“We are still trying to figure out what we want to do with open data, but I think that there is opportunity to improve our work.”

Background

From a young age, Marcus’ interests spanned biology, physics, and the internet. Moving to New York City shortly after college, he began to teach himself computer science, and started working at an IT company. The company was a great fit for his self-starter attitude and offered countless professional development opportunities, including trips to expensive technology conferences.

After a ten year stretch in IT, Marcus decided to use his love of technology for the social good and and began working as a tech educator at a local community college. As he transitioned into the education sector, he missed the formal professional development opportunities from his private sector job. He reached out to his director with these concerns and was able to get sign-off to take a free online class. He recruited a co-worker for motivation and support. Together, during the work day, they set aside time to watch videos and complete assignments.

Outside of work, Marcus is moderately active in his community. He started going to community board meetings when his children were small and he sticks with it when he can. He spends his weekends volunteering with the Gowanus Conservancy—whether working outside or helping with research, he finds ways to make himself useful to the organization.

Experience Using Open Data

Marcus has recently become familiar with the open data portal—at first glance he is much more impressed with it than other data sites he has accessed—but hasn’t found a way to use it. He browsed through a few data sets and downloaded a subset of 311 data on complaints close to the Gowanus canal—toying with different ideas to support the Conservancy efforts, but nothing came of it.

Although Marcus doesn’t have a lot of experience with the open data portal, he has accessed national open data sources in the past. Last month, he attended a Climate Data Jam where he examined climate data, and designed a storytelling project for a non-scientist audience.