City of Bloomington selected as "Google Summer of Code" participant

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 26, 2012

For more information, please contact:
Rick Dietz, Director - Information & Technology Services, 349.3485, dietzr@bloomington.in.gov

City of Bloomington selected as "Google Summer of Code" participant

Bloomington, IN - The City of Bloomington has been selected by Google to be the recipient of student programming assistance through the company's "Summer of Code" program.

Google's Summer of Code is a global initiative that provides student developers financial support to write code for various open source software projects. Student are paired with a mentor or mentors from participating projects, giving students exposure to real-world software development scenarios and the opportunity for employment in areas related to their academic pursuits. Participating projects benefit employers by allowing them to more easily identify and bring in new developers.

Rick Dietz, the City's Information and Technology Services Director, said this project aligns well with the City's priorities. "Being included as a Google Summer of Code organization is recognition that Bloomington is a leader in the use and production of open source software to streamline City operations, reduce costs and provide high quality constituent services."

The City is one of few municipal governments invited to participate in this program, providing powerful recognition that Bloomington is a hub of technology and gov2.0 innovation. Other selected organizations include MIT, CERN, Apache Software Foundation, GNU, KDE, Mozilla, Libre Office, Sakai, Samba, Linux Foundation, WikiMedia Foundation and many more.

Proposed City projects for Google Summer of Code include:

• New features for the GeoReporter App on Apple's iOS platform (iPod, iPhone and iPad)
• Development of a Google Android platform version of GeoReporter
• Development of a Kuali Mobility mobile web-based version of GeoReporter

Read a [more detailed description of the projects|http://bloomington.in.gov/documents/viewDocument.php?document_id=6580]. Interested students can learn more about the [participation opportunities |http://www.google-melange.com/gsoc/homepage/google/gsoc2012].

GeoReporter and Bloomington iOS apps are available in the Apple Store. Both apps have been launched and are in beta release.

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