UMass Consortium Receives $200,000 Award at White House Event

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has announced that Public Interest Technology New England (PIT-NE), a consortium of seven colleges and universities co-founded by UMass Amherst, will receive $200,000 to help develop programs for and train a public interest technology workforce and strengthen PIT higher education programs in the region.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) announced the funding last month as it convened leaders across the technology ecosystem to highlight the importance of advancing technology that protects safety, security, democratic values and human rights. The PIT-NE award was part of a $7 million commitment from The Ford Foundation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, Pivotal and the Siegel Family Endowment to support organizations that develop public interest technologists, solutions and infrastructure. <_o3a_p>

Announced during the event and in the White House press release, the Ford Foundation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, Pivotal, and the Siegel Family Endowment have jointly committed $200,000 to support Public Interest Technology New England (PIT-NE), which has a goal to develop and train a public interest technology workforce and to strengthen PIT higher education programs in the region.

Among the programs offered by PIT-NE is the Impact Technology Fellowship, which included eight UMass undergraduate students this past summer. The fellowship is a full-time, six-week combined experiential learning, public interest technology skill building, mentoring and professional development program that empowers a new generation of public interest technologists.<_o3a_p>

PIT@UMass Amherst director Francine Berman, research professor in the Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences and Stuart Rice Honorary Chair, attended the invitation-only White House event, which featured speakers and panelists who highlighted the important role of government technologists, tech talent development in public service and efforts to build a robust, inclusive technology landscape that works for everyone in America. <_o3a_p>

A video of the event can be viewed below via the White House YouTube channel.