Code for America September News & Events

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Watch: Co-designing criminal justice technology with directly impacted people

Civic tech is stronger and more resilient when it’s created in partnership with directly impacted people. Watch our recent Find Your Summit webinar to discover how civic tech organizations, like Recidiviz, are partnering with current and formerly incarcerated people to design tools that make the criminal justice system fairer and smaller. Visit our YouTube channel to watch the recording or explore other Find Your Summit webinars.

Civic tech stories and best practices

How solutions engineers think holistically about technical challenges — Solutions engineers work to understand government partners’ products, operations, and development processes. Discover how their unique approach drives greater client impact.

Bringing the ‘mindful use of technology’ to policy design — When designing tech-driven policies, how do we ensure those new laws will lead to real outcomes? Our automatic record clearance team shares the importance of focusing on implementation from the very beginning of the policy design process.

• Related: Our recommendations for automatic record clearance policies

Ethically deploying AI to improve the client experience — Chatbots help governments handle large volumes of client inquiries, but they can also create barriers. Read how we’re responsibly using artificial intelligence (AI) to respond to clients who seek assistance using our safety net products.

Leading the Field: Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month

We’re uplifting Hispanic and Latinx leaders whose work ensures that government serves everyone equitably, with dignity and respect. Code for America's Maria Peñaloza uses her background supporting immigrant families to help governments innovate and serve all communities through technology. Read her story.

Partner with the Safety Net Innovation Lab on ex parte renewals 

We’re excited to announce a new partnership opportunity for states looking to expand Medicaid ex parte renewals. Ex parte renewals save clients and caseworkers valuable time by using existing data to renew benefits. Join us to pilot an ex parte process or enhance an existing one! Learn more and apply now. 

Code for America events

Save the date for FormFest 2023!

Get ready to ignite innovation in government forms like never before. 🚀 Join us on November 8 for a virtual deep dive on how to make services accessible to everyone through online forms. Learn more and get notified when registration opens!

Looking ahead: Summit 2024 

Code for America Summit, our annual civic tech conference, will be back in Oakland, California in May 2024. Call for proposals open this fall. If you are interested in sponsorship opportunities, email summit@codeforamerica.org for more information. Stay tuned for more details soon! 

In the news 

• Civic Innovation Challenge (CIVIC) Stage 2 Awards - Our Safety Net Innovation Lab is supporting The New Orleans Collaborative for Early Childhood Research–recipients of the National Science Foundation’s CIVIC Stage 2 awards. We'll build on our partnership with the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services to pilot an integrated, streamlined application for programs supporting families with low-incomes in New Orleans.
• Equitable Government and the Limits of AI - Before turning to AI, there are steps policymakers should take to make government services more equitable. [Governing]
• How to Go Agile in State and Local Government - When it comes to adopting an agile approach, many governments may face organizational hurdles. StateTech suggests two agile methodologies that can help accelerate the development of software and government services. [StateTech]

Humble Bundle: Support Code for America when you buy O’Reilly cybersecurity books 

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month and the tech experts at O’Reilly are helping programmers, engineers, and IT professionals keep systems safe. Pay what you want for an incredible cybersecurity book bundle and a portion of every sale will support Code for America through October 16. 

Thanks for reading!

The Code for America Team