Students and professionals to compete in marathon software and hardware coding session to address economic inequality in Philadelphia
Comcast NBCUniversal is joining Drexel University’s College of Computing & Informatics (CCI) as title sponsor of Philly Codefest 2019. Philly Codefest is a free software and hardware hackathon that encourages students and professionals from all experience levels and backgrounds to work together to develop innovative solutions to help solve real world challenges.
Approximately 500 software and hardware hackers – made up of professionals, educators, entrepreneurs and students alike – are expected to compete from Saturday, May 4 at 7 a.m. to Sunday, May 5 at 6 p.m. at the Daskalakis Athletic Center on Drexel’s University City Campus.
Attendees will form teams to work on projects, and then will present their final creations to a panel of judges – comprised of Drexel faculty, sponsors and respected members of the Philadelphia tech community – for a chance to win awesome prizes.
“We are excited to support Drexel University’s College of Computing & Informatics (CCI) in bringing together local students and professionals at this year’s Philly Codefest,” said Rick Rioboli, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Comcast Cable. "This event merges creativity and technology to create real-world solutions that will have a lasting impact on the Philadelphia community.”
“Drexel’s seventh annual Philly Codefest promises to be not only our largest but also our most civically engaged hackathon yet,” says Yi Deng, PhD, Isaac L. Auerbach professor and dean of CCI. “With a shared commitment to leveraging technological innovation to help improve society, we are excited for Comcast NBCUniversal to join Codefest as our lead sponsor.”
Codefest 2019 will be the first hackathon in the city of Philadelphia to address economic inequality head on. According to a 2018 report by The Pew Charitable Trusts, more than a quarter of Philadelphians — about 400,000 people — live below the poverty line, with Philadelphia's poverty rate ranking among the highest of the nation's largest cities.
Attendees will be encouraged to design tech solutions within the following categories: financial literacy and security; food insecurity; environmental safety; digital divide; healthcare access and the opioid epidemic; affordable housing and homelessness; voter access; and employment equity.
Comcast NBCUniversal joins Codefest sponsors including the Philadelphia-based private server provider company Linode and national water and wastewater services company and CCI Corporate Partner American Water, who will also be sponsoring a state-of-the-art game room for attendees to enjoy amidst coding and workshops.
About Comcast
Corporation Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company with three primary businesses: Comcast Cable, NBCUniversal, and Sky. Comcast Cable is one of the United States’ largest high-speed internet, video, and phone providers to residential customers under the Xfinity brand, and also provides these services to businesses. It also provides wireless and security and automation services to residential customers under the Xfinity brand. NBCUniversal is global and operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures, and Universal Parks and Resorts. Sky is one of Europe's leading media and entertainment companies, connecting customers to a broad range of video content through its pay television services. It also provides communications services, including residential high-speed internet, phone, and wireless services. Sky operates the Sky News broadcast network and sports and entertainment networks, produces original content, and has exclusive content rights. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
About Drexel University College of Computing & Informatics
From our position on the leading edge of information and technology, Drexel University’s College of Computing & Informatics (CCI) instills the knowledge and skills necessary for our students to lead and innovate across industries in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. Building on Drexel University’s exceptional foundation of entrepreneurship and cooperative education, we provide unparalleled professional experiences and the on-the-job training that is vital to preparing today’s students for tomorrow’s world. At CCI, our unique structure bringing computing and informatics together under one roof in a dynamic, collaborative college allows us to spot trends before they emerge, to solve problems before they occur, and to build a better tomorrow, starting today. Learn more at drexel.edu/cci
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