Developer Student Clubs (DSC) are community groups intended for students who are interested in Google developer technologies at their university. Students who join a DSC are able to grow their knowledge in not just a peer-to-peer environment but are able to build solutions for their local businesses and community. This semester, a DSC has come to Stevens.
Developer Student Clubs were previously only in underprivileged countries; however, last summer, Google Developers switched from having Google Cloud Student Ambassadors (an opportunity for students to act as liaisons between Google and their universities) to DSC lead. DSC leadership was finally introduced to the United States.
Students at Stevens in majors related to computer science were sent an email about applications for opening a DSC lead role. These students needed to create and submit videos for the position. After a few interviews, Tim Leonard, a brother of Phi Sigma Kappa, was selected as the lead and president of the Stevens chapter. Leonard then chose William Escamilla, a Software Engineering major, to take on the role of vice president to help with the creation of the club and to gain interest. Justin O’Boyle and Anand Shetler were assigned as tech leads, Rachael Kondrat and Rich Bilotti were selected as design leads, and Luke Mizus became the business lead.
From there, Project Crystal was formed. The main purpose of Project Crystal is to be a resource for the local government to help increase involvement and awareness. The project was a part of the 2020 International Solution Challenge. The Solution Challenge is a skill contest where participants of Developer Student Clubs have to create a solution for a local community problem by using one or more Google products or platforms. The participants must then upload a video to YouTube that demonstrates how the solution can be used by a user in less than 120 seconds.
“Given current events regarding Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, and the upcoming election, it is no better time to stay informed,” Escamilla said. “These matters could also be integrated into our website in the future.”
The project for the Solution Challenge is aimed at benefiting the local community in Hoboken. All students that are involved in the club were able to develop, present, and vote for their project ideas. The winning pitch came from Google Developer Group (GDG) New York City organizer Ralph Yozzo, who explained his frustration with how students are especially ill-informed and not involved with local politics.
Project Crystal placed in the top three among United States universities, and received an honorable mention.
With the club’s incredibly productive first semester, the team cannot wait to see what comes next.
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