Award Abstract # 0939034
CPATH-2: Collaborative Research: Building a Community to Incorporate Humanitarian Free and Open Source Software into Undergraduate Computing Education

NSF Org: CCF
Division of Computing and Communication Foundations
Recipient: THE TRUSTEES OF TRINITY COLLEGE
Initial Amendment Date: September 8, 2009
Latest Amendment Date: May 20, 2010
Award Number: 0939034
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Nina Amla
namla@nsf.gov
 (703)292-7991
CCF
 Division of Computing and Communication Foundations
CSE
 Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering
Start Date: September 1, 2009
End Date: August 31, 2012 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $467,636.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $494,787.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2009 = $467,636.00
FY 2010 = $27,151.00
History of Investigator:
  • Ralph Morelli (Principal Investigator)
    ralph.morelli@trincoll.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Trinity College
300 SUMMIT ST
HARTFORD
CT  US  06106-3100
(860)297-5347
Sponsor Congressional District: 01
Primary Place of Performance: Trinity College
300 SUMMIT ST
HARTFORD
CT  US  06106-3100
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
01
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): RG7YYBN8C835
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): CPATH
Primary Program Source: 01000910DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
01001011DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s): 7218, 7640, 9218, HPCC
Program Element Code(s): 764000
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.070

ABSTRACT

Free and open source software (FOSS) is software that can be freely shared, modified, and redistributed. FOSS is developed by collaborative communities and distributed under licenses that permit its sharing and redistribution. Humanitarian FOSS (H-FOSS) is FOSS that is developed specifically to benefit the local and global community. The key concepts underlying FOSS and H-FOSS are their collaborative development process and community ownership. These concepts provide the underpinnings for many remarkable software projects, such as free and open repositories of general knowledge (Wikipedia), standard DNA parts (The BioBricks Foundation), and scientific research (PLoS).

This project uses the H-FOSS model to help revitalize undergraduate computing education by getting students engaged in building free and open software that benefits the community. During the project's first three years, students from Trinity College, Wesleyan University, Connecticut College, and elsewhere have developed H-FOSS in traditional and video-conference courses, independent studies and capstone projects, and in sponsored summer internships. Working collaboratively with FOSS practitioners in real and virtual communities, students have developed software that directly supports a variety of global and local humanitarian efforts, ranging from disaster management to health care delivery to volunteer management to search and rescue operations. For more details about this work, see http://www.hfoss.org.

During the next two years, this project will have three major goals: (1) to extend the H-FOSS educational community by creating new H-FOSS Chapters at a wide range of undergraduate institutions, including community colleges, women's colleges, and traditionally black schools; (2) to create an H-FOSS Certificate Program that will recognize student achievement in the study and practice of H-FOSS development; and (3) to develop a sustainable infrastructure and funding model, along with industry and community partners, that will enable the H-FOSS effort to be expanded to a national scope. By getting computing students and faculty involved in building FOSS that serves the community, this project will thereby help transform the nature and enhance the attractiveness of undergraduate computing education itself.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Morelli, R.A., Tucker, A., Danner, N., de Lanerolle, T., Ellis, H.J.C., Izmirli, O., Krizanc, D., and Parker, G. "Revitalizing Computing Education by Building Free and Open Source Software for Humanity" Communications of the ACM , v.52(8) , 2009 , p.67
Morelli, R.A., Tucker, A., Danner, N., de Lanerolle, T., Ellis, H.J.C., Izmirli, O., Krizanc, D., and Parker, G. "Revitalizing Computing Education by Building Free and Open Source Software for Humanity" Communications of the ACM , v.52(8) , 2009 , p.67
Morelli R.; Tucker A.; de Lanerolle T. "The Humanitarian FOSS Project" The Open Source Business Resource , 2010 , p.34
R. Morelli, C. de Silva, T. de Lanerolle, R. Curzon, and X. Mao "A Global Collaboration to Deploy Help to China" Communications of the ACM , v.53 , 2010

PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT

Disclaimer

This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.

The main finding of this project is that undergraduate computing education can indeed be improved and revitalized by getting students engaged in building free and open source software that benefits their communities.  The project explored and promoted the idea that the study of computer science can be seen as a highly social and collaborative endeavor that produces significant benefits for one’s community.

Free and open source software (FOSS), in contrast to proprietary software, is software that is licensed to be shared openly.  FOSS projects have become ubiquitous within the software industry – prominent examples include Linux, Eclipse, Firefox, Open Office, and the Apache software suite. FOSS projects are typically based on the principles of collaboration and sharing and are often conducted by communities of programmers and users working in close cooperation.  FOSS development tools and best practices have been created and evolved to support the open development model.  But, despite the importance of FOSS in the software industry, it plays little role within undergraduate computing education.  The goal of this project was to address this deficiency through a variety of activities, including introductory and advanced courses, independent studies, capstone projects, and annual summer research internships for undergraduates. 

Humanitarian FOSS, or HFOSS, is FOSS development that benefits the community in some way.  Well known examples include the Sahana project, a disaster recovery software platform that was begun by volunteers in the aftermath of the 2004/5 Asian Tsunami and has been deployed now in numerous disasters, including the 2008 Chengdu earthquake, the 2010 Haiti earthquake, and most recently, the 2012 Hurricane Sandy.  Another example is Open MRS (Open Medical Record System), a joint effort by Partners in Health and the Regenstrief Institute to develop an electronic medical record  system for use in developing countries such as Rwanda and Haiti. 

During the course of this project undergraduate students from many different institutions contributed to numerous humanitarian software development projects. Some of these were international projects, such as Sahana, where students worked in partnership with software developers and practitioners in global partnerships.  And some were local or regional projects that partnered with such organizations as the Ronald McDonald House of Portland, ME and the Salvation Army and Red Cross in New York City. Examples include:

  • Sahana:  HFOSS students contributed software that has been incorporated into the Sahana system and helped with Sahana deployments in Chendgu and Haiti.
  • Disaster recovery:  Wesleyan students created collaboration software that is used by NYC disaster relief organizations, most recently by the NYC Red Cross during Hurricane Sandy.
  • Mobile apps: Connecticut College students developed a mobile app that visually translates road signs.
  • Ronald McDonald House:  Bowdoin College students developed and deployed a volunteer scheduling system for the Ronald McDonald House of Portland, ME.
  • Humanitarian Relief:  Trinity HFOSS students developed and deployed a mobile app to assist a USAID-funded food security project in southeastern Haiti.

The following summarizes the project’s outcomes and activities:

  • Institutions: Participating colleges and universities included Trinity College, Wesleyan University, Connecticut College (the grantee institutions), plus Mount Holyoke College, Bowdoin College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Oregon State University, University of Hartford, Bergen Community College, and St. John’s University (participating chapter schools).
  • Instruction and Learning: A total of 12 new Introductor...

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