Do Space Tech Pack Program Evaluation: Improving Digital Access and Equity

The Do Space Library received funding from the Emergency Connectivity Fund from the Federal Communications Commission to conduct the Teck Pack Program in Omaha, Nebraska, between June 30, 2022 to June 29, 2023. As part of the Tech Pack Program, 945 Omaha residents received a computing device and free internet access for one year. Along with this infrastructure, they received computer basics training and technology tutoring. This innovative program directly addresses the challenges experienced by those without access. In the city of Omaha, Nebraska, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey for 2021, over 9,000 households (4.6%) do not have a computer or smart device and over 18,000 households (9.0%) do not have an internet subscription of any kind. The Tech Pack Program alleviated this challenge for one year for some of these households. Do Space partnered with the Center for Public Affairs Research (CPAR) at the University of Nebraska at Omaha to evaluate the Tech Pack Program. An online application to the program and three surveys were administered to track participation and outcomes from the program. The survey demonstrates that participants used the Tech Pack Program for work related purposes (17% - 19%); household related activities like paying bills, banking, ordering groceries, or shopping for the households (20% - 22%); getting news and participating in local activities (21% - 23%); creating or fostering relationships with family and friends (14% - 15%); and practicing computing and internet skills (23% - 26%). Over the course of the program many participants became more comfortable using digital devices, navigating the internet, and becoming familiar with computer and internet related terms. A range of questions about the economic security of participants also show that over the course of the program positive gains were made. Respondents reported feeling more in control of their economic future, having stronger economic support networks, and financial situations getting better. One participant shared about the program, “…it has given me a path to my dream career.” Additionally, respondents reported increasingly using the Tech Pack Program to support their health and well-being, including accessing information about cultural events (46% - 55%), learning new skills (42% - 48%), accessing financial services (55% - 61%), and getting health information not related to COVID-19 (52% - 57%), as just some examples. By the last survey, over 65% reported that participating in the program improved their life “a great deal.” Tech Pack Program participants were quick to share their gratitude and satisfaction with the program. Their quotes and open-ended responses demonstrate the overwhelming and positive impact of the Tech Pack Program. Overall, the findings suggest that providing individuals with digital devices and teaching them useful technological skills enables greater opportunity for long-term success. To fully participate in our society, we recognize that digital access and equity is essential. Not only does digital equity ensure access to basic resources critical to social, economic, and physical well-being, but digital equity also enhances the creation of social capital and promotes economic security. This innovative and straightforward program resulting in improvements in the lives of its participants is a model for future programming to overcome the digital divide

Tech Pack Exchange: How well can you communicate if you are not there?

Teaching apparel production and manufacturing processes can be difficult due to lack of facilities that replicate industry settings or lack of access to product manufacturers. Labs are designed to simulate production processes that provide students with learning opportunities to apply knowledge from multiple courses in a problem-based learning situation. This project leveraged two university labs in geographically dispersed locations to teach pre–production processes. This learning simulation, allowed students to discover why clear communication tools and detail sketches that duplicated and supported the Order of Operation were important. Students extrapolated how attention to detail in tech pack materials impacted communication with factories whose first language may not be English and in a time zone that would not allow easy communication, as well as the importance of determining adequate factory experience. Students from UI and UIW agreed reciprocating the packet exchange and prototype construction would add to the simulated learning experience

Ellen Couture Designs Vintage Lingerie Fashion Line

Grier and Associates d/b/a Ellen Couture Designs (ECD) is a fashion subsidiary that creates garments comprised of vintage inspired lingerie and nightwear. This line is paying homage to the owner, Robyn Grier’s, grandmother, Ellen Sutton, who was a professional seamstress, patternmaker and designer. My final project will be an illustration of 10 garments created for Ellen Couture Designs Fashion line. have sketched 10 designs that will be the initial collection for Ellen Couture Designs. A description of the garment and its historical significance will be provided. It is a common trend for the fashion designers and the industry to create garments that replicate historical fashion. My literature review will discuss and support the styles and fashion trends of modern-day fashion lines and fashion shows and specifically will describe the decades and eras that inspired the Ellen Couture Design vintage lingerie and night wear. Next, my literature review will discuss designers and fashion lines who have paid reverence to a person or ancestors. One example I plan to discuss is The House of Dereon, which was created by Tina Knowles and Beyonce Knowles-Carter, to pay homage to Beyonce’s grandmother. I plan to explore other lines that did the same. Lastly, an illustration of garments that inspired the line, a muse of the target population and a color palette board of my signature colors will be created. I will discuss the Adobe Illustrator software that was used in the making of the fashion show and the importance of patternmaking when crafting garments utilizing software programs. The final presentation will be a PowerPoint presentation which will start with a familial history of fashion, illustration of ten signature garments with description that was created in Adobe Illustrator, and the tech pack for each garment

CJN Consulting

Courtney Noumair, a 1994 graduate of URI, worked as a technical designer in New York City for companies such as Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren. She founded her own company, CJN Consulting, in 2013. She and her husband founded a company called Whirly Bird in 2020 to produce vintage-inspired shirts. Good technical designers are essential to the fashion business

Seamless knitted sports bra design: A responsive system design exploration

ABSTRACT The transition of sports bras’ uses, from an active lifestyle to resting activities, requires dynamic and adaptable comfort properties of the design, as well as adequate breast support, fit, and comfort. Thus, the two-fold purpose of this study was to: (a) analyze the use of current materials and processes in the product development process of seamless sports bras, via industry interview and observation, and (b) propose a design solution for a seamless sports bra that offers variable breast support during running versus resting activities. Using a case study approach, an in-depth interview with a Santoni seamless knitting technician provided data that led to mapping out the design and product development processes used for prototyping seamless sports bras. A seamless business model for a sports bra was created, and relationships among the over-arching themes of planning, marketing, product development, innovation, and production, which emerged from the grounded theory analysis, were discussed. Moreover, a detailed Product Development framework and a Tech Pack model were created and used to communicate the new design for a responsive seamless sports bra. Interactions between design, prototyping and functionality and how these themes relate to the components of the tech pack were discussed. At the materials level, a biomimetic system framework was used to identify solutions to responsive interactions within wool/Nylon/spandex blended yarns and various knitting structures when actuated by moisture. Twenty pattern designs were knitted on a Santoni circular knitting machine, using two different yarn combinations: (a) wool/spandex, and (b) wool/nylon/ spandex. Physical properties of the knit swatches were documented, as well as their thickness when dry versus three different moisture activation situations: (a) immediately after wetting, (b) after 30 minutes of air-drying, and (c) after 60 minutes of air-drying. Results showed that the Santoni circular knitting technology has capabilities to create a variety of texturally knit fabric designs that have a wide range of thicknesses, densities, and moisture responsiveness properties. Selections of knit patterns were made based on the textile testing results and used to design a responsive sports bra that incorporated female sweat maps and sports bra user needs. Sustainability considerations regarding the wet processing of the new responsive design were implemented, and the bra samples were not dyed, but only cold-washed and tumble-dried at low temperature. Fifteen prototypes were developed via a Santoni circular seamless knitting machines and tested using human subjects and 3D body scanning technology. A convenience sample of fifteen semi-athlete female college students wore the new sports bra prototypes during three different moisture conditions: (a) before a run (dry), (b) after 30 minutes run on a treadmill (wet), and (c) after resting 30 minutes (starting to dry out). 3D body scans were collected in fully inhaled, as well as relaxed respiratory states after each condition. Questionnaires were used to evaluate comfort and responsiveness of the new design. The results revealed that the new responsive sports bra offers compression during the dry conditions, breathability and some level of breast support during running, and moisture management during the resting stage, all while offering high overall comfort and fabric softness. However, the length of the bra straps needs to be shortened, and the breast support during running needs improvement, therefore further design iterations are needed. The proposed integrative approach to the sports bra design offers a new framing for the systematic design process of a sports bra as a functional design garment and fills knowledge gaps within the seamless knitting process using performance wool blend yarns. The new biomimetic-inspired sports bra solution has a potential for commercial applications that can offer women a responsive, adaptable sports bra, to encourage healthier lifestyles, as well as to accommodate for the athleisure trend

Sensual Spaces: When experience meets architecture and art

Space is inherently embodied–to be in space one must physically, three-dimensionally, encounter it. But what would happen if the sensory, affective, embodied human was at the center of spatial design? What would be the role of the senses and how would designers use media to physically evoke this type of spatial experience? These questions developed into my investigation on what I came to call “sensual spaces”. Sensual spaces are the intersection where architecture and art meet human experience. Together these spaces illuminate a trend in art, architecture, and design that aims to create vivid spatial experiences that evoke sensory and affective response within the inhabitant

State of Nebraska Digital Equity Plan: Understanding the Digital Equity Needs of Covered Populations in Nebraska

According to 2021 estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 7% of Nebraska households do not have access to a computer and 6% of Nebraska households have access to a computer but no internet. Although recent efforts suggest there is momentum and government action at both the federal and state levels to address lack of broadband (Hammel, 2023; Newman, 2023), this still leaves a considerable number of Nebraskans without access to reliable broadband in the meantime. Furthermore, broadband access is moot if Nebraskans do not have access or cannot afford technology and the cost of internet in the first place. The purpose of this report is to take a deeper look at specific covered populations in Nebraska who are more likely to be without affordable, reliable technology access and, therefore, are disproportionally impacted by the digital divide. The research team, representing the University of Nebraska at Omaha Center for Public Affairs Research and Department of Gerontology, was approached by the Nebraska Information Technology Commission to conduct focus groups with covered populations. Key findings from focus groups are shared. Findings indicate that access to technology and internet is not only vital for all Nebraskans but is also costprohibitive for already marginalized populations. Moving forward, these findings will inform the creation of a state digital equity plan for Nebraska

Lucent Two: A Breathable Hooded Rain Jacket

The aim of Lucent Two was to create a breathable and lightweight apparel solution for runners while running in humid climatic conditions because many rain jackets cling to the wearer’s skin and become very uncomfortable. This performance running piece protects against rain through the use of silicone-impregnated ripstop nylon used as the outer shell. To keep the fabric off sweaty skin and increase ventilation, the garment is constructed with two layers where the outer layer on the upper body floats freely on top of an underlayer made of mesh. Many other functional details elevate the design of this jacket. The inspiration for the aesthetics of the jacket was drawn from Nick Veasey who creates x-rays of fashion items. By using ripstop nylon, and layering different translucent blue shades the designer was able to create an x-ray type effect when the garment is backlit

A Learning Architecture: How Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Drives Innovation in The Curriculum and Pedagogy of Fashion Business

There is a global trend toward improving the student learning experience in higher education. Industry-oriented educational courses must also consider how to prepare graduates for their future professional practice with an awareness of holism and system thinking sustainability, tolerance of uncertainty, knowledge of relevant digital technologies and use of theory. This study responds to these challenges and illustrates an alternative pedagogic approach for the emerging sub-discipline of fashion business. Fashion business is an important and emerging subdiscipline of fashion with limited published educational research. This subdiscipline has particular significance given the cultural importance, economic significance, ethical and environmental impact of the associated industry. The acceleration and influence of technology is significantly affecting industrial working practices through the adoption of knowledge management systems such as product life-cycle management (PLM). This study represents the first implementation of a PLM philosophy and system within an undergraduate course aligned with the retail, footwear and apparel sector. The study aimed to employ PLM to establish a community of learning between students, educators and industry with the intention of creating a participatory learning experience that mimics current practice and supports professional identity formation rather than adding digital transformation to the curriculum. The PLM system was used to update, sequence and connect the subject- and work-based elements more coherently such that engagement in practice is a source of critical and innovative thinking empowering graduates to take the practice of fashion business forward. This action research study involved the implementation of PLM as a way of teaching a global sourcing module in the second year of the course (cohort n=28) over a phased implementation from 2014 to 2018. Communities of practice (Wenger, 1998) is used to understand the learning design and the identity work that students engage in as they develop professionally. Data was collected from students via video and interview, from the practitioner researcher and from external stakeholders. Data from all sources were analysed collectively by using Wenger’s (1998) learning architecture to establish a coding scheme. This thesis describes how the adoption of PLM established a community of learning (CoL) through an educational partnership with the global technology company, PTC Inc. It argues that PLM is a powerful tool of collaboration between students, industry and educators and provides a robust mechanism to establish a community of learning, which also preserves the unique principles derived from design pedagogy. This thesis asserts that a design pedagogy supports students’ professional development and bring coherence and relevance to the curriculum and argues for the preservation of this unique learning experience in order to support the successful transition through education and onto the workplace. Further, this thesis illustrates how the insight and energy of students and graduates, who are at the periphery of practice, have much to contribute to the development of ways of working in an industry in transition. The value of closer collaboration between industry and academia is identified and the thesis makes recommendations for ways that PLM might be developed to achieve this. The study also demonstrates the applicability and value of the methodology of action research to collaborative and change projects in higher education