Digital Village-A Question of Priorities
David Quinley
Issue date: 5/16/01 Section: News
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Digital Village at the Indian Valley Campus doesn't get much attention these days. In fact, the school doesn't even exclusively rent rooms to technology companies any more.
Digital Village was started in 1994 with the idea that technology companies would gather there to share information, create partnerships and help the businesses grow. It started with four to six businesses, and internships for COM students were foreseen. Along with Digital Village in the Miwok Cluster, there is a Digital Village Foundation in the IVC Library building and a Multimedia program in Ohlone Cluster.
A nonprofit Digital Village Foundation was started to provide COM technology students with support such as information on jobs. The businesses of the time, some of which are still there, helped design curriculum, find instructors and create training programs in multimedia. From that, IVC created the first California community college two-year degree in multimedia.
COM President Jim Middleton had just joined the staff and the technology programs were among his first ideas to revive the IVC campus. New, small businesses could start with rent that was much more reasonable than elsewhere in Marin, Middleton said.
The Digital Village business cluster idea, however, fell apart as the Internet gathered steam and drastically altered communication between businesses. Rental requests stagnated and offices remained vacant.
According to COM trustee Greg Brockbank, president of the Board of Trustees in 1994, the Digital Village facility was hardly used. The facility had housed the IVC Ceramics Department. After that program was discontinued, it was used for extra studios for other art and classrooms for general education classes.
Currently in the Miwok Cluster, an office of the state CalWORKS program has taken up residence. One employee investigates county daycare centers that receive CalWORKS money. COM’s daycare center receives such funding, but otherwise the CalWORKS branch is not affiliated with the college. Digital Village was most attractive for the cheap rent, and pleasant quiet setting, according to the Ailene McInerney.
So has Digital Village run its course? Rental income still benefits the college, but the other benefits of the technology cluster idea seem to have been lost. So what do we do— find companies that will interact with the college community, or just be thankful for the money? Maybe we should think about whether we want to have corporations and government offices existing on campus that have nothing do with the college.
Digital Village was started in 1994 with the idea that technology companies would gather there to share information, create partnerships and help the businesses grow. It started with four to six businesses, and internships for COM students were foreseen. Along with Digital Village in the Miwok Cluster, there is a Digital Village Foundation in the IVC Library building and a Multimedia program in Ohlone Cluster.
A nonprofit Digital Village Foundation was started to provide COM technology students with support such as information on jobs. The businesses of the time, some of which are still there, helped design curriculum, find instructors and create training programs in multimedia. From that, IVC created the first California community college two-year degree in multimedia.
COM President Jim Middleton had just joined the staff and the technology programs were among his first ideas to revive the IVC campus. New, small businesses could start with rent that was much more reasonable than elsewhere in Marin, Middleton said.
The Digital Village business cluster idea, however, fell apart as the Internet gathered steam and drastically altered communication between businesses. Rental requests stagnated and offices remained vacant.
According to COM trustee Greg Brockbank, president of the Board of Trustees in 1994, the Digital Village facility was hardly used. The facility had housed the IVC Ceramics Department. After that program was discontinued, it was used for extra studios for other art and classrooms for general education classes.
Currently in the Miwok Cluster, an office of the state CalWORKS program has taken up residence. One employee investigates county daycare centers that receive CalWORKS money. COM’s daycare center receives such funding, but otherwise the CalWORKS branch is not affiliated with the college. Digital Village was most attractive for the cheap rent, and pleasant quiet setting, according to the Ailene McInerney.
So has Digital Village run its course? Rental income still benefits the college, but the other benefits of the technology cluster idea seem to have been lost. So what do we do— find companies that will interact with the college community, or just be thankful for the money? Maybe we should think about whether we want to have corporations and government offices existing on campus that have nothing do with the college.