Geospatial Technologies in the Classroom @ Fairfield University

Posted on June 10, 2011 by

Posted on behalf of our colleagues at Fairfield University

Geospatial Technologies in the Classroom
A course offering from the Graduate School of Education & Allied Professions at Fairfield University

Online: July 5-30

On-campus: July 18-22 10 am – 4 pm

Join Fairfield University this summer as they explore geospatial technologies both outdoors and in the computer lab using GPS and GIS, and apply “community games” such as geocaching and protocols for conducting “real world” research with students. Participants will develop skills and applications of geospatial technologies for curricular integration. The program includes:

Both field and in-class hands-on activities
Review/synthesis of research on Spatial and
Linguistic Cognition, Birth-Adulthood
Integrating geospatial technologies using the fourfold approach of Actual, Virtual, Critical and Ethical application
Introduction to Google Earth
Using GPS & Local Geocache
Discussion of classroom and age-appropriate applications of geospatial technologies
Introduction to GIS: Online GIS services and tools, hands-on lesson in ArcGIS
GPS at the Fairfield Museum: Using documentary protocols to build local history/geography connections with GPS and Digital photography
Designing Student Activities

For more information:

Contact our Graduate School of Education & Allied Professions at 203-254-4250 or visit us online at http://www.fairfield.edu/gseap/

This course is open to both matriculated and nonmatriculated students. To enroll as a nonmatriculated student, please allow at least 10 days to complete the required paperwork available at: http://www.fairfield.edu/gseap/gseap_policies.html

2010 U.S. Census Connecticut Demographic Profiles Shapefiles Now Available

Posted on June 10, 2011 by

The 2010 U.S. Census Connecticut Demographic Profiles data and shapefiles that include this data are now available for Download from the Connecticut State Data Center website! Included below are the details on this dataset:

2010 U.S. Census Demographic Profiles Data for Connecticut

• Geographies available: State, 111th Congressional Districts, County, Connecticut House District, Connecticut Senate District, and Town

• Downloadable data available in .csv format for each geography and includes a data codebook to describe each column of data

• 2010 U.S. Census shapefiles which include the demographic profile data for each geography are provided in WGS 1984 and Connecticut State Plane NAD 83 projections and include FGDC metadata

• View available data at: http://ctsdc.uconn.edu/connecticut_census_data.html#2010_demographic

GIS Educators Day – Call for Proposals

Posted on June 7, 2011 by

CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS and SAVE THE DATE for the 4th Annual GIS Educators Day Conference

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Saratoga Hilton Hotel, Saratoga Springs, NY

ABOUT GIS EDUCATORS DAY http://www.northeastarc.org/2011/html/giseducators.shtml

GIS Educators Day, sponsored by NEARC, esri, and the New England Geography Education Network, is a full-day conference devoted exclusively to topics and issues pertaining to the use of GIS and other geospatial technologies in K-12, college, and informal education. This unique event is a one day pre-conference to NEARC’s annual professional user conference

PRESENTATION FORMATS: Oral Presentation, Panel Presentation, Hands-on workshop, Poster Session

PRESENTATION TOPIC AREAS:

*Community Projects & Partnerships

*Teaching with GIS in Higher Education (projects, integrating GIS into courses, etc.) *Teaching with GIS in K-12 Schools (class and student projects, lessons, programs, etc.) *Teaching GIS: Strategies and Methods (GIS curricula, student projects, etc.) *Strategies for GIS Training for Educators (institutes, online courses, training events, etc.) *GIS in Informal Education *Integrating GIS with GPS/Remote Sensing *GIS in the Cloud *Open Source GIS *Emerging Topics: Mobile Devices and Crowdsourcing *Grab Bag

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

*The presentation cannot market specific products and services *Abstracts should be 150-200 words.

*Presenters must register and pay to attend the preconference at the regular preconference fee. (There will be a special Sunday/Monday rate for those who would like to stay for the first day of the main users conference) *Abstracts must be submitted by June 30, 2011

QUESTIONS:

Contact Lyn Malone or Alex Chaucer, GIS Educators Day Co-Chairs at lmalone@worldviewsgis.com achaucer@skidmore.edu

SUBMIT AN ABSTRACT ONLINE AT http://is.gd/GISED

July 6-7, 2011 – NOAA Coastal Inundation Mapping Training to be offered in Groton, CT

Posted on June 5, 2011 by

We are pleased to announce that a NOAA Coastal Services Center (CSC) geospatial training short course on Coastal Inundation Mapping will be taught in southeastern CT this summer.

Matt Pendleton and Billy Brooks, trainers from the NOAA Coastal Services Center, will be teaching CSC’s regular 2-day “Coastal Inundation Mapping” course on July 6 and 7 at the University of Connecticut/Avery Point campus. This hands-on course will provide an introduction to coastal inundation issues and coastal inundation mapping techniques. The course is a combination of lectures and exercises that allow attendees to gain a better understanding of the following topics:

Types of coastal inundation
Coastal inundation production
Elevation data
Integration of elevation data
Creation of inundation maps
New visualization techniques
Adapting to coastal risks

Please see http://www.csc.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/training/inundationmap.html for a complete course description. Please note that a working knowledge of ArcGIS is required (version 9.3 will be used for this course).

The course will be offered at NO COST (although there will be a $30 advance fee to cover refreshments and lunches) and enrollment is limited to a max of 24 people. People eligible to attend should work for a not-for-profit organization; municipal, regional, state or federal government; or academia and should have an interest or responsibility in coastal resource management or planning. See attachment for more information.

If you or others are interested in registering for this course, please contact Cary Chadwick at 860-345-5216 or cary.chadwick@uconn.edu. Please note that registration requires an advance payment of $30 to cover the cost of refreshments and lunches. Checks can be made out to the University of Connecticut and mailed to the address below:

Middlesex County Extension Center
1066 Saybrook Road, PO Box 70
Haddam, CT 06441-0070
Attn: Cary Chadwick

This course offering is made possible by the support of the University of Connecticut/Avery Point and the Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) at the University of Connecticut.

Census Bureau Reports Public School Systems Spend $10,499 Per Pupil in 2009

Posted on June 2, 2011 by

Public school systems spent an average of $10,499 per pupil in fiscal year 2009, a 2.3 percent increase over 2008, according to data released on May 25, 2011 by the U.S. Census Bureau. Public schools in New York spent more than any other state or state equivalent, with $18,126 per pupil in 2009. The District of Columbia ($16,408), New Jersey ($16,271), Alaska ($15,552) and Vermont ($15,175) had the next-highest spending. (See table 11 [PDF].)

These data come from Public Education Finances: 2009, which provides tables on revenues, expenditures, debt and assets (cash and security holdings) of elementary and secondary public school systems with data for the nation, states and school districts. The tables also include more detailed data on spending, such as instruction, transportation and salaries, among others.

For additional details visit: http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/governments/cb11-94.html

2010 Census Shows Nation’s Population is Aging

Posted on June 1, 2011 by

Seven States Have Median Age Over 40

The U.S. Census Bureau released on May 26, 2011 a 2010 Census brief on our nation’s changing age and sex composition that shows the nation grew older while the male population grew faster than the female population over the last decade.

According to Age and Sex Composition: 2010 [PDF], the median age of Americans is now 37.2, with seven states recording a median age of 40 or older. The brief also shows the male population grew 9.9 percent between 2000 and 2010, while the female population grew 9.5 percent. Of the total 2010 Census population, 157.0 million people were female (50.8 percent) and 151.8 million were male (49.2 percent).

In the 2010 Census, seven states had a median age of 40 or older: Maine (42.7), Vermont (41.5), West Virginia (41.3), New Hampshire (41.1), Florida (40.7), Pennsylvania (40.1) and Connecticut (40.0). In both 1990 and 2000, West Virginia and Florida had the highest median age of all states. Maine overtook West Virginia and Florida as the state with the highest median age in 2010, while Utah remained the state with the lowest median age.

For more details visit: http://2010.census.gov/news/releases/operations/cb11-cn147.html

June 10, 2011 – CT GIS User to User Network Meeting on the 2010 U.S. Census

Posted on May 31, 2011 by

The Connecticut GIS User to User Network will hold its quarterly meeting on June 10, 2011 at the University of Connecticut’s Greater Hartford Campus from 9am – 12 pm. This meeting will focus on topics related to GIS and the 2010 U.S. Census and will feature presenters from the U.S. Census Boston Regional Office. This meeting will be held in the Information Technology Building Room 104 at the University of Connecticut Greater Hartford Campus. Included below is a tentative outline:

Tentative Outline

9:00-9:15am – Introductions

9:15 – 9:45am – Locating 2010 Census Data using the New American FactFinder

9:45 – 10:00am – Tips and Tricks

10:00 – 10:15am – Networking

10:15 – 10:45am – Using 2010 Shapefiles and joining data from the 2010 Census

10:45 – 11:00am – Break

11:00 – 11:45am – American Community Survey and comparing ACS with 2010 Census data

11:45am – 12:00pm – Question and Answer Session

Parking and Navigating Campus

Parking is available for free in the visitor lot at the corner of Ayslum Ave and Trout Brook Drive in West Hartford, CT. Once on campus, the Information Technology Center is a short walk from the Parking Lot. The following link includes a campus map that includes details on each building: http://hartford.uconn.edu/map/campus.html

For Driving directions to the University of Connecticut Greater Hartford Campus, visit the following website: http://hartford.uconn.edu/map/

Can’t Make it? Attend this meeting Virtually!

For those that are unable to attend this meeting in person, a live web stream from this meeting will be offered. If you are interested in attending this meeting virtually via a live web stream, please complete the following form so we can be sure to provide you a link to attend the meeting virtually: http://bit.ly/lHuOM9

GIS Tips and Tricks

CT GIS User to User Network would also like to encourage participants to bring a GIS related tip to share with meeting participants. These tips could include a favorite extension, script, and time saving resource that would be useful to other meeting participants. Feel free to bring your tip on a sheet of paper to share with other meeting participants.

We look forward to seeing you physically or virtually for this meeting on the June 10, 2011!

2010 Census Shows Nation’s Hispanic Population Grew Four Times Faster Than Total U.S. Population

Posted on May 31, 2011 by

The U.S. Census Bureau released on May 26, 2011 a 2010 Census brief on the nation’s Hispanic population, which shows the Hispanic population increased by 15.2 million between 2000 and 2010 and accounted for more than half of the total U.S. population increase of 27.3 million. Between 2000 and 2010, the Hispanic population grew by 43 percent, or four times the nation’s 9.7 percent growth rate.

The Hispanic Population: 2010 brief looks at an important part of our nation’s changing ethnic diversity with a particular focus on Hispanic origin groups, such as Mexican, Dominican and Cuban.

For additional details visit: http://2010.census.gov/news/releases/operations/cb11-cn146.html

6/2/2011 – Census Bureau to Hold Webinar Prior to Release of 2010 Census Summary File 1 for States

Posted on May 31, 2011 by

The U.S. Census Bureau will hold a webinar on June 2, 2011 at 2:30pm prior to the state-by-state releases of the 2010 Census Summary File 1 in June through August. You will learn about the topics to be released in the summary file, how the release process will work and how to access the data.

The webinar will consist of a simultaneous audio conference and online presentation. You will be able to ask questions during the audio conference once the presentation is complete.

Presenters include: Louisa Miller, assistant division chief, Census Programs, Population Division & Rob Chestnut, chief, Requirements and Stakeholder Relations Branch, Decennial Systems Contract Management Office

Details: Audio conference — access informationToll free number: 888-769-8716
Participant passcode: 2010 CENSUS

Online presentation — access information
Please login early, as some setup is required.URL: https://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join/
Conference number: PW7852082
Audience passcode: 2010 CENSUS

If closed captioning is required: http://livewrite.nccsite.com/view/cb0602

More information available at: https://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join/

June 3, 2011 – Map Projections Seminar at UConn Storrs

Posted on May 31, 2011 by

The New England Section of ACSM (American Congress on Surveying and Mapping) is hosting a day-long short course on Map Projections on June 3 from 9am-4pm at UConn Storrs. Cost is $50 for members and $60 for non-members.

Additional details and to register for this day long course click here.