Gorge Tech Alliance Newsletter
February 2013 |
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About the GTA
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The GTA supports, connects and develops the technology community of the Columbia River Gorge.
541-296-2266 |
Platinum Sponsors
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Silver Sponsors
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| Project Management Courses in the Gorge |
Portland State University is coming out to the Gorge again to offer a great series of Project Management courses. Thanks to Columbia Gorge Community College, you can take these courses at their Indian Creek campus in Hood River instead of making the drive into Portland! The classes include:
- Project Planning & Organization: March 1 & 8
- Project Mgmt Communications & Teamwork: March 22 & 29
- Project Management Tools: April 12 & 19
- Project Leadership & Conflict Mgmt: May 3 & 10
Each of the four courses is $649. Read course descriptions through our website here. For more information, contact Melissa Endicott with PSU at endicom@pdx.edu or 503.725.5865.
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Five Gorge FTC Robotics Teams Head to State Championship
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Congratulations to the five FIRST Tech Challenge robotics teams from the Gorge that won their qualifying tournaments and are advancing to the Oregon state championship! Advancing teams include two teams from The Dalles-Wahtonka High School: Team Jazargo and Bazinga Bots, both coached by Bev Froemming, and three teams from Hood River Valley High School: Magnum (formerly Blue Steel), The Men Who Stare At Programs and Black Hawks, all coached by Jeff Blackman. Go support your local teams at the State championship this Sunday, March 3 at South Meadows Middle School in Hillsboro, Oregon. Go Teams!
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2013 FTC Teams from Hood River celebrate their Qualifying Tournament win
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Insitu Awarded Special Forces Contract for Unmanned Aircraft Systems
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GTA Platinum Sponsor Insitu Inc. announced that the U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) has awarded the company a Mid-Endurance Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MEUAS) Intelligence Gathering, Target Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Services contract for 26 months through Feb. 28, 2015. "Insitu is honored to continue providing ISR services to the warfighter," said Insitu Vice President of ScanEagle Programs Curt Chesnutt. "For the past three and a half years we have provided SOCOM agile and responsive and uninterrupted services with our ScanEagle system and we look forward to continuing our valued relationship." Read more here and here.
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Saturday Academy Helps Your Business With Internship Program
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For over 24 years, Saturday Academy's Apprenticeships in Science and Engineering Program (ASE) has provided over 3,200 of the region's top 9-11th grade students with eight-week summer internships throughout Oregon and SW Washington. We are a local non-profit program that works to create the next generation of innovators, researchers and engineers through hands-on learning experiences from professionals and experts in STEM fields. We are currently recruiting businesses interested in hosting interns for Summer 2014. Give the next generation of scientists the skills, professional experience, and confidence to pursue a career in science or engineering today! Benefits of mentoring through internships include: * Provide a professional development opportunity for your team. * Create a positive link between your organization and the community. * See your discipline through an excited student's eyes. * Work with students historically underrepresented in your field. * Gain valuable student contributions to your projects and research. For more information, go to www.saturdayacademy.org or contact Julia Soto, ASE Program Director at 503.200.5860 or julia@saturdayacademy.org. |
| Job Openings with GTA Members |
- Custom Interface Inc. is hiring a Customer Program Manager. Read more...
- Cloud Cap Technology has several open positions. Read more...
- Columbia Gorge Community College is seeking an Online Services Specialist. Read more...
- Gorge.net has openings for a Business Services Specialist and Network Engineer II. Read more...
- Real Carbon is hiring a Process Engineer. Read more...
- Job openings with Insitu are found here.
- Google is hiring a Data Center Facilities Tech. Read more...
- Sightline Applications is seeking a Hardware Design and Manufacturing Engineer. Read more...
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| New UAV Legislation Proposed | | Legislators in a number of states, including Oregon and Washington, have recently proposed legislation regarding the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) like those produced by a number of Gorge companies and GTA Members. Proponents of the bills, commonly backed by the ACLU, are trying to get ahead of a nationwide push to set rules for UAV use by civilians, private companies and law enforcement agencies, which some advocates worry could intrude on personal privacy. Opponents argue the legislation will impede the industry and even hobbyists since it is so broadly worded. UAV support organizations are actively engaged in watching and working with Oregon and Washington legislators as the industry gains attention and scrutiny from the public. They are working to take an active, positive role to help make good laws that support what the industry is trying to do.
For more information:
Oregon Senate Bill 71:
https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2013R1/Measures/Text/SB71/Introduced
Oregon House Bill 2710:
https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2013R1/Measures/Text/HB2710/Introduced
Washington Senate Bill 1771:
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=1771&year=2013
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| GTA Events in March | Geek Lunch on March 19: Join the GTA for our monthly Geek Lunch on March 19 at noon at China Gorge in Hood River! This month's topic: "Geek Lunch topics in the news". We will have a casual conversation about two previous GL topics which are in the news right now: Kurt Rohlfs and Brad Schrick will guide us in a discussion of the patent law implications of the Monsanto gene patent case at the US Supreme Court, and Forrest Rae will lead us in a discussion of the allegations of Chinese government sponsored hacking into US government and corporate websites. In both cases we'll seek to fill in the technical details which the news articles tend to sidestep.
Happy Hour on March 26: Some of the best networking in the Gorge happens at the GTA Happy Hour! Connect with others in the region's tech industry in a relaxed atmosphere. 6pm, location TBD. |
| Complying with US Export Controls, Mar 13-14 Course | This two-day program is led by BIS's professional counseling staff and provides an in-depth examination of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). The program will cover the information exporters need to know to comply with U.S. export control requirements on commercial goods. We will focus on what items and activities are subject to the EAR; steps to take to determine the export licensing requirements for your item; how to determine your export control classification number (ECCN); when you can export or reexport without applying for a license; export clearance procedures and record keeping requirements; Export Management System (EMS) concepts; and real life examples in applying this information.
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) will present their recent embargoes and sanctions, and we'll discuss items moving from the USMIL list to the EAR under the Export Control Reform Initiative.March 13-14 in Portland. $375. More information here. |
| Cascade Chapter AUVSI Spring Symposium, April 17 |
Symposium Topic: Command & Control Technology for Unmanned Systems
Demonstrations of Battery Powered UAVs will be flown inside the Museum of Flight during the symposium.
Preliminary Speakers:
- DreamHammer
- ACLU
- OSU presenting UAS Consortium progress, including a summary of flights to date
- University of Washington, Applied Physics Lab presenting Glider Operation and Control
- Seattle Police, Chief McDonagh presenting Insight on the UAS Approval Process
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| Tips for Effective Communication, April 23 Course | GTA Member Catalyst -Performance Consulting is offering the next course, Tips for Effective Communication, on April 23, 2013, 9am - 12pm.
Participants will learn some of the Psychology behind communication and walk away with tips for improving their communication skills with prospects, customers, employees and business partners. Some of the topics include:
- The 2-way process of communication
- Use of non-verbals
- Sensitivity to your and others' filters
- Focus on the desired results
Course is $90. Learn more or register here.
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| TAO Events | |
The Tech Association of Oregon hosts the Oregon Technology Awards on April 25, 5pm at the Portland Art Musuem. This event celebrates excellence and achievement in the region's technology industry! Join as the TAO honors Jay Haladay, CEO of Coaxis and 2013 Technology Executive of the Year. In addition, four company, one product, and an excellence in innovation award will be presented during the evening, recognizing recipients for their accomplishments, leadership and commitment to the community and industry. Learn more here.
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| GTA Members and Sponsors | | Thank you to these new and renewing Members and Sponsors!
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Disclaimer: This newsletter is sponsored by GTA. The items contained herein are published as submitted and are provided for general information purposes only. This information is not advice. Readers should not rely solely on this information, but should make their own inquiries before making any decisions. GTA works to maintain up-to-date information from reliable sources; however, no responsibility is accepted for any errors or omissions or results of any actions based upon this information. If you have any questions regarding any of these items, contact the organizational representative of that source.
This newsletter may contain links to websites that are created and maintained by other organizations. GTA does not necessarily endorse the views expressed on these websites, nor does it guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information presented there. Furthermore, visitors should be aware that other sites linked from this newsletter may use persistent cookies that track visitor viewing habits.
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