Taking place over two days, a hackathon is a laboratory of innovation in which participants with different backgrounds and expertise come together to “hack” on an urgent social problem by brainstorming possible solutions. This hackathon is being co-hosted by Bellarmine University, the Leadership Louisville Center, Educational Justice, Greater Louisville Inc., the Louisville Future of Work Initiative, Louisville Metro Government, and Amplify Louisville.

Our virtual social innovation hackathon will focus on bridging Louisville’s digital divide. The gap between those who have access to technology and those who don’t has become especially visible during the COVID-19 pandemic, limiting opportunities for young people to participate fully in remote learning and for adults to contribute their talents to our city’s twenty-first century workforce. This event is intended to attack the problem at the local level so that we can build a better future for everyone in our community.

As a participant in the hackathon, you’ll learn more about Louisville’s digital divide and its impact on people in our community, as well as current measures being taken to address it, including broadband funding provisions that are part of COVID-19 relief. You’ll have the opportunity to work with other hackathon participants to devise concrete solutions to our digital divide, with a particular emphasis on cutting through the “red tape” that may prevent members of our community from taking advantage of subsidized internet access.

Please join us as we collaborate with key leaders from tech, business, education, and metro government to make Louisville a city where everyone can thrive in a virtual environment.

We have wonderful keynote speakers, Dr. Susan Donovan, President of Bellarmine University, and Grace Simrall, Chief of the Office of Civic Innovation and Technology in the Mayor's office.

The event will take place virtually, starting on Saturday 1pm - 5pm and then on Sunday 9am - 6pm (must be available for most, if not all, of the time given)

Once you register and we get closer to our event date, you will receive an email with instructions on how to use the tools for the event such as zoom.