Census Magazine 2020

Haca MisUncategorized

This is the March and April Haca Census Magazine Covers which we send out to over 1,000 residents via Facebook and Constant Contact. This type of engagement does not just contact our direct housing residents but also engages residents in the entire census tract. The covers and the contents are created by the Volunteer residents who mostly had no experience creating magazines or engaging residents via online or social media platforms. View MagazineView April's Magazine

Bringing Healthcare Home.. Even During a Pandemic

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: The Austin CommonThe Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA) has partnered with Dell Medical School to provide holistic health care opportunities to its residents, even during the pandemic. “I don’t want to end this conversation pretending that our work is race neutral, because it’s not,” said Rodolfo Rodríguez, director of the health & wellness ecosystem at the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA). Read More

Book: Smart Cities in Application

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: SpringerSmart Cities in Application, explores categories of applications and driving factors surrounding the Smart City phenomenon. The contributing authors provide perspective on the Smart Cities, covering numerous applications and classes of applications. The book uses a top-down exploration of the driving factors in Smart Cities, by including focal areas including “Smart Healthcare,” “Public Safety & Policy Issues,” and “Science, Technology, & Innovation.”  Contributors have direct and substantive experience with important aspects of Smart Cities and discuss issues with technologies ... Read More

Austin Forum Program Helps Level the Playing Field for Expectant Mothers

Haca MisUncategorized

“Giving birth five times naturally in the hospital, I saw a wide range of care. Some good, some not so good.” Chante Wright-Haywood is determined to ensure new mothers understand all their options so they can make the right choices for their children – from pain medication to nutrition – for families who don’t have basic medical information. “I’ve seen a nurse’s personal and cultural preferences prevent new mothers from making their own choices,” she says. To become a midwife, … Read More

Disrupting Food Insecurity

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: Urban Institute Tapping data for strategies that tackle the root causes: A report of the Urban Institute was informed in part by a focus group at Gaston Place October 22, 2019 An estimated 40 million Americans—including 12.5 million children—struggle with food insecurity, meaning they can’t afford an adequate diet. Federal nutrition programs and charitable meals make up the first line of defense, but solving this challenge will require communities to go beyond food to disrupt the root causes of economic distress.This ... Read More

Mobility Ambassadors

Haca MisUncategorized

Mobility Ambassadors are public and subsidized housing residents paid a stipend or hourly rate to teach low-income residents to navigate digitally-powered transportation, engage City officials on our community’s most pressing transportation issues and advocate for partnerships with impact. In 2018-19, Mobility Ambassadors learned to use multiple smart transportation tools and to conduct digital transit adventures, surveyed 240 public housing families about more than 1,000 trips, and hosted 15 events to reach 5,200 Austin residents with safe roads and life-saving transit … Read More

Connecting Economic Mobility Practitioners in Online Community

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: Center for Applied Research, Johns Hopkins University By Libby Solomon The Center for Applied Public Research, has launched a pilot program connecting public sector employees across the country around the topic of economic mobility. The Economic Mobility Policy Forum, the first of its kind, kicked off this month with two webinars led by Policy Fellows, competitively chosen public sector leaders who have demonstrated in-the-field success. Topics discussed included gentrification, food systems, housing, education, and attempts to leverage technology and data ... Read More

Smart Work Learn Play – Participatory Smart City Innovation and Digital Inclusion in Public and Subsidized Housing

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: Global City Teams ChallengeSmart Work Learn Play, initiated by the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA), with support from Next Century Cities, the Transit Empowerment Fund and the City of Austin’s Digital Inclusion and Transportation departments, aims to ensure that the design, deployment and use of smart cities technologies are inclusive and equitable. The program hires HACA-resident Smart City Ambassadors to work local government and corporate partners to: 1) teach HACA residents how to use digitally-enabled education, ... Read More

Code for America Annual Summit: Keynote

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: SCHED Catherine Crago: Housing Authority of the City of Austin Head of Strategic Initiatives & Resource Development Austin, Texas Let's talk about public-private partnerships, sustainability, metrics, smart cities and funding! Eager to hear about your most successful digital inclusion programming - from branding, promoting, monitoring and measuring results. Catherine began her career in the semiconductor industry, focused on public private research partnerships aimed at giving the U.S. a global competitive advantage. She's played an active role in building the ... Read More

Got Extra Devices? Donate Them to Austin Pathways

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: The Austin Forum“Technology is now fundamental to most every aspect of society, enabling almost everything we do…” — Jay Boisseau, Austin Forum Founder and Director How smart can a city be if some of its residents aren’t connected? Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA) residents aspire to participate in Austin’s smart city — but lack of access to devices and digital literacy can keep families from achieving their dreams of education, gig economy and other jobs, and ... Read More

Lyft Unleashes Its Own Fleet Of Scooters To The Austin Mix

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: Tony Cantu, Patch Staff With Lime, Bird, Uber already operating at full speed, car ride share firm adds its own electric scooters to an already saturated market. AUSTIN, TEXAS — Because, as you might (or might not) agree, Austin needs more dockless electric scooters on city roads and sidewalks, ride share firm Lyft added to the wheeled fleet with its own version of the contraptions, company officials announced Tuesday.For further details on Lyft's Scooters in Austin, including how to get started, ... Read More

Lyft expands its scooter service to Austin

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: EngadgetAustin joins four other cities that now host Lyft’s scooters. Lyft continues to expand its scooter service, announcing today that it's now available in Austin, Texas. This is the the fifth region where Lyft has deployed its scooters and its first launch in Texas. While the company struck out earlier this year when it tried to get a permit to operate in San Francisco, it has since launched its scooter service in Denver, Santa Monica, Washington, DC and, as of yesterday, Arlington. Lyft said that it has teamed ... Read More

Community Tech Network and Sprint Provide Devices and Training to South Austin Residents

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: American TownGiving Tuesday is an annual Global Giving Event that occurs on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. This season Community Tech Network (CTN) gave thanks by bringing new devices and basic digital skills training to an underserved population in south Austin. What: Community Tech Network (CTN) and Sprint distributed 15 new Samsung tablet devices to learners at the Foundation Communities' property, Bluebonnet Studios, in south Austin. Sprint staff provided individualized training to the learners to help them better connect with ... Read More

Digital Inclusion Program Helps Older And Low-Income Austinites Catch Up With Technology

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: KUT Austin's NPR StationUntil recently, Jan Morgan was buying one flip phone after the next. Now, she's an ambassador for the city's Digital Inclusion program and is teaching others how to use smartphones and computers. --JULIA REIHS / KUT Jan Morgan used to think smartphones were for young people. "I didn't want a phone smarter than me," she joked. She refused to get one. Instead the 66-year-old bought flip phones and pre-paid phone cards. Thirty-three phones later, a store clerk pointed out ... Read More

Comcast offers low-cost internet program to veterans

Haca MisUncategorized

Publisher: SMARTCITIESDIVEDive Brief: Comcast has expanded its Internet Essentials broadband adoption program to the more than 1 million low-income veterans who live in its service area, the company announced Monday. The Internet Essentials program is in its seventh year of providing broadband access to low-income families. According to a progress report released Monday, the company has connected more than 6 million Americans — 2 million in the last year alone — through Internet Essentials, which provides low-cost internet and digital literacy training. The company cites figures ... Read More