Saint Peter’s Partners with Code for JC and Code for Newark to Host PATH Data Jam

Jersey City, N.J. – February 20, 2015 – Saint Peter’s University announced that it has partnered with Code for JC and Code for Newark to host the PATH Data Jam, a CodeAcross National Hackathon event on Saturday, February 21 from 9:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. in THE McIntyre Conference Center. CodeAcross is a weekend of civic hacking events hosted around the world by Code for America. A data jam is a day-long workshop in which computer programmers, graphic designers, interface designers, project managers, community activists, artists and other interested members of the community collaborate intensively on solving problems focused on specific data.

Using transportation datasets, including ridership and turnstile data from PATH, NY Waterway and Trans Hudson, attendees will hear from speakers from the transportation industry and will work in groups to come up with ideas and technological solutions for transportation challenges using this data.  The PATH Data Jam will explore issues regarding nightly ridership, primary users, the possible economic impact of changes in schedule or length of cars, impact of weekend shutdowns at Exchange Place and insights on which communities mostly rely on PATH. The outcome of the PATH data jam may produce analytics, visualization, mapping for PATH service and improvements, or could lead to the creation of an app for PATH commuters.

“Saint Peter’s is proud to join forces with local, community groups such as Code for JC and Code for Newark to host an event that is incredibly timely and relevant,” said Philip Mark Plotch, Ph.D., assistant professor and director of the master in public administration program at Saint Peter’s University. “The PATH Data Jam not only seeks to improve public transportation services in the New York/New Jersey area, but it also invites members of the community to learn how to analyze large datasets, an increasingly important skill in today’s world.”

The subject of data analysis has become increasingly significant within the Saint Peter’s community, as the University recently launched a master’s program in data science with a concentration in business analytics. The degree program integrates computer science, statistics and data-based business management principles to inform data driven decision making. The program is the first of its kind in the N.Y./N.J. area and was developed to align with the “best of industry applied practice” in big data solutions.

Speakers at the event include Robert Galvin, chief technology officer at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; Courtenay Mercer, N.J. director for the Regional Plan Association; Dan Schned, senior planner of transportation for the Regional Plan Association; Emmanuel A. Simon, a founding partner of OpenJC; and Elnardo Webster, Ph.D., director of the 21st Century CCLC Institute of Excellence at Saint Peter’s University.

The event is sponsored by OpenJC, Code for Newark, Saint Peter’s University, the Regional Plan Association and Code for America. For more information or to register, please visit https://codeforjc.org/PATHDataJam.

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Saint Peter’s University, inspired by its Jesuit, Catholic identity, commitment to individual attention and grounding in the liberal arts, educates a diverse community of learners in undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and professional programs to excel intellectually, lead ethically, serve compassionately and promote justice in our ever-changing urban and global environment. To learn more, please visit www.saintpeters.edu.

Code for JC is a hands-on active local community group collaborating with the JC Government to build open data, open source and open government. Code for JC believes in the public sector innovation and the value of digital-government projects. Code for JC is a program of Open JC and member of the Code for America brigade program.

Code for Newark is a founding member of City of Code, a collective of organizations and institutions determined to support the development of Newark’s technology and startup community. Code for Newark seeks to create opportunities to teach Newarkers 21st century skills, provide products and services to the community as well as inform and mobilize constituents around social impact issues.

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