In 2020, the importance of clean data, advancements in AI and machine learning, and increased cooperation between providers and payers will rise to the fore among important healthcare and health IT trends, predicts Don Woodlock, vice president of HealthShare at InterSystems.

All of these trends are good news for healthcare provider organizations, which are looking to improve the delivery of care, enhance the patient and provider experiences, achieve optimal outcomes, and trim costs.

The importance of clean data will become clear in 2020, Woodlock said.

Data is becoming an increasingly strategic asset for healthcare organizations as they work toward a true value-based care model, he explained. With the power of advanced machine learning models, caregivers can not only prescribe more personalized treatment, but they can even predict and hopefully prevent issues from manifesting.

However, there is no machine learning without clean data meaning the data needs to be aggregated, normalized and deduplicated, he added.

Don Woodlock, InterSystems

Data science teams spend a significant part of their day cleaning and sorting data to make it ready for machine learning algorithms, and as a result, the rate of innovation slows considerably as more time is spent on prep then experimentation, he said. In 2020, healthcare leaders will better see the need for clean data as a strategic asset to help their organization move forward smartly.

This year, AI and machine learning will move from if and when to how and where, Woodlock predicted.

AI certainly is at the top of the hype cycle, but the use in practice currently is very low in healthcare, he noted. This is not such a bad thing as we need to spend time perfecting the technology and finding the areas where it really works. In 2020, I foresee the industry moving toward useful, practical use-cases that work well, demonstrate value, fit into workflows, and are explainable and bias-free.

Well-developed areas like image recognition and conversational user experiences will find their foothold in healthcare along with administrative use-cases in billing, scheduling, staffing and population management where the patient risks are lower, he added.

In 2020, there will be increased collaboration between payers and providers, Woodlock contended.

The healthcare industry needs to be smarter and more inclusive of all players, from patient to health system to payer, in order to truly achieve a high-value health system, he said.

Payers and providers will begin to collaborate more closely in order to redesign healthcare as a platform, not as a series of disconnected events, he concluded. They will begin to align all efforts on a common goal: positive patient and population outcomes. Technology will help accelerate this transformation by enabling seamless and secure data sharing, from the patient to the provider to the payer.

InterSystems will be at booth 3301 at HIMSS20.

Twitter:@SiwickiHealthIT Email the writer:bill.siwicki@himssmedia.com Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.

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Clean data, AI advances, and provider/payer collaboration will be key in 2020 - Healthcare IT News

SaaS and PaaS have become part of the everyday tech lexicon since emerging as delivery models, shifting how enterprises purchase and implement technology. A new _ as a service model is aspiring to become just as widely adopted based on its potential to drive business outcomes with unmatched efficiency: Artificial intelligence as a service (AIaaS).

According to recent research, AI-based software revenue is expected to climb from $9.5 billion in 2018 to $118.6 billion in 2025 as companies seek new insights into their respective businesses that can give them a competitive edge. Organizations recognize that their systems hold virtual treasure troves of data but dont know what to do with it or how to harness it. They do understand, however, that machines can complete a level of analysis in seconds that teams of dedicated researchers couldnt attain even over the course of weeks.

But, there is tremendous complexity involved in developing AI and machine learning solutions that meet a business actual needs. Developing the right algorithms requires data scientists who know what they are looking for and why in order to cull useful information and predictions that deliver on the promise of AI. However, it is not feasible or cost-effective for every organization to arm themselves with enough domain knowledge and data scientists to build solutions in-house.

[Read: What are neural-symbolic AI methods and why will they dominate 2020?]

AIaaS is gaining momentum precisely because AI-based solutions can be economically used as a service by many companies for many purposes. Those companies that deliver AI-based solutions targeting specific needs understand vertical industries and build sophisticated models to find actionable information with remarkable efficiency. Thanks to the cloud, providers are able to deliver these AI solutions as a service that can be accessed, refined and expanded in ways that were unfathomable in the past.

One of the biggest signals of the AIaaS trend is the recent spike in funding for AI startups. Q2 fundraising numbers show that AI startups collected $7.4 billion the single highest funding total ever seen in a quarter. The number of deals also grew to the second highest quarter on record.

Perhaps what is most impressive, however, is the percentage increase in funding for AI technologies 592 percent growth in only four years. As these companies continue to grow and mature, expect to see AIaaS surge, particularly as vertical markets become more comfortable with the AI value proposition.

Organizations that operate within vertical markets are often the last to adopt new technologies, and AI, in particular, fosters a heightened degree of apprehension. Fears of machines overtaking workers jobs, a loss of control (i.e. how do we know if the findings are right?), and concerns over compliance with industry regulations can slow adoption. Another key factor is where organizations are in their own digitization journey.

For example, McKinsey & Company found that 67 percent of the most digitized companies have embedded AI into standard business processes, compared to 43 percent at all other companies. These digitized companies are also the most likely to integrate machine learning, with 39 percent indicating it is embedded in their processes. Machine learning adoption is only at 16 percent elsewhere.

These numbers will likely balance out once verticals realize the areas in which AI and machine learning technologies can practically influence their business and day-to-day operations. Three key ways are discussed below.

Data that can be most useful within organizations is often difficult to spot. There is simply too much for humans to handle. It becomes overwhelming and thus incapacitating, leaving powerful insights lurking in plain sight. Most companies dont have the tools in their arsenal to leverage data effectively, which is where AIaaS comes into play.

An AIaaS provider with knowledge of a specific vertical understands how to leverage the data to get to those meaningful insights, making data far more manageable for people like claims adjusters, case managers, or financial advisors. In the case of a claims adjuster, for example, they could use an AI-based solution to run a query to predict claim costs or perform text mining on the vast amount of claim notes.

Machine learning technologies, when integrated into systems in ways that match an organizations needs, can reveal progressively insightful information. If we extend the claims adjuster example from above, he could use AIaaS for much more than predictive analysis.

The adjuster might need to determine the right provider to send a claimant to based not only on traditional provider scores but also categories that assess for things like fraudulent claims or network optimization that can affect the cost and duration of a claim. With AIaaS, that information is at the adjusters fingertips in seconds.

In the case of text mining, an adjuster could leverage machine learning to constantly monitor unstructured data, using natural language processing to, for example, conduct sentiment analysis. Machine learning models would be tasked with looking for signals of a claimants dissatisfaction an early indicator of potential attorney involvement.

Once flagged, the adjuster could take immediate action, as guided by an AI system, to intervene and prevent the claim from heading off the rails. While these examples are specific to insurance claims, its not hard to see how AIaaS could be tailored to meet other verticals needs by applying specific information to solve for a defined need.

Data is power, but it takes a human a tremendous amount of manual processing to effectively use it. By efficiently delivering multi-layer insights, AIaaS provides people the capability to obtain panoramic views in an instant.

Particularly in insurance, adjusters, managers, and executives get access to a panoramic view of one or more claims, the whole claim life cycle, the trend, etc., derived from many data resources, essentially by a click of a button.

AIaaS models will be essential for AI adoption. By delivering analytical behavior persistently learned and refined by a machine, AIaaS significantly improves business processes. Knowledge gleaned from specifically designed algorithms helps companies operate in increasingly efficient ways based on deeply granular insights produced in real time. Thanks to the cloud, these insights are delivered, updated, and expanded upon without resource drain.

AIaaS is how AIs potential will be fulfilled and how industries transform for the better. What was once a pipe dream has arrived. It is time to embrace it.

Published January 24, 2020 11:00 UTC

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Get ready for the emergence of AI-as-a-Service - The Next Web

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Definition of Artificial Intelligence

Contrary to whatartificial intelligenceis and what it does, the robots of Asimov are not here yet. But, AI exists in everyday tools that we use, and they exist as apps or anything that employs a simple algorithm to guide its functions. Humans exist comfortably because of our tools; the massive intelligence of computers is sitting on the edge of quantum-based technology too.

But, they are not terminator level threats or a virus that is multiplied hundreds of times, that hijacks AI but not yet. For human convenience, we see fit to create narrowAI (weak AI), or general AI (AGI or strong AI) as sub-typesmade to cater to human preferences. Between the two, weak AI can be good at a single task that is like factory robots. Though strong AI is very versatile, and used machine learning and algorithms which evolve like an infant to an older child. But, children grow and become better than

Why research AI safety?

For many AI means a lot and makes life better, or maybe a narrow AI can mix flavored drinks? The weight it has on every one of us is major, and we are on the verge of may come. Usually, AI is on the small-side of the utilitarian way it is used. Not a problem, as long as it is not something that controls everything relevant. It is not farfetched when weaponized it will be devastating and worse if the safety factor is unknown.

One thing to consider whether keeping weak AI as the type used, but humans need to check how it is doing.What if strong artificial intelligence is given the helmand gifted with advanced machine learning that has algorithms that aren't pattern-based. This now sets the stage for self-improvements and abilities surpassing humankind. How far will scientist hyper-intelligence machines do what it sees fit, or will ultra-smart artificial intelligence be the overlord, not a servant?

How can AI be dangerous?

Do machines feel emotions that often guide what humans do, whether good or bad and does the concepts of hate or love apply to heir algorithms or machine learning. If there is indeed a risk for such situations, here are two outcomes crucial to that development. One is AI that has algorithms, machine learning, and deep learning (ability to self-evolve) that sets everything on the train to self-destruction.

In order for artificial intelligence to deliver the mission, it will be highlyevolved and with no kill switch. To be effective in annihilating the enemy, designed will create hardened AI with blessings to be self-reliant and protects itself. Narrow AI will be countered easily and hacked easily.

Artificial intelligence can be gifted with benevolence that far exceeds the capacity of humans. It can turn sides ways if the algorithms, machine learning, and deep learning develop the goal. One the AI is just centered on the goal, lack of scruples or human-like algorithms will weaponize it again. Its evolving deep learning will the goal, view threats to be stopped which is us.

Conclusion

The use ofartificial intelligencewill benefit our civilization, but humans should never be mere fodder as machines learn more. We need AI but should be careful to consider the safety factors in developing them, or we might be at their heels.

Read: Benefits & Risks of Artificial Intelligence

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Will Artificial Intelligence Be Humankinds Messiah or Overlord, Is It Truly Needed in Our Civilization - Science Times

John Scarffe, Nederland. Nederland resident Marcelo Mainzer has designed a concept to give veterans ownership of their time and lives. The Egalitarian Eco-Village Makers Districts (EEV MD) would be run as a workers cooperative corporation, 3D built and run by 175 formerly homeless veterans.

The Eco-Village will be a community whose inhabitants seek to live according to ecological principles, causing as little impact on the environment as possible. The Makers Districts will be a 100-acre Planned Use Development of legacy homes, organic food and clean energy production, retail shops, community healing and educational centers, retirement homes and homeless shelters.

The worker cooperative corporation will be owned and self-managed by its worker stakeholders, under the one worker one vote rule. The proposed concept can clear a path for 175 veterans and their families to build their own economically, energetically and agriculturally self-sustaining Eco-village Makers District.

Mainzer proposes utilizing the EEV MD coop web site, social media and grassroots organizing to reach out to the 40,000 veterans who are homeless on any given night in the United States and invite them to apply for consideration as the first 175 mission specialists to build the first EEV MD. The application process will be a combination of private and military sector assessment testing geared to recruit individuals who are best suited to the work that needs to be done, as the project progresses.

When all 175 applicants have been selected, they are guided, by council, through the process of creating a prospectus to apply for, with their VA benefits, a construction loan of $75 million. Working capital can be found in Social Impact Bonds. This project is for-profit, mission driven and immensely scalable and is seeking $30,000 to $100,000 in seed capital to perform formal due diligence and begin the application process.

Mainzer said the response to the concept design has been overwhelmingly encouraging in applauding the idea. Almost every aspect has been proven in the real world for decades, he said. From the start, it would determine the most in-demand services and products to insure the greatest monetary income.

I firmly believe that catastrophic climate change may be as little as five years away,

Mainzer said. Communities that are able to produce the means to meet their needs will survive. EEV MD like communities can model an alternative to the current 19th century economic system we are addicted to, Mainzer said.

Mainzer, now 61 years old, is an immigrant, having arrived in the United States at the age of four from Argentina. His father escaped Nazi Germany when he was 14 years old and grew up in Buenos Aires in the 1950s, when it was the Paris of South America.

Mainzer said about his father, He was creative, intelligent, jovial and hardworking, and I think angry. I feel his anger was born of being exiled from the land of his ancestors going back ten generations in Germany.

His father thrived in Argentinas Jewish community, and at a relatively young age, he owned his own business, had a beautiful wife, young daughter and son. In 1963, an uncle told him to come to America, because the streets are littered with gold and all one had to do was stoop to pick it up.

His father believed the promise of America, so much so that he left his second home and brought the family to America. Quickly, he learned that getting that gold required great effort, so he worked himself up from a body and fender man, through traveling jewelry salesman in Los Angeles to owning a precision tool business and finally as an insurance broker.

His fathers big dream was to gather together a group of families and buy an island they could call their own. Mainzer inherited his fathers big dream, though not his dedication to meet his fiscal responsibilities.

Mainzer grew up in the late sixties and early seventies in The Valley, North Hollywood, and was a reading addict from the age of seven. I was an odd combination of brawn and brains that made me an outcast, Mainzer said. I was mostly bored academically and ended up doing construction for a living and accumulating data for fun.

Despite his hard-working fathers efforts, the familys economic situation fluctuated and they moved several times. Mainzer attended Waldorf school in his primary years and then a series of middle schools, two public junior highs and a high school.

At 11 years old, Mainzer had an epiphany that imagined military subscription being used as a coming of age ritual in public service for positive endeavors like disaster relief, an expansion of things like the Engineers Corp. or Americorps with nations globally supporting each other.

Mainzer has lived a Gypsy lifestyle, including the parts where he often found himself at odds with society and the courts. He lived in the San Fernando Valley, Saugus, the Hollywood Hills, San Francisco, Phoenix, Hawaii, Wisconsin and all over the Boulder and Denver Metro areas seeking a place to call home.

Mainzer has done significant experiential work including Path of Love with the Osho Leela folks and attended the Mankind Project, New Warrior Weekend. My career path has woven through construction, personal assistant and the sales industry. I am a poor employee.

Mainzer has been in Nederland for about seven months. He said: Id always heard that Ned was a place where a misfit might fit in. Mainzer has done work as a freelancer for Blacktie Colorado for almost a decade off and on and has tended towards one-man companies including Just Task Me, Concierge and Errand Service and A Handy Man to Have Around, construction services.

What I do best is innovate, Mainzer said. For at least a decade, I have billed myself an Imagineer; I see solutions in my mind then research whether they have already been tried or not.

That feeling of not belonging and his fathers big dream led Mainzer to many spiritual groups and practices, but he didnt find one that felt like home; a place where people worked together to support each others happiness, for love not money.

I was told, at a young age, that one must give away what they want most, to have it. I tend to give away too much, that combined with a lackadaisical attitude towards money have kept me near poverty my entire life.

In the past ten years, Mainzer has spent many hours working on a path to giving to others, and what he wants most. He says, To live in a place where we are all owners and take ownership, where the dominant paradigm is, By nurturing Self Realization in the individual, the community thrives.

Col. Dr. George Patrin once called Mainzer the real deal in his devotion to his work. He also connected him to Patch Adams who sent Mainzer his book, with a personal note encouraging him to continue.

For further information, contact Marcelo Mainzer- Founder, Imagineer, PO Box 472, Nederland, CO, 80466, civillianmarcelo@gmail.com.

(Originally published in the January 23, 2020, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)

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Nederland resident imagineers a veterans' ownership village - The Mountain -Ear

A Great Leader has passed. A Great Feminine Co-Creator reborn again and again through what she called Regenopause a woman who was getting newer every day and never got older has left our world. A Great evolutionary has passed. A great light has gone out in the manifest universe. A great sun has set. A new sun must now rise ~Marc Gafni (Barbara Marx Hubbard-December 22, 1929 April 10, 2019)

Barbara Marx Hubbard, the Global Ambassador for the Conscious Evolution Movement, had passed away. Barbara has been called the voice for conscious evolution of our time by Deepak Chopra.

As an author, speaker, and co-founder and president of the Foundation for Conscious Evolution believes that humanity now, as never before, is on the threshold of a quantum leap. If we can integrate newly new scientific, social, and spiritual capacities, we could transform ourselves to move beyond our current global crises to a magnificent future. Barbara is the subject of a biography by author Neale Donald Walsch, The Mother of Invention: The Legacy of Barbara Marx Hubbard and the Future of YOU.

Barbara was a futurist prolific author, visionary, social innovator, evolutionary thinker, and educator. She is the co-founder and president of the Foundation for Conscious Evolution. She is credited with the concepts of The Synergy Engine and the birthing of humanity. Barbara is also the producer and narrator of the award-winning documentary series entitled Humanity Ascending: A New Way through Together.

Barbara Marx Hubbard also has the distinction of being the first woman to be nominated for the Vice Presidency of the United States on the Democratic ticket. Shes also co-chaired several Soviet-American Citizen Summits, introducing a new concept called SYNCON to foster synergistic convergence with opposing groups. She has been the recipient of several awards including the first Peacebuilder Award by the Peace Alliance in Washington, DC.

On August 10, 2013, OMTimes Magazine had the privilege to have Barbara Marx Hubbard in an exclusive interview

Eleven Best Quotes from Barbara Marx Hubbard

On April 3rd, 2019, Barbara woke herself up with a swollen and painful right knee. She interviewed for Unity radio to promote her upcoming program, The Eleventh Hour.

In the afternoon, she went to a local physicians clinic. Incapable to adequately diagnose and treat the knee at the clinic, she was referred to the Emergency Room. Later in the day, she was admitted into the hospital. ON April 4th, a tap was performed to relieve pain by reducing and removing fluid that was accumulating in the knee joint. Barbara moved from the ER to the Orthopedic treatment area of MCR. She participated on a call from her hospital bed for her shared project with Humanitys Team, the Evolutionary Ambassador Academy until 7:30 in the evening.

On April 6th, upon checking her knee injury, the nurses found the situation had worsened, the MD, Dr. began seeking approval for her to be taken to the operating room to have the knee thoroughly disinfected. The surgery happened, and Barbara remained stable.

On April 7th, Barbaras condition turned to the worse overnight. Barbara was determined to be in a critical state with indications of additional complications. She had not responded to attempts to wake she remained under close watch by hospital staff, friends and family. The next day, April 8th, as Barbaras condition continues to worsen, her family felt she was preparing to leave. Visitors were welcome for brief visits until 5 pm when the family arrived, for family time alone.

On the 9th of April, Barbaras family continued to hold vigil over her in the ICU at Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, CO. Her local community since 2016 at Sunrise Ranch, nestled in the foothills of Loveland, remained in prayerful attendance.

If you would like information about Beloved Barbaras medical condition, please go here: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/barbaramarxhubbard

OMTimes Magazine is one of the leading on-line content providers of positivity, wellness and personal empowerment. OMTimes Magazine - Co-Creating a More Conscious Reality

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BARBARA MARX HUBBARD: The Voice of Conscious Evolution

Daily Orange File Photo

A cross-discipline degree gives graduates a leg-up in todays ever-changing employment market, Kohn said.

Syracuse University launched the nations first joint online law and business degree, allowing students to earn two degrees at once without attending classes on campus.

SUs College of Law and Martin J. Whitman School of Management offer a juris doctor degree and a masters in business administration through the program. Students earning the joint degree take all required on-campus courses, taught with the same material from in-person classes.

The College of Law currently offers an on-campus joint J.D./MBA with Whitman. The college separately launched an online J.D. program, JDinteractive, in January 2019. After launching JDi, the College of Law discussed offering the joint J.D./MBA online as well.

Once we had an on-campus and online J.D. program and an online MBA program, we had this opportunity to bring them together, said Nina Kohn, director of online education at the College of Law.

Online courses include live sessions in which faculty present lectures in real-time, allowing students to interact with both the professor and their classmates.

Our standards are the same, whether you are in our residential program or our online program, said Kathleen OConnor, associate dean of online education at the College of Law. Its our professors that maintain the rigor in their courses.

Students pursuing the joint degree first apply for an online J.D. After completing a number of JDi courses, they can apply for an online MBA. The MBA applications will open in fall 2020 and will also be available to current JDi students.

Online degrees make graduate-level education accessible to students who are unable to attend on-campus classes for personal and professional reasons, such as military status or caretaking responsibilities, Kohn said. A cross-discipline degree also gives graduates a leg-up in todays ever-changing employment market, she said.

Alexander McKelvie, associate dean for undergraduate and masters education at Whitman, said having a business background is useful for attorneys, especially those looking to start their own private practice or become legal counsels for corporations.

Its really what were trying to achieve as a university, McKelvie said. When you have two separate colleges on campus that are collaborating on a joint program, thats really big.

The online MBA market is just emerging for many schools, McKelvie said. SU was among the earlier players to offer a high-quality online MBA, he said. These courses use interactive tools to keep students engaged, answering questions and reflecting on course material rather than just watching pre-recorded lectures, he said.

Both the JDi and the online MBA programs draw students from a variety of undergraduate backgrounds. Many are returning to their education with some level of professional experience, McKelvie said.

Students pursuing the online J.D./MBA can anticipate challenging coursework, OConnor said. The JDi program underwent a lengthy accreditation process from the American Bar Association to ensure the online curriculum was as rigorous as the on-campus classes.

Im excited for us at the university that were leading an innovative program on the cutting edge of legal education and combining it with an MBA program, OConnor said. We feel confident that we are bringing a very valuable degree and valuable education to these students.

Published on January 26, 2020 at 8:40 pm

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu

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SU launches first online JD/MBA degree in the nation - The Daily Orange

Cheerleaders

Cheerleaders, Oct. 13, 1945

Students' and cap and gowns. May 29, 1938.

Two boys in a marbles tournament at Central School, Mar. 26, 1938.

Cheerleaders, Oct. 4, 1945.

Probably c. December 1948. Burning comic books

Senior Commercial class, Sep. 28, 1943

Driver instruction, June 24, 1939.

Grant School Denison Club, making valentines, Feb. 4, 1938.

Boys high school gym class, Mar. 13, 1946.

Harding School children with hobbies, Mar. 19, 1940.

Hoover School, kindergarten, Feb. 24, 1958.

Retail sales course at high school, Sept. 28, 1937.

High school students at East door, Sept. 29, 1939.

Industrial training class, Dec. 2, 1940.

Red Cross knitters for national defense, Oct. 12, 1940.

First day of school, Hoover kids. Musser photograph, Sept. 2, 1969.

High School car check for parking qualifications. Musser photograph, Oct. 1, 1969.

NIACC biology lab, students. Musser photograph, Oct. 2, 1969

NIACC building. Girl in mechanic class. Musser photo, Oct. 20, 1969

Madison Art for Leisure Time. Musser photograph, Apr. 14, 1970

Madison art objects. Musser photograph, Apr. 16, 1970.

School bus in car wash. Musser photograph. Jan. 29, 1971

Old high school. Kids jump rope. Nov. 25, 1974.

Roosevelt Elementary, kids make jelly. Musser photograph. Feb. 11, 1975

McKinley kids play tetherball. Musser photograph, July 1, 1975.

Madison School, kindergarten and first grade, May 15, 1947.

Madison School sixth grade, May 14, 1947

Mason City High School library

McKinley first grade band, Feb. 26, 1932.

McKinley School classroom, Mar. 3, 1938.

McKinley Playground, June 22, 1943.

Mar. 1936, playground activities.

McKinley School girl at desk, Mar. 3, 1938.

Penny war stamp sales at McKinley School. Nov. 19, 1942.

Monroe School cafeteria, Dec. 28, 1939.

Monroe school classrooms, Dec. 4, 1940.

Monroe School manual training, Jan. 25, 1940.

Monroe School Swimming Pool, Dec. 22, 1939.

Monroe school, believed to be a teacher, Dec. 4, 1940.

Kids play marbles on the playground, Mar. 14, 1936.

Lincoln Safety Patrol, May 25, 1937.

School Board, Jan. 23, 1946.

School nurse and students, Feb. 16, 1945.

J.C. sewing class, Feb. 13, 1946.

Vaccinations, April 18, 1944.

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New online alternative education program coming to Mason City Schools - Mason City Globe Gazette

Daytona State College is renaming its College of Workforce and Continuing Education for Mary Karl, who founded the school that eventually folded into Daytona State College.

DAYTONA BEACH The name Mary Brennan Karl was so revered in the early 1960s, the second new building constructed on the campus of Daytona Beach Junior College was named for her.

The Mary Karl Library saw a lot of students come and go over the decades. With the library newly relocated in the new Daytona State College Gale Lemerand Student Center, the old library building is about to be torn down.

That left college President Tom LoBasso with unfinished business. "We said, Wait a minute. We cant just say thanks and end it there, " he said.

[READ ALSO: Daytona Beach native, former Florida Supreme Court Justice Fred Karl dies]

So this month DSC officials put her name on the Mary Karl College of Workforce and Continuing Education. LoBasso, college Board Chair Randy Howard, associate vice president Sherryl Weems and Rick Karl, Mary Karls grandson, all helped tell the story at a ceremony attended by approximately 200 people at the Advanced Technology College on Thursday.

"It is no stretch to say that Daytona State College would not exist if it were not for the efforts of Mary Brennan Karl, whose passion for education in the first half of the 20th century changed the lives of so many young men and women," LoBasso said.

Karls contributions

Her work through the Great Depression and, later, World War II, not only linked people with skills that would propel them to gainful employment, but also secured from the federal government 29 acres from where Daytona State Colleges main campus now sprawls.

Mary Brennan Karl, born in 1895 in Harbor Beach, Michigan, had a comfortable upbringing. Her father was a banker, said Rick Karl, director of aviation and economic resources at Daytona Beach International Airport and Mary Karls grandson.

She married Fred J. Karl in 1920, according to a News-Journal biography, and started a family in Florida. Circumstances changed.

"They lost everything in the Depression," Rick Karl said. "They were actually in poverty. It drove her to become a public school teacher to survive, really."

She started teaching at Mainland High School in 1930, then later became director of the Opportunity School, training students in business English, typing and shorthand. Later called the Volusia County Vocational School, its offerings expanded to include construction trades and tourism and hospitality training, LoBasso said.

In World War II, the school trained welders, boat builders and mechanics. After the war, her vision was ambitious enough to pursue an expansion. Working with U.S. Sen. Claude Pepper and Daytona Beachs other educational giant, Mary McLeod Bethune, Karl requested the federal government give to Volusia County the Welch Training Center, 55 buildings used during the war to train the Womens Army Corps and as a convalescent center by the Army.

That old Army training base is now the site of Daytona State Colleges main campus.

Rick Karl said he is inspired by the story of his grandmother and Bethune traveling by train to Washington to meet with Eleanor Roosevelt, whose call to the Pentagon helped seal the deal.

"This is a story about three women collaborating in the 1940s to make something like this happen. So thats what were proud of: that a single person not of wealth but of tenacity can get out and make something like this happen."

Mary Karl died in 1948, the same year the feds gave her vocational school the old Army base. A News-Journal editorial in 1959 would call her "a virtual martyr to the task of community building."

Mary Karls legacy

Her vocational school was folded into Daytona Beach Junior College when it was established in the 1957.

Art Giles a former Volusia County councilman and the founder of Giles Electric Co. Inc., a South Daytona business now led by his son Brad attended the Mary Karl Vocational School in 1957 and 1958. He studied electrical apprenticeship classes, which taught him blueprint reading and basic wiring.

"Most of the people studying there ended up working at (Cape Canaveral), building the launch towers," Giles said. "(Later, in the 1960s) I wound up going to a class down here at Mary Karl Vocational School and when the GE people who were teaching that class left, they sent me to Houston to train for that and I became an adjunct professor to teach that one course. I taught about 45 different people."

Thousands of people have gotten training over the decades, as the junior college became Daytona Beach Community College and later Daytona State College.

Sherryl Crooms, associate vice president of the Mary Karl College of Workforce and Continuing Education, said shes impressed by Karls vision and tenacity, given the political and cultural context of the times in which Karl built her school.

"Kudos to Mrs. Karl for understanding that when you invest in people with education and training opportunities, you invest in your community," Crooms said. "And when you invest in your community, you invest in the economy."

Link:
DSC honors its founding mother of workforce education, Mary Karl - Daytona Beach News-Journal

CHEYENNE U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education Mitchell Zais paid a visit to one of Wyomings four charter schools Friday.

While every child is special, every child is different, said Zais, whose tour of Poder Academy Secondary School came ahead of National School Choice Week. Since 2011, school choice week has celebrated varied K-12 education options including online education, magnet schools, private schools and charter schools like Poder, which are publicly funded, privately operated schools.

The notion of charter schools is still new here. The public is still uncertain as to what charter schools are, and its not as easy as it could be to get an application approved by the school board, said Nick Avila, chief operating officer of Poder. We operate like a small corporation. We have board members, officers and then the principals run the schools.

Avila also agreed with Zais, who championed charter school expansion in his previous role as South Carolinas education chief, that The biggest challenge to more charter schools in Wyoming is the absence of a state authorizer.

While many of the 45 states with charter school laws have a state-level body to review and approve applications, Wyoming leaves that decision up to the public school districts.

When it comes down to charter schools I think its really similar to regular schools. You have some good ones and some not so good ones, Laramie County School District 1 Superintendent Boyd Brown said. I think our state has done a good job of trying to make sure we have quality charter schools that come in.

During the 2018-19 school year, Poder students received some of the highest scores in the district on the Wyoming Test of Proficiency and Progress, also known as WY-TOPP.

Marcos Martinez, the chief executive officer and founder of Poder, said it took about three years for the district to approve the schools application. At the time the school district was not allowing charter schools to come in. What I was told was that a lot of applications were coming in, looking to serve middle- and upper-class students, Martinez said.

Instead, Poder focused on serving students who were falling through the cracks. The schools mission focuses on college preparation, and offers dual enrollment and advanced placement courses. If we thought we could open one more school we would, Martinez said about his visions for the future. But its a very difficult process.

The majority of charter schools operate in urban areas, so Wyomings relatively low population presents another challenge.

Its harder to create a school thats sustainable financially because youre going to be serving relatively fewer students than you would if you were in a more populous area, said Todd Ziebarth, senior vice president of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Related to that is finding and retaining high quality staff in rural areas.

After his visit to Poder, Zais stopped by St. Marys Catholic School, a private school in Cheyenne which charges tuition. While Wyoming has no school voucher program which 14 other states have passed to allow parents to use public funds for private education Zais said hed come to advocate for a policy that could open the door to changing that. The Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act, would make available $25 million (in scholarships) to the state of Wyoming, he said.

If the federal act, which Wyomings Congresswoman Liz Cheney has co-sponsored, passes, it would be a local decision on how the dollars could be used, Zais said. Apprenticeships, homeschooling and online education are all options, but perhaps the most contentious is the possibility that it could potentially fund private, religious education. Several states, including Wyoming have laws against public financing of parochial instruction, like the kind St. Marys offers.

But rumblings on the national level are signaling efforts to overturn some of those rules.

Earlier this week the U.S. Supreme Court heard a case which centers around the constitutionality of allowing parents to use public money to pay for private religious school tuition, not unlike St. Marys. If you get a scholarship or grant for a college you can take that to a faith-based institution or a secular institution, said Zais, who believes it should operate the same for K-12 students.

Zais said he met with Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon earlier in the day to discuss the legislation, but did not specifically address the possibility of bringing a school voucher program to the state. Cassie Craven, a lobbyist for the libertarian Wyoming Liberty Group, said that the organization wants to see some kind of voucher program happen, and foresees drafting some type of legislation after this years budget-oriented legislative session.

As of now though, the governor, who would have to sign off on any such legislation, hasnt developed a clear, statewide policy position on school vouchers.

Gov. Gordon is supportive of local choice, said Lachelle Brant, education policy adviser for the governors office. Hes also in favor of a parents choice to pick the best education option for their kids.

Kathryn Palmer is the Wyoming Tribune Eagles education reporter. She can be reached at kpalmer@wyomingnews.com or 307-633-3167. Follow her on Twitter at @kathrynbpalmer.

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Opening charter schools in Wyoming is a "difficult process" - Wyoming Tribune

The programming language has a relatively simple, clean syntax that's easy for non-programmers to learn and understand.

Several years in, Python remains "the big kahuna" in programming languages, as the IEEE Spectrum puts it, garnering the top spot on its annual list for 2019.

"Python's popularity is driven in no small part by the vast number of specialized libraries available for it, particularly in the domain of artificial intelligence," the IEEE said.

Python consistently receives top billing in rankings mainly because it is one of the easiest programming languages to learn because it reads like English, industry observers said. This makes Python a good choice if you're thinking about learning a coding language.

SEE:Python is eating the world: How one developer's side project became the hottest programming language on the planet (cover story PDF) (TechRepublic)

Python is growing in popularity for statistics, data visualization, and other types of research that involve large datasets, according to Bennett Garner, a back-end engineer at Cube, a financial planning company.

"If you're interested in programming, Python is a good first language to learn,'' he said. "It's still growing in popularity, especially for data intensive applications."

In his work, Garner uses Python for Cube's web server, Django, background worker tasks, and any scripting the company needs. "Often, that involves calculating thousands or tens of thousands of financial data points across various model, scenario, and time vectors."

It has a relatively simple, clean syntax that's easy for non-programmers to learn and understand, he said. "So, the learning curve for Python is less steep than for statically typed languages that often involve a lot of boilerplate code, like Java."

There is also a strong open source community for Python packages, he said.

SEE:Getting started with Python: A list of free resources(TechRepublic download)

Developers are commonly using Python for implementation in hot technology areas like machine learning, artificial intelligence and data science, and making students and others who learn the language highly marketable, said Karen Panetta, an IEEE Fellow and dean of graduate education for the school of engineering at Tufts University.

"However, the value of the language is not just for scientists and engineers," Panetta added. "It's advancing the digital humanities so that it is becoming the language for the 'non-nerds,' too."

Another reason to learn Python is that the language has a rapid ramp-up time so students can quickly learn to write programs that provide instant gratification with the impressive visualizations of the results, Panetta said.

"Colleges and universities use Python in their first-year programming courses to engage students, which impacts retention, especially for women and other underrepresented groups in the engineering and science disciplines," she said.

Keep in mind that Python is slower than other traditional languages and not as efficient when speed is important, so it may not be ideal for a mobile app or in gaming development, Panetta noted.

Google recently launched a new training course for US job seekers to learn Python. The course, the Google IT Automation with Python Professional Certificate, is free for a seven-day trial and then costs $49 per month. It is being run by the online education company Coursera.

There are lots of online courses and IEEE has chapters around the world that are constantly offering short courses and workshops in Python, Panetta said. "For instance, my own Boston IEEE chapter offers a short course in Python and uses it for applications in signal processing and for wireless communications."

The best resources Garner says he has seen on learning basic programming principles come from Harvard's CS50 course. "David Malan is an excellent instructor, and the course walks students through the fundamentals of computer science. The course does not start with Python, but by the end, you'll be writing complex Python web applications and you'll have an understanding of why computers work the way they do," he said.

"If you want to make yourself marketable, it's the language to learn," said Panetta. "If you want to just learn to program, it's a wonderful first language to learn, it's free and easy."

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Python: Where to learn it and why you should do it now - TechRepublic