art and Art History.

Danielle Martin
Curriculum Coordinator
VISTA
Boston, MA

Danielle Martin is a first year VISTA with the CTC VISTA Project at the Community Technology & Media Program at UMass Boston, tasked to be the priority area curriculum coordinator as well as the Assistant Editor
of the Community Technology Review.

So far, this year she has focused on resources for CTC VISTAS and conducted several digital storytelling trainings for both adults and youth. Her background is in after-school multimedia programs for youth, instructional design for web-based trainings, and fundraising and development.

She was previously the Technology Director at the Charlestown Boys & Girls Club (MA) Computer Clubhouse for four years and a MIT Media Lab IDEAS Institute Fellow.

Elena Jovanova
Artist and Educator
Skopje, Macedonia

Video interview with Elena (1.06min, 225k, Real Media)

Elena Jovanova is an interdisciplinary artist and educator from Macedonia. Elena's work is closely connected to and inspired by the political and economical crises in the Eastern European region. Her art projects are closely aligned with social work and bring art out of institutions to non-art audiences.

She has worked extensively as an art mentor and educator of young people who are refugees and orphans of war in the Balkan region and other locations in Europe. She and her colleagues treated youth effected by post-traumatic stress, with a specific focus on the physical effects on the body.

As an educator she wants to engage children to learn creatively, and establish a media center focused on project based learning with new technologies in Macedonia.

Elena has a BFA in Theater directing and MFA degree in New Media from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. Her most recent art project concentrates on research about an "Invisible Europe" and representations of the Eastern European body in Western culture.

Gavin Byrne
Computer Clubhouse Coordinator
National Youth Development Organization (Foroige)
Dublin, Ireland

Video Interview with Gavin (21sec, 225k, Real Media)

Gavin Byrne is from Dublin, Ireland. In 2001, he was appointed to establish and co-ordinate Ireland's first Computer Clubhouse. Gavin works with youth aged 10-18 who live in the disadvantaged communities of Dublin. About 25 percent are early school leavers, and many are at risk of drug abuse, involvement in crime,and low educational achievement.

When not working with youth at the Clubhouse, Gavin is an avid musician and plays the piano and keyboards with various groups around Dublin. He is also very interested in politics and social issues and enjoys reading, and lively debate on the issues of the day and travel.

Father Jeff Putthoff, SJ
Executive Director
Hopeworks 'N Camden
Camden, NJ

Video interview with Jeff (41 sec., 225k, Real Media)

Father Jeff Putthoff, SJ has lived and worked in Camden, NJ for the last seven years. He is the executive director of Hopeworks 'N Camden. Hopeworks is a Youth Technology portal using the technologies of web site design/development and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to work with youth in Camden New Jersey.

Hopeworks is a direct response to the current youth crisis that exists in North Camden. In North Camden over 50 percent of the people are under 18, only 25 percent of adults have a high school diploma, the per capita income is $5700, and there is an estimated 70% dropout rate from the public high schools. These factors combine to make life very challenging for young people. Father Jeff Putthoff’s Hopeworks program is a direct response to this situation.

Father Jeff Putthoff, SJ has been a Jesuit priest for 7 years and has been a Jesuit for 19 years. He holds a bachelor’s in philosophy from Saint Louis University, a Masters in English from Loyola Chicago, a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Theology from Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is currently studying at the University of Pennsylvania for a degree in Organizational Dynamics.

Jennifer Sly
Coordinator for the Center for Technology and Science (CFTS)
Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement
Queens, NY

Video Interview with Jennifer (56sec, 225k, Real Media)

Jennifer Sly is currently the coordinator of the Center for Technology and Science (CFTS) at Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement House located in Queens, New York City. The Riis Settlement is located in Queensbridge Houses, the largest public housing projects in the nation, and provides technology classes to all ages.

Jennifer coordinates project based and participant-centered projects and employs an inquiry based approach with participants to ensure that activities are relevant and engaging. One such project she especially proud of is an intergenerational photography project, where youth interviewed and photographed senior citizens at Riis Settlement. As a result the children learned about digital editing and were able to establish relationships with the elderly people in the community.

Jennifer has previously worked with the United Nations, was a Research Scientist with Honeywell, Inc. in the area of aviation, and served in Swaziland as a high school math teacher in the US Peace Corps.

Jose Feliciano C. Josef (Jops)
Computer Clubhouse Coordinator
Ayala Intel Computer Clubhouse
Quezon City, Philippines

Jose Feliciano C. Josef (Jops), has been the Coordinator of the Ayala Intel Computer Clubhouse since it opened in July 2002. The Ayala-Intel Computer Clubhouse serves youth in the rural community of General Trias. The clubhouse has opened a new world of possibilities to youth who would not otherwise have access to computers and technology.

Jops is committed to making positive social change. He has experience working as a coordinator for the Barangay Women's Desk (BWD), which deals with cases of violence against women (VAW). As an organizer, his tasks not only included organizing processes and procedures for the BWD, but raising the awareness of VAW in both male and female populations.

Jops is a jack-of-all-trades and loves sports and adventure, especially swimming, basketball, and biking. His current passion is photography, and he feels lost if he leaves his camera behind.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Community Development from the University of The Philippines in October 2001.

Jose Oswaldo Ospina Mejia (Oswaldo)
Computer Clubhouse Coordinator
Computer Clubhouse - Fundacion Compartir
Bogota, Colombia

Video Interview with Oswaldo (36sec, 225k, Real Media)

Since January of 2000, Oswaldo has worked at Fundacion Compartir. The main objective at the Fundacion is to manage projects and programs that target low-income communities and communities with limited resources. Oswaldo is focused on improving community development programs and working with children and youth in depressed communities.

Fundacion Compartir founded the Computer Clubhouse in Colombia and has funded the Computer Clubhouse Suba Compartir since 2002. As coordinator of this Computer Clubhouse, Oswaldo actively seeks to provide the space and technology for young people to express themselves creatively. Oswaldo enjoys working with Clubhouse members on video and music projects.

Oswaldo is also an educator. Before working at the Clubhouse, he taught business studies at the Suba and Bochia Schools.

Oswaldo holds a degree in economics from National University of Colombia and he is interested in sociology, and social development through the use of new technology. He enjoys reading, dancing, biking and playing soccer.

Luis Lach
Coordinator
Vamos Foundation
Mexico City, Mexico

Since 2004, Luis has worked for both the Vamos Foundation and Intel. Through the Vamos Foundation, Luis manages of all three Computer Clubhouses in Mexico. He is also responsible for coordinating the Intel Learn Program in Mexico for Intel.

He is currently designing a program, based on an educational model, that brings youth closer to technology. This program is called Club Pioneros, and it will begin in July 2005 in Casa Talavera in central Mexico City.

Prior to managing Clubhouses, Luis work for the Creativity, Action and Service (CAS) as a coordinator at Colegio Vista Hermosa in Mexico City. He was responsible for community service and other activities for 500 students, and organized the first and second CAS Latin American meetings in 1998 and 1999.

Luis also has many years experience as a high school teacher. He taught sociology (with a focus on economic and social community issues in Mexico), political science, and photography. His personal interest in photography has led to a side career as a professional photographer. Luis has done commercial and wedding photography, and has participated in collective exhibitions of his personal work.

Luis likes rock and classical music, reading and all kinds of travel. As a child he belonged to a chess club and participated in tournaments in Mexico.

Luversa Sullivan
Computer Clubhouse Coordinator
Tacoma Computer Clubhouse
Tacoma, WA

Video Interview with Luversa (29sec, 225k, Real Media)

Luversa Sullivan is the Clubhouse Coordinator of the Tacoma Branch of the Intel Computer Clubhouse. As a women and person of color she often found herself alone in corporate and educational settings. To make sure other women and people of color were not left out of the digital revolution, she started programs that would include them.

When computers were new on the market Luversa was experimenting with multimedia technology and virtual reality. For over 18 years Luversa has trained people to: create digital video movies and public services announcements aired on major TV stations in the Seattle area, create interactive instructional CD ROM's, to create web pages which integrate animation and real audio and video, to install networks and wiring for networks, use applications and programming languages to build interactive Kiosks.

Reporters have recognized her leadership at the Seattle Times, King 5 News and the News Tribune. She recently received an exemplary leadership award from the Seattle Girls school and numerous other awards such as the prestigious Dorothy Bullet Award for Outstanding Community Service.

She has created a model job shadowing and internship program that has also been covered in the news for their creativity and innovative design. Companies such as Microsoft, ABCnews.com, DigitalHarmony, Intel, Reliacom, City of Seattle have developed internship opportunities for her kids. She is currently working on a doctoral program in instructional technology that focuses on access to technology in Ghana, West Africa.

Oyalegan Olayiwola Morris
Founder and the Executive Director of
Childhood Art and Creativity Foundation
Lagos, Nigeria

Oyalegan Olayiwola is the founder and executive director of the Childhood Art and Creativity Foundation (CACF). CACF* is a non-profit organization that campaigns for peace, tolerance, and innovative leadership in Nigeria through artistic creativity and cultural programs for children and youth. CACF was founded in 2002, following Oyalegan Olayiwola's decision to leave his full-time appointment as an art coordinator and education and policy strategist at primary and secondary schools in Nigeria, to focus on promoting creativity in schools.

He started his teaching career in 1992 at the compulsory National Youth Service Program in Nigeria. Since then, Oyalegan Olayiwola has been dedicated to inspiring children and youth to develop a passion for creativity, providing outlets and opportunities for stimulating experiences and self-expression, and helping youth achieve their true potential.

Oyalegan Olayiwola also worked in the after school environment. In 1997 and 1999, he was a volunteer vocational training teacher at the Institute for Self Help Ibadan. The institute provided learning opportunities for children in difficult situations - usually traumatized street children. The exposure to art and the artistic process provided them with a positive experience from which they could learn, express themselves, grow, and develop.

Oyalegan Olayiwola earned a degree in Fine Art, Bachelor of Art Education, from Obafemi Awolowo University, Adeyemi College of Education with Second Class Upper division in 1992. He has four children, and his hobbies include working with children, camping and cooking.

*CACF has participated in the Utopia Station II art project, organized by the International Child Art Foundation in Germany in collaboration with the Haus der kunst in Munich (October2004). CACF is now ICAF's sole national Partner in Nigeria to organize ICAF's Third Art Olympiad (2004-2008).

Nhlanhla Jacob Mabaso (Lucky)
Computer Clubhouse Coordinator
Johannesburg Computer Clubhouse and Youth Development Trust
Soweto, South Africa

Video Interview with Lucky (31sec, 225k, Real Media)

Lucky Mabaso has been working at the Johannesburg Computer Clubhouse as a coordinator since 2002. Lucky enjoys working with young people and is incredibly inspired by his experiences at the Clubhouse. He feels that his job has opened up a dimension in his life that he never thought possible, and he is acutely aware that by providing youth with the right place and the right motivation, they can and will achieve.

Lucky is passionate about making significant contributions to his community and youth development in South Africa, and it is his dream to see the Clubhouse learning model replicated throughout the country.

Prior to 2002, Lucky worked for a variety of non-governmental organizations. He worked as a computer trainer for the South African Communication and Development Institute (SACDI) and at the IBM South Africa Reach and Teach Program for teachers and unemployed youth in Johannesburg. He also worked as a project assistant for Schoolnet South Africa, and as an IT project coordinator at Keyboard College.

Lucky holds a degree in business administration from the Executive Education Institute of Johannesburg, which is accredited by Newport University, Newport California. He also graduated with a degree in filmmaking and videography from the Soweto Media Program, and studied at a variety of community-based and commercial institutions.

Lucky was born in 1972, in Soweto, Johannesburg in the month of April (the same month in which the New Democratic South Africa was established in 1994). He attended primary school in the Phefeni Township, a place where prominent business men and women, politicians, sports and church leaders lived. So from an early age, Lucky was exposed to people involved in community development issues and became actively involved himself. He also held a variety of leadership positions in school and other organizations. He was captain of his football club, a member of the Student Representative Council (SRC), education commissioner for the Soweto Youth Congress (SOYCO), and lead soprano in his school choir.

Raed Yacoub
Computer Clubhouse Coordinator
Ramallah Intel Computer Clubhouse
Ramallah, Palestine

Video interview with Raed (38 sec, 225k, Real Media)

Raed Yacoub is the Computer Clubhouse Coordinator for the Ramallah Intel Computer Clubhouse, the first of its kind in Palestine and in the Arab Middle East. Raed works directly with young people ages 8-18 in Ramallah and from the nearby Qalandia, Al Ammari and Qadura refuge-camps.

Using his background in computer science, Raed works with youth to experiment with creative expression using technology and to develop necessary work and life skills.

Prior to being elected Clubhouse manager, Raed, worked in the IT department of the Welfare Association* (WA), a private non-profit foundation established to support sustainable development in Palestine. It is now better known in Palestine and the Arab region by its Arabic name, Ta'awoun, meaning "cooperation."

The Ramallah Computer Clubhouse is supported by the WA and the International Youth Foundation, a global network that provides worldwide resources to young people in need.

Sean Martin
Salt Lake City, UT

Most recently Sean was manager of the Sorenson Community Computer Center and was actively involved in the implementation and daily operations of the Sorenson Intel Computer Clubhouse. Sean and his staff worked with the residents of the west-Salt Lake City neighborhoods of Glendale and Poplar Grove.

Glendale and Poplar Grove are home to a large portion of the city's low-income, minority, and refugee households and make up the most ethnically diverse communities in the Salt Lake Valley. Most participants in Sorenson programs are resettled refugees from Northern Africa, Latino and African-American.

In Sean's role as teacher and administrator he provided meaningful and sustainable programming to give positive guidance to neighborhood youth in a safe and informal design-based learning environment. It is his hope that all participants will progress to learn more advanced technology skills and cooperation.

Before coming to the Sorenson Center, he worked for Hansen Planetarium Publications in Salt Lake City as a marketing manager and network administrator. Previously, he worked in various management and computer technical support positions.

Sean holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Resource and Organizational Development Management from Westminster College of Salt Lake City - Summa Cum Laude. In his free time, Sean likes to telemark ski and mountain bike in the Wasatch Mountains.

Shubha Belagumba Nagahanumantha Rao
Project Drishya
Bangalore, India

Shubha is an incredibly philosophical person, concerned about the needs of children from severely impoverished homes who have little to live for.

She currently works at Project Drishya, a collaborative initiative with NGOs, academics and designers. The project aims to create sustainable livelihoods by empowering and teaching the children of India's growing urban poor communities.In accepting the IDEAS fellowship, she hopes to gain the knowledge and perspective that will help these children.

With master's degree in sericulture (silk production), Shuba has had the fortunate opportunity to work in professions far removed from education, learning or poverty, but she is committed to improving the lives of the children she teaches. The strength of her dedication is obvious when she states, "They do not know if they will be alive tomorrow, so what can we teach them today?"

Simone Claudino de Carvalho Flores
Education Technology and Inclusion Digital Center (CID)
Bradesco Foundation
Sao Paulo, Brazil

Simone currently works for the Bradesco Foundation in the Education Technology and Inclusion Digital Center (CID). CID is a space specially created for under served communities, aiming to improve access to technology, promote digital inclusion and motivate community and corporate involvement.

Simone's areas of interest include working in communities to provide the necessary education and work skills - hopefully making a significant improvement in the quality of the life people experience.

Simone has a degree in education and a graduate degree in Technology Applied to Education, and is currently working on a graduate degree in Community Education.

She loves being with her family, visiting friends and traveling - she likes to read too!

Teresa Foley
Artist
Director of Pittsburgh Filmmakers
K-12 Media Literacy Arts Education Program
Pittsburgh, PA

Teresa Foley is an award-winning artist living and working in the Pittsburgh area. Her films and videos have been shown at various screening venues throughout the United States.

As the Director of Pittsburgh Filmmaker's K-12 Media Literacy Arts Education program, Teresa works to create opportunities for students, parents and teachers to better analyze and produce in the language of photographic media. She has served as a consultant to the Pennsylvania State Department of Education on the topic of "Criticism and Dynamic Media," and has been a collaborator with, and faculty for, the Taos Talking Picture Festival's Teen Media Conference.

Teresa has also served as a consultant to the Chautauqua County Arts Council in New York, where she worked as a visiting artist/media educator at Jamestown High School's interdisciplinary VideoWorks program. This year she will return to GirlsFilmSchool in Santa Fe, New Mexico to work as a visiting artist, and in January of 2006, she will travel to Oaxaca, Mexico to lead a media production workshop at a small art center.

To read more about Teresa. Foley's youth media work, click on these links:
http://www.mergemag.org/2001/july01/foley.html
http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/20030409media0409p2.asp

Xavier Leonard
Founding Director
Heads on Fire
San Diego, CA

Xavier Leonard is the founding director of Heads On Fire. Heads On Fire is an organization dedicated to bridging the digital divide through community based media arts programs which link artists, communities, and technology together.

He focuses on working with youth aged 6-18. They are primarily from low-income families and communities of color, and an unusually high percentage of them are refugees, homeless or formerly homeless. Most face the same learning challenges, but some come from communities that are so destabilized that where they live becomes a learning impediment. Heads on Fire has been selected by the Education Development Center as a national model for after-school programs utilizing technology.

Since graduating from Columbia University, Xavier has created a career that blends his expertise as a multimedia artist, community educator, and technology ambassador. His first position was as an International Artist Fellow in West Africa, under the auspices of the Institute for International Education. He has since gone on to present conceptual multimedia works, create award winning commercial designs, and develop community-based technology training programs on five continents.

Leonard has been featured in museums and galleries, nationally and internationally. His community programs have been recognized and supported by national institutions including the United States Department of Justice, and he has garnered awards from the Readers Digest International Artists' Program, The Pew Fellowships in the Arts, The International Association of Webmasters and Designers, The Pennsylvania Council of the Arts, and The Western States Arts Federation. Leonard was honored as an ET3 Tec Champion by the Congressional Black Caucus and has been selected as Zero Divide Fellow for the Community Technology Foundation of California.

He is profiled in the book Parallaxis: Fifty-five Points to View by Lucy Lippard and Rina Swentzell.

Yael Sandburg
Director
Cidade Escola Aprendiz
Sao Paulo, Brazil

Video interview with Yael (1:04 min, 225k, Real Media)

Yael is currently a director and social educator at the Cidade Escola Aprendiz. She coordinates social inclusion projects using art and technology, and is motivated by the challenges communities face to create new solutions for old problems.

She has focused on developing projects that promote social and ethical equality in communities that are incredibly diverse. These projects emphasize team work, resulting in knowledge enriched by diversity, participation and creative exploration. These projects help youth, in particular, develop strong identities and self confidence through ownership.

One project she is most proud of is a volunteer program she initiated in a private school in Sao Paolo. The program focused on educating students about the social problems in Sao Paulo in an effort to minimize the hostility in the community. As an educational psychologist, Yael has also done research comparing formal and non-formal educational environments and is able to use this knowledge in her work. She holds tremendous value for the knowledge acquired in informal learning environments.

Yael was brought up in both Uruguay and Brazil. She appreciates the opportunities she has been given and specifically values her time living on a Kibbutz in Israel. This experience was pivotal in her understanding of the importance of community and contribution, and enabled her to define her future career. She considers herself a privileged person for having a job that helps contribute to a more fair and equal society.

Yael holds a degree in educational psychology from Sao Paulo University. In her spare time she enjoys fishing and spending time with family and friends.