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IBM Mainframe Academic Initiative – Why it’s Important

June 11th, 2012 | Posted by Lonnie Emard in Careers | Education | Teach IT - (0 Comments)

From the inception of the IT-oLogy vision, one key message has remained constant over the last three years. Our epidemic around the shortage of IT talent must certainly address one key fallacy. Mainframes are not dead. Every one of the most important industries in this country rely on enterprise servers to manage large, integrated, high volume business.

As a founding partner in IT-oLogy, IBM contributed hardware and software to help launch computing environments to help grow IT talent with real hands-on learning. Most importantly though, IBM has offered the IBM Mainframe Academic Initiative free to universities and tech colleges. This full suite of curriculum and applied industry examples is being delivered by many of the IT-oLogy academic partners.

Still, we need more higher education partners to join this program.  Take a look at the following videos and see WHY.

 

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IT-oLogy @ Innovista – a new look comes to the Tower at 1301 Gervais Street

March 8th, 2012 | Posted by Whitney Williams in IT-oLogy Defined | World of IT - (1 Comments)

IT-oLogy @ Innovista

 

 

 

 

 

It’s a sign of progress. Friday, the Tower at 1301 Gervais — a landmark in the Columbia skyline – gets a new look with IT-oLogy @ Innovista.

SignThe installation of the IT-oLogy @ Innovista signage exemplifies the already successful partnership between IT-oLogy and Innovista to foster the development, growth and relocation of information technology (IT) companies, small and large.

“This marks the fruition of one of our original visions: a district with the strategic clustering of IT companies in one locality,” said Don Herriott, Director of Innovista Partnerships. “More companies are seeing the advantages of co-location, and IT-oLogy @ Innovista now houses 9 IT companies and counting.”

IT-oLogy’s mission is to promote, teach and grow the IT talent pipeline and profession. With Innovista’s mission of creating, attracting and growing knowledge-based companies in the Midlands of South Carolina, the two constitute a perfect partnership for recruiting to the new IT-oLogy @ Innovista building.  Clustering IT companies in a single location, such as the Tower at 1301 Gervais Street, can open the door for new opportunities for partnership and business development, stimulate new ideas and industry innovation and help in the recruitment of new companies to the region.

“Our goal is to bring the IT community together in a collaborative environment to develop the IT pipeline through programs at all levels,” said Lonnie Emard, Executive Director of IT-oLogy. “The partnership with Innovista is a perfect example of this collaborative effort because we are bringing together people and companies that are dedicated to both of our missions.”

The establishment of an IT district is not about a sign at the top of the Tower at 1301 Gervais Street. While that is a visible representation of the partnership, the real story is about what happens both in and out of the building. The uniqueness of IT-oLogy is that it is not a single company or entity; instead, it is a non-profit collaboration of companies, academic institutions and organizations uniting to address the nationwide shortage of skilled IT professionals. To address this challenge, IT-oLogy offers K-12 programs where students explore numerous IT career options, the internships for undergraduate students and the continuing education opportunities that keep professionals constantly learning and up-to-date. When all this happens, the result is a vibrant economic picture, which is the goal of Innovista.

The confluence of opportunities in IT-oLogy @ Innovista will provide a home in the community for local talent as well. “At the University of South Carolina, our responsibility to students and alumni extends beyond education. It includes a commitment to helping them find jobs, good jobs, when they graduate,” said Dr. Harris Pastides, President of the University of South Carolina. “The pairing of IT-oLogy and Innovista is perfect because of their complementary missions, each focused on growing our innovation economy in this region and across South Carolina.”

“From the outset, the vision of IT-oLogy has been to have business and academic partners collaborate to advance IT talent,” Emard said. “The lack of IT talent is a national epidemic that is solved in a local manner. The establishment of IT-oLogy @ Innovista is a visible representation of bringing companies together to collaborate and partner, fostering new ideas and technologies.”

Recently, IT-oLogy announced the establishment of the branch IT-oLogy @ University Center of Greenville, located in Greenville, South Carolina. This is yet another way IT-oLogy is working locally to address a national issue. In the future, IT-oLogy will continue to open branches across the nation as a way to advance IT talent in a grassroots manner.

Innovista is a strategic economic development effort that is connecting the University of South Carolina and university-spawned innovations with entrepreneurs, businesses and stakeholders. Its purpose is to help attract and create technology-intensive, knowledge-based companies, which result in higher-paying jobs and raise the standard of living in South Carolina.

For more information about Innovista, visit www.innovista.sc.edu or contact Lauren Edwards at 803.777.8786 or Laurene@mailbox.sc.edu.

IT-oLogy is a non-profit collaboration of businesses, academic institutions and other organizations dedicated to growing the IT talent pipeline and advancing the IT profession. IT-oLogy does this through three major initiatives: Promote IT (K-12 schools), Teach IT (Higher Education) and Grow IT (Professionals and Businesses).

For more information about IT-oLogy, visit www.it-ology.org or contact Powers Strickland at 803.354.5735 or powers.strickland@it-ology.org.

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IT-oLogy @ University Center of Greenville

February 17th, 2012 | Posted by Whitney Williams in IT-oLogy Defined | Teach IT - (0 Comments)

UCGWe are excited to announce the newest branch – IT-oLogy @ University Center of Greenville! Check out the press release that went out yesterday!

The University Center of Greenville, Inc. (UCG) provides a central cost-effective location for the delivery of higher education baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral programs from many of South Carolina’s largest Universities benefiting the citizens and the economic community of Greater Greenville. In addition to 76 degree programs offered from its seven institutional members, UCG is also home to a number of other educationally-related organizations and programs, including Public Education Partners Greenville County, ELS Language Centers and the SimHub™ immersive technology center.

The multi-organizational hub, located inside McAlister Square, provides collaborative space and shared resources, all with the end goal of improving educational access for the Upstate community. The latest organization to call the University Center of Greenville ‘home’ is IT-oLogy.

IT-oLogy is a nonprofit collaboration of businesses, academic institutions and organizations dedicated to growing the Information Technology (IT) talent pipeline and advancing the IT profession. Formed in 2008 as a collaboration between the University of South Carolina, IBM and BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina to respond to the IT talent gap, the organization’s mission is to change the face of the IT field.

UCG President & COO David A. Taylor says, “We are very happy to welcome the IT-oLogy organization and staff to the University Center of Greenville as they work to expand their presence and activities in the Greater Greenville area….this is a great opportunity for the Center to collaborate with another partner with strong focus on connecting with leading Universities and employers for the benefit of the citizens and economic community of Greater Greenville.”

IT-oLogy focuses on a broad range of goals from exposing K-12 students to the various career possibilities in the IT field, to advancing professional development opportunities. Key programs are aligned around three simple initiatives: Promote It, Teach It, Grow It.

”IT-oLogy believes that a classroom to the boardroom model is the most effective approach to advancing IT talent,” says Lonnie Emard, Executive Director of IT-oLogy. “Our programs span all ages – from students in K-12 schools, to undergraduates enrolled in higher education institutions to entry-level and seasoned IT professionals.”

The organization’s presence at the University Center will bring networking and experiential learning opportunities to current students in or interested in IT degree programs, such as USC Upstate’s Bachelor of Arts in Information Management & Systems hosted onsite at UCG, as well as professional development opportunities for employees  at local IT-heavy companies like Fluor Corporation.

Middle and high School students considering areas of study pre-college can use IT-oLogy to explore potential degrees and careers through camps or virtual job shadows directing them into fields such as website development, multimedia design, computer systems networking, and much more.

“From the outset, the vision of IT-oLogy has been to have business and academic partners collaborate to advance IT talent,” Emard says. “The lack of IT talent is a national epidemic that is solved in a local manner. The IT-oLogy @ University Center of Greenville branch becomes a visible, physical representation of business, higher ed and K-12 education working together to meet a common goal.”

For more information about IT-oLogy and its programs, visit www.it-ology.org. To learn more about the University Center and the Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral degrees available locally, visit www.ucgreenville.org.

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Technology Makes Things Happen

January 24th, 2012 | Posted by Whitney Williams in IT-oLogy Defined | World of IT - (0 Comments)

Yesterday, IT-oLogy and the Southeastern Institute for Women in Politics announced a really cool high-tech effort to encourage women in South Carolina to seek elected office at a press conference held in the Theater at IT-oLogy. With our technology expertise and funding by BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, the Institute was able to work with Period Three and Palmetto Computer Labs, partners in IT-oLogy, to create a web-based training series to educate women on how to run for office.

A few months ago, Barbara Rackes, the Executive Director of the Institute, approached us for some help. She had been given funding by BCBSSC to make this incredible web-training series a possibility, but needed some direction on how to make it actually happen. That’s where IT-oLogy came to the table. Because we’re made up of over 70 corporate partners that specialize in all types of technology, we knew exactly where to send Barbara and her team.

We brought together the Institute, Palmetto Computer Labs and Period Three and immediately saw creativity and ideas begin to fly. Out of the initial session came a cool series of web-based training for women in SC to learn more about running for office.

Isn’t technology cool? In this case, it allowed the Institute to reach a number of women who may be interested in running for office, but don’t have access to the resources they need. Now, interested parties can participate in the webinar series at their own pace in the comfort of their own home – all with resources one click away.

Technology has endless possibilities, and allows us to take our business and personal goals to the next level.

“IT-oLogy has the mission of advancing IT talent. When more technology possibilities are created, more people are in place with the skills to apply to business needs,” said Lonnie Emard, Executive Director of IT-oLogy. “In this case, three partners in IT-oLogy (BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, Palmetto Computer Labs and Period Three) delivered financial support and IT capability to enable the Southeastern Institute for Women in Politics to become more efficient in reaching a large target audience.

Want to see these cool webinars? Visit www.scelectswomen.com.

Check out the pictures from the press conference!

Lonnie Emard and Mary Anne Jacobs

Lonnie Emard, Executive Director of IT-oLogy, and Mary Anne Jacobs, President of the Southeastern Institute for Women in Politics

Lonnie Emard

Lonnie Emard discusses IT-oLogy's role in the new high-tech effort

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Meet Lonnie Emard – Executive Director of IT-oLogy

September 1st, 2011 | Posted by Bobby Rettew in IT-oLogy Defined - (0 Comments)

Meet Lonnie Emard of IT-oLogy. Lonnie is the Executive Director of IT-oLogy which is the formation of the Consortium for Enterprise Systems Management. I met Lonnie over two years ago and have been sharing a great business relationship ever since.

My name is Bobby Rettew and I have served as IT-oLogy’s Digital Media Consultant for close to two years. Lonnie was one of the first clients I worked with while starting my business. Our partnership has been fun and exciting, telling stories surrounding the ever expanding demand in this IT Talent Pipeline.

Lonnie is passionate about IT and he is passionate about building a bright future. If you watch the video, you will learn he has a Computer Science degree and has worked for large organizations in the oil industry and also in healthcare, including BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina.

He was the visionary that brought IT-oLogy to fruition seeing the increasing demand for a growing, qualified workforce in IT. He also sees the need to communicate that working in IT is more than just programming with jobs ranging from software development, gaming, virtual reality, animation, and so much more.

Take a few minutes and watch the video. Lonnie’s passion is infectious and it is my hope that you take a chance to come to Columbia, SC and shake his hand.

Enjoy!

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Bobby Rettew is a Emmy Award winning, documentary storyteller and digital media strategist. Bobby works with IT-oLogy with all of their video, digital media, and social media strategy.

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Health Information & Technology Forum is August 10th

August 2nd, 2011 | Posted by Bobby Rettew in World of IT - (0 Comments)

Are you interested in the world of healthcare and information technology? Well, join us on August 10th here at IT-oLogy in downtown Columbia, SC. The agenda is in place and you will be able to see and hear presentations from BlueCross BlueShield of SC, CareCore National, OpenMEdSoftware, Electronic Health Network, VidiStar and so many more.

This event is more than just presentations from some top notch organizations, it is the opportunity to connect with like minded individuals in the world of health sciences and information technology. Since the emerging conversation surrounding healthcare reform and electronic medical records, we have wanted to bring thought leaders together and provide a platform to promote conversation on these topics and so many more.

IT-oLogy’s mission is create a pipeline of talent that will support a workforce for the future of information technology. Our goal is to bring industry, educators, students, professionals, and partners together under “one-roof” with the goal to Promote IT, Teach IT, and Grow IT. This is an event that meets that goal.

The 2011 Health Information and Technology Forum on August 10th is the time and place to provide a platform for this discussion…to promote the future of IT. We are looking forward for you to join us, register for the event by CLICKING HERE.

Here are pictures of IT-oLogy (below). This might give you a better idea of what the day will look like. Check it out, and we look forward to seeing you on August 10th right here in Columbia, SC at IT-oLogy.

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Bobby Rettew is a Emmy Award winning, documentary storyteller and digital media strategist. Bobby works with IT-oLogy with all of their video, digital media, and social media strategy.

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