Month: July 2018

Today we feature Shannika Jackson one of our 2018 Calico Challenge participants.

Shannika Jackson is a Kingston based student of technology who holds a BSc. in Psychology and a Graduate Diploma in Information Technology. She presently pursues an MSc. in Computer Science from the University of the West Indies and has worked for eight years as a Business Analyst with the Jamaica Public Service Company where she documented and digitized the returned bill process. She also established a framework for trans promotional advertising via their printed and electronic customer bills, earning the company 5M in profit in two years with zero added capital. Shannika currently works to implement a Business Intelligence and Analytics platform as part of the Analytics and Enterprise Solutions Team. She enjoys cooking, creative writing and the hypnotic sounds of Macy Gray. Her most immediate endeavours include the development and expansion of her skills in programming, data analytics and writing poetry.

Palisadoes Foundation volunteers Orandi Harris and Jamel Reid recently visited Silicon Valley for business. They both work for QualityWorks in Jamaica. Orandi gave a presentation at the international Node Summit on advanced software testing techniques. We took them on a fun selfie tour of Silicon Valley after the presentation!

Santa Clara, California: July 7, 2018 – The GraceKennedy Foundation announces its US$1,500 sponsorship of the Palisadoes Foundation’s third annual Calico Challenge. This step furthers the GraceKennedy mission of enhancing the well-being of Jamaicans through educational opportunities. In addition, this commitment celebrates the successful collaboration between GraceKennedy, the Jamaica Computing Society, the Palisadoes Foundation, the UWI Computing Society and the University of Technology IEEE Student Branch.

The Calico Challenge is a summer work study program for computer science students in Jamaica. Each selected student works on enhancing open source software used internationally under the guidance of a Jamaican mentor. Participating students receive US$1,500 for their successful progress. This stipend is incrementally paid based upon the achievement of specified milestones. Calico is also a feeder program for the similar Google Summer of Code.

The GraceKennedy Foundation’s contribution was used to both fund student stipends and special awards to be announced.

“This emphasizes how Jamaican organizations are taking new approaches to advancing technical education. GraceKennedy’s endorsement of the Calico Challenge will help augment an already strong talent base by helping students transition to the working world for Jamaica’s benefit,” said Peter Harrison, President of the Palisadoes Foundation, “We are proud that GraceKennedy
is willing to expose young Jamaicans to the rapid software development cycles and large scale collaboration that Jamaica needs to both compete and flourish.”

More information can be found on the Palisadoes Foundation website: http://www.palisadoes.org

About the Calico Challenge
Calico was conceived by The Palisadoes Foundation in conjunction with the Jamaica Diaspora Technology Task Force. There has been close technical collaboration between the Foundation; the University of the West Indies (UWI) Department of Computing, Mona; the UWI Computing Society; and the University of Technology IEEE Students Branch to identify open source projects, student sub-projects and mentors.

About the GraceKennedy Foundation
The GraceKennedy Foundation aims to have a positive impact on the quality of people’s lives by actively promoting well-being, primarily by supporting educational and environmental programmes and processes.

The GraceKennedy Group is one of the Caribbean’s largest diversified conglomerates. It comprises a varied network of some 60 subsidiaries and associated companies located across the Caribbean; North and Central America; and the United Kingdom. Their operations span the food distribution, financial, insurance, remittance, hardware retailing and food-processing industries.

About the Palisadoes Foundation
The California-based Palisadoes Foundation aims to provide new avenues of promoting Jamaica’s technology businesses and talent by using a series of programs which create increased awareness of the island’s abilities in the global marketplace.

About the University of Technology IEEE Student Branch
Like the IEEE, the branch’s core purpose is to foster technological innovation and excellence for the benefit of humanity. It is the first IEEE student branch to be registered in Jamaica and meets regularly to develop the young minds that will create a better Jamaica.

About the UWI Computing Society
The vision for this society is to become a launching pad for the development and exposure of the computing students of the University of the West Indies, with particular focus on undergraduate students. This Society is also envisioned to be a medium by which the university population and the wider society may become more computer literate as well as educated in the efficient use of ICT in the industry and the wider society.

About the Jamaica Diaspora Technology Task Force
The Jamaica Diaspora Technology Task Force is a group of expatriate Jamaicans interested in assisting in the continued development of new and existing technologies in Jamaica. It is a member of the Jamaica Diaspora Movement