organization

Open Youth Network

Address	916 S. Wabash Ave Chicago, Illinois, 60605 United States
Phone	847-369-7572
Email	Please log in or register for a free account to view this organization's email address.
Web Address	http://www.openyouthnetworks.org/
Type	Media Arts Center
Nonprofit	No
Last Updated By:	Mediarights_Admin on 07 13, 2010

Description

Open Youth Networks is a program of the Department of Interactive Arts and Media at Columbia College. The program is designed to help bridge the digital participation gap by educating girls and urban youth to use emerging technologies, games and social media so they can make a better future for themselves and their communities.

IAM Building

Through IAM at Columbia College, Open Youth Networks will be able to:

* Match students in web-development and digital service learning projects with youth and community groups;
* Offer Saturday workshops for teachers/high school youth in pre-programming skills, new technologies and social media;
* Conduct summits, symposia or conferences on topics such as girls in technology and serious games;
* Partner with CPS schools to consult on curriculum alignment and college preparation for computer programming; and,
* Serve as an incubator for innovations in games, apps and social utility tools used for non-profit, community and social justice use.

2010 project initiatives include: The 3G Summit: The Future of Girls, Gaming and Gender to take place in August 2010 and The Green Games Institute, to be conducted in collaboration with the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency in Planning’s Future Leaders in Planning group.

By providing an array of supports —technology access, multiple teachers and mentors, experiential learning contexts and a youth-centered approach to critical inquiry — OYN nurtures youth to empower innovative digital media projects that mobilize their peers from awareness to action. By helping youth imagine new ways of engaging in socially-motivated commons-based peer production, Open Youth Networks aims to strengthen youth participation in democratic decision-making through critical media production and analysis.