What’s happening?!

While one thing ends, an even better thing is waiting in the wings. After a great few years, effective this week, Charlie and Rich are beyond excited to officially pass the leadership torch to our new Co-Directors, Marieke Jackson and Michael Chow.

They’re both taking the Co-Director role after serving on our current organizing team as the Community Co-Lead and Projects Co-Lead, respectively. We quite literally cannot think of a better (or nerdy or fun) tandem to work with Code for Philly’s members and partners to show how tech, data, and design can inspire change.

Closing thoughts from Charlie and Rich

Charlie and Rich are nerds

Thank you to all of our Code for Philly advocates, partners, and organizers that have helped Code for Philly be successful and grow these past few years. Then, a special thanks to all the Code for Philly members that inspire us every Tuesday night and every Launchpad when you’ve come to work on your projects and ideas. Its because of you that we still believe in the power of volunteers lending talents and time towards crafting solutions for Philly’s public challenges.

While Charlie is in the process of re-locating, you’ll likely see Rich around the next few months as he continues helping with the transition. If you haven’t met Michael or Marieke yet, let him know and he’ll gladly make an introduction.

So tell me more about these Marieke and Michael characters…

Marieke and Michael are much cooler

Marieke

Marieke (rhymes with Paprika) Jackson is a professional data scientist and amateur busybody. Over the past year she has been working on a Code for Philly project to create a unified reporting system for Prevention Point, Philadelphia’s harm reduction center, which services tens of thousands of community members a year and is tracking all of their data with spreadsheets and paper forms. She is also one of the organizers behind the upcoming Data Science Hackathon - Get your tickets here!. Marieke is a firm believer in leveraging the connective power of technology to help everyone, not just the folks who can afford it. You can reach her on twitter @skinnamarieke or through old fashioned email at mjackson@codeforphilly.org. Marieke loves climbing, biking, pancakes, and you.

Michael

Michael Chow is also a data scientist. He’s focused full-time this year on helping non-profits in Philadelphia and contributing to open source tools. Previously, he led research on adaptive assessment at DataCamp, and received a PhD in cognitive psychology from Princeton University. You can reach him on Twitter @chowthedog.

Michael’s focus over the past year was on making Code for Philly a space where non-profits—such as the Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity, and Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society—could increase their technical capacity in two ways:

  • Fostering an appreciation for the work non-profit partners do in our volunteers.
  • Recruiting and organizing volunteers through Code for Philly projects.