Which tech is right for your business? Which form will it take? Who is a trustworthy source for information and resources? Where to get retrained? With what does one start? An existing platform? Purchasing Software? Investing in Hardware? Retraining staff? All of the above?
Please join us Thursday July 30, 2020 6:00 – 7:00 pm
“Data-Driven Hudson Valley:How Data Can Empower your Hudson Valley Business”
featuring Dr. Cynthia Marcello, Data Engineer and Data Small Business Specialist
“In many cases, business owners or managers feel powerless when it comes to technology. There is confusion around data and the availability of powerful and affordable solutions for Small and Medium Business owners.”
Dr. Cynthia Marcello, Data Engineer and Data Small Business Specialist
This episode will feature guidance and solutions for Small and Medium Business owners, SMB’s. Dr. Marcello will demystify what it means to be ‘data-driven’, what is ‘open data’, and available and solutions for SMB’s. Dr. Marcello uses a ‘one-step-at-a-time’ approach, a model that allows SMB’s to experience small successes along the way to build efficacy for the long term.
About Pivoteers 2.0:
Pivoteers 2.0 is a webisode series that empowers Hudson Valley businesses to exchange ideas about how technology can improve our existing operations. Tech may be driving our futures, but businesses need tech that is accessible financially, with short learning curves, and smooth on-boarding.
Open Hub is an open eco-system resource center, committed to building a tech-sector in the Hudson Valley. Partnering with stakeholders, businesses and talent we promote, train and facilitate towards the growth of a thriving tech-driven economy.
Open Hub is happy to produce Pivoteers 2.0 our investigation to discover Pivoteers for the HVTechFest in October, 2020 and as our way of supporting the economic recovery of the entire Hudson Valley.
After completing our 5 part series: Pivoteers & Pioneers: Technology Enabled Recovery in the Age of Social Distancing, we are taking what we have learned and applying it to a reboot of our series.
The same great theme.
New name: Pivoteers 2.0
New day: Every other Thursday
First episode Thursday, July 30
New time: 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm instead of 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Every other episode – 1x/month – Tech in Education series, with panel discussions with a diverse array of education professionals.
Every other episode – 1x/month – featuring OpenHub’s tech professional community members.
Become a featured guest! A call for submitting for new talks will be announced soon.
Proposed themes:
Data, Open Data, Data driven culture
Cyber-Security, AI, Robotics, Coding, IT, WebDev
Local tech businesses and local uses of tech in traditional businesses
Who is Pivoteers 2.0 for?
Small and Medium Business Owners who want to grow using tech.
Emerging and professional tech-talent who want to be part of Hudson Valley’s tech community
Forward-thinking Local stakeholders believe in a strong and accessible tech-driven economy in the Hudson Valley is possible!
On Friday, July 10, 2020, OpenHub livestreamed its 5th episode of its webisode series Pivoteers & Pioneers: Tech-Enabled Recovery in the Age of Social Distancing.
The theme was Rethinking Remote Education: Maintaining Relationship and Engagement while Socially Distant.
Our esteemed moderator is also the Hudson Valley Director for NYSCATE and OpenHub’s HVTechFest Hackathon Leader.
Featuring a diverse panel of education professionals, the event was moderated by Dr. Andrea Tejedor, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction & Technology at Highland Falls – Fort Montgomery School District.
Invited were representatives from CoSchools, Afterschool Programming, Community Colleges and Universities, Workforce Development as well as public and private school systems.
Andrea Tejedor opened with an introduction to the theme:
How do we support students as we move from physical, ‘brick & mortar’ schools that have been around for over a hundred years when suddenly, on March 13, 2020, educators we were asked to make the switch to a remote setting overnight?
Dr. Andrea Tejedor
Tejedor pointed to challenges that arose in the digital setting such as all teaching content and classrooms were online, inter-professional and staff communication and meetings were online, all schedules and announcements were online. And without any training to get everyone up to speed.
“This was further illustrated by the misconception that our youth are ‘digital natives,’ as if they are whizzes at all things tech. What quickly became apparent is that students know what they know, but they do not know it all and they need instruction and guidance to get up to speed,” Tejedor reported.
“Tech is a tool, not a teacher. If we look at the pivot we had to make as education professionals, how did we help learning progress for our students? For example, many of us discovered that to learn with technology, students need guidance, reassurance and scaffolding that teachers provide,” said Tejedor.
“Lastly, the transition to digital learning gave us a deeper and clearer understanding of what the Digital Divide means in the Hudson Valley. And the serious impediments to learning and participation that inequity can cause.”
We would also like to thank the following panelists who participated:
Elizabeth Thomas-Cappello – Computer Science educator at Newburgh Free Academy, Newburgh, NY; Early College High School, partnership program with Marist College, Poughkeepsie, NY; Adjunct Professor, Mt. St. Mary College, Newburgh, NY
Sonya Abbye Taylor, Ed.D. – Associate Professor of Education, Mt. St. Mary College, Newburgh, NY; Director of Professional Development and Curriculum at Bishop Dunn Memorial School, NY
Ludmila Smirnova – Professor of Education, Mt. St. Mary College, Newburgh, NY
David Czechowski – Computer Science Teacher at F.D. Roosevelt High School, Hyde Park, NY; Founding a Computer Science Teacher Association in the Hudson Valley
Meg Käufer – President of the STEM Alliance of Larchmont-Mamaroneck, Nonprofit learning center dedicated to enhancing K-12 STEM education for LMI students
“The idea of connection was very important to us from the beginning. Although It felt like a natural instinct that technology would be a great tool for connection as we went to leverage that, we encountered that many of families in our community were struggling. Some parents have even felt humiliated for not being able to help their children with their homework. What we found is that it is through strong relationships, often one-on-one, that create digital resilience and grit, that allow communities to push forward, especially with something so new and not intuitive. Because of this, all of our programs have been deeply based in relationships in order to get families to digital resilience.” –
Meg Käufer, President of the STEM Alliance of Larchmont-Mamaroneck
Please leave a comment and let us know what you think!
Please join us Friday, July 31, 2020 at 3:00 pm for our next episode:
Data-Driven Hudson Valley: How Data Can Power Hudson Valley Businesses
featuring Dr. Cynthia Marcello, Data Engineer and Data Small Business Specialist
In many cases, business owners or managers feel powerless when it comes to technology. There is confusion around data and the availability of powerful and affordable solutions for Small and Medium Business owners.
-Dr. Cynthia Marcello, Data Engineer and Data Small Business Specialist
This episode will feature guidance and solutions for Small and Medium Business owners, SMB’s. Dr. Marcello will demystify and what it means to be data-driven, what is ‘open data’ and what a data-driven culture is, and the affordable and available solutions for SMB’s. Dr. Marcello uses a ‘one-step-at-a-time’ approach, a model that allows SMB’s to experience small successes along the way to build efficacy for the long term.
OpenHub and HVTechFest 2020 present the next episode in their 5-part interactive, livestreaming webisode series:
Pivoteers & Pioneers features local businesses, sharing stories about how technology helped businesses adapt during the pandemic shutdown. OpenHub believes sharing these stories can help make a difference for the recovery of our local economy.
Join us June 12, 2020 at 3:00 pm as we welcome Pivoteer: Monitor Me!
Monitor Me is a Poughkeepsie based tele-health company that will be sharing their story of how they adapted during the shutdown and how their experiences and learnings will affect their future business practices.
Join us June 12 at 3:00 pm!
Pivoteers & Pioneers webisode series is a resource that empowers Hudson Valley businesses to exchange ideas about how technology can improve our existing operations.
Tech may be driving our futures, but with tech that is accessible financially, with short learning curves, and smooth on-boarding. Please join us!
Hello! My name is Yulia Ovchinnikova. Open Hub is an open eco-system resource center, committed to building a tech-sector in the Hudson Valley.
Partnering with stakeholders, businesses and talent we promote, train and facilitate towards the growth of a thriving tech-driven economy.
As the founder of OpenHub, everyday we work with Hudson Valley stakeholders to encourage the development of a stronger tech-driven economy.
This series is our exploration to discover Pivoteers for the HVTechFest in October, 2020. We are proud to investigate and showcase all these heroic businesses who were able to pivot and adapt to the new ‘abnormal’ during the shutdown.
OpenHub is happy to produce Pivoteers and Pioneers as our way of contributing to the economic recovery of the entire Hudson Valley.
On Friday, May 15, 2020, OpenHub livestreamed its first episode of its webisode series Pivoteers & Pioneers: Tech Enabled Recovery in the Age of Social Distancing. Partnering with the Office of Economic Development in Orange County, OpenHub’s mission was to explore how small businesses pivoted and adapted to a challenging and ever-changing business environment during the Covid-19 shutdown in New York State.
This episode focused on small businesses with under 20 employees, which make up 89% of all businesses in the Hudson Valley. Considered ‘essential’ during the shutdown, the featured business was Brother’s BBQ. Located in Cornwall, NY, Jamie Farella, one of the three brothers who own the restaurant said it felt good to be called ‘essential’ but that, “Food has always been an essential business, whether we talked about it before or not.”
The webisode was scheduled to livestream on Facebook at 3:00 pm to interview Jamie.
However, at 1:00 pm we received tragic news. Gavin, one of the brothers with whom Jamie owns the restaurant, informed us that Jamie had been in the ICU since Wednesday. We want to acknowledge the strength and generosity of Gavin to call us when the entire family was struggling with this news while at the same time, somehow managing to run their business.
The news shook us to the core, not only is Jamie a great business owner, but also an incredible person who communicates with clarity, intelligence and warmth.
Putting our own fear and sadness to the side, we had a tough call to make. Hundreds of invites had been sent and registrations booked. Orange County and a guest expert had cleared their schedules. We chose a ‘hail Mary’ pass and decided to proceed with the episode using the pre-interview Zoom recording from the week prior.
The video clips played were only prep for the webisode. The audio plays slightly muffled. We had only one hour to prep for our live streamed event, so we also did not have time to integrate cuts into our slide presentation.
Despite this, attendees were dedicated to listen to Jamie talk about his experiences and learnings. In the chat box, wishes for Jamie’s recovery were expressed over and over.
When watching the episode listen for the many pivots the business made in response to changing conditions:
In the operations of their business
Communications with customers
New delivery systems to exchange product and money
Enhanced use of social media platforms for promotion
Other tech solutions to streamline and handle new workflows
During the post-show interactive discussion, attendees enthusiastically invested their time suggesting possible solutions for the specific challenges restaurant owners face. The brainstorming session grew into ideas about how OpenHub may connect with small businesses to provide ‘boots on the ground’ practical advice and tech-support. And we all gained a renewed understanding of the value provided by small businesses like a local restaurant when selling you a sandwich.
During the pandemic, all businesses and organizations are switching gears and pivoting to adapt to new market conditions. OpenHub is no exception. We are happy to share episode #1 and also to grow from the experience as we transition our classes, meetups and annual TechFest from on site to remote gatherings.
