Atlanta Named 2014 Code for America City

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The City of Atlanta announced its selection as a 2014 Code for America City today. The Code for America Fellowship is an 11-month program where developers, designers, researchers, and product managers work alongside with governments to solve community issues with new technology. Atlanta was selected as one of ten cities to participate. The official announcement came earlier today at the Code for America Summit.

“The City of Atlanta is excited to become a Code for America partner,” said Mayor Kasim Reed. “Code for America offers our city an unparalleled opportunity to encourage collective problem-solving through civic collaboration, while creating a more open and transparent government.”

The Code for America Fellowship pairs innovative local governments with teams of civic-minded technologists for a year of service; together the governments and fellows build applications, engage the community, and collaborate with other local governments. Over the past three years, the Fellowship program has produced more than 75 web apps and partnered with 20 municipal governments. Past apps have supported citizen engagement, criminal justice and public health. The City of Atlanta will work with Fellows to develop a platform aimed at connecting city services and operations to improve customer service.

“We are thrilled to officially announce that Atlanta will participate in our 2014 Fellowship program.” said Code for America Co-Executive Director Bob Sofman. “Atlanta has a remarkable commitment to innovation and is supported by forward-thinking and dedicated staff. This top-notch combination ensures a productive year.”

“Atlanta’s strategy for delivering better results is grounded in nurturing talent and innovation,” said Duriya Farooqui, Chief Operating Officer. “We are excited to work with the Code for America Fellowship web developers and entrepreneurs to help make the City of Atlanta more efficient, open and responsive.”

Each Fellowship project is funded through a combination of local government resources and community matching grants and donations from a number of foundations, companies, and individuals. The Atlanta Code for America Fellowship received funding from the Atlanta Committee for Progress.

“The Atlanta Committee for Progress is honored to support Mayor Reed and the City of Atlanta in this initiative,” said Jeffrey Sprecher, Chairman and CEO of IntercontinentalExchange and member of the Atlanta Committee for Progress. “We believe that Atlanta’s selection as a Code for America 2014 partner not only propels our city’s reputation as a center for innovation, but supports the economic development of our thriving technology industry.”

The ten governments for the 2014 program were selected from a pool of 50 applicants. They were selected for their dedication to civic innovation and openness. Other 2014 Code for America government partners include: Charlotte, North Carolina; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Denver; Lexington, Kentucky; Long Beach, California; Mesa, Arizona; State of Rhode Island in partnership with the City of Warwick, R.I.; San Antonio, Texas; and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Details on each city project are available online: codeforamerica.org/2014-govs.

The 2014 class of Fellows will be made up of 31 developers, designers, researchers, and project managers. They were selected from more than 650 applications and are leaving companies such as ZipCar, Intuit, and Lockheed Martin and government organizations such as NASA, to participate in the program; read their bios here. They will begin their Fellowship in Code for America’s San Francisco offices starting January 2014.

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