Norwich University, Vermont 2012: Boston Police Officers Sergeant Detective Daniel Duff & Lieutenant Detective Robert Merner are telling their story of the CraigsList Killer case to help prevent and solve crime worldwide.

Homicide Crime Scenes..Do Police Need To Rope Off The Virtual World Crime Scene Too In 2012?

Social media platforms allow homicide investigators to humanize their public appeals for information, as well as share with the world their experiences to prevent crimes. Combining social media communications and investigations will be a challenge for our future.

Boston Police Homicide Unit investigators, Sergeant Detective Daniel Duff and Lieutenant Detective Robert Merner are telling their story of the CraigsList Killer case to help prevent and solve crime worldwide. The modern homicide detective needs social media tools for communications and investigations and, after hearing Daniel Duff and Robert Merner speak about the CraigsList Killer case in detail on two occasions, I am convinced that their story could very well educate a potential victim on how predators like Philip Markoff work, and could prevent women from being victimized in the future. Colonel Henry Francis Williams Junior, aka “Hank Williams” would be proud if he were still alive. I doubt Colonel Williams envisioned homicide cops being so open and transparent when he was sworn in as a New York State Trooper on April 16, 1951.

On September 21, 2011 I had the pleasure of meeting the lead investigators of the Craigs List Killer case at the 24th Annual Colonel Henry F. Williams Homicide Seminar in Albany, New York. Through the diligent and tireless work of Investigator Robert Appleton, I was honoured to be invited to speak on social media and homicide investigations at the prestigious international seminar, a law-enforcement-only event hosted at the New York State Police Academy. Little did I know at the time, that Investigator Appleton had another plan in mind for these officers and me, and we all would end up in Northfield, Vermont at Norwich University at an event called “The CSI Symposium” with an audience of keen students wanting to learn about Crime Scene Investigation.

It was at Norwich University that I believe an example was set for the world by Daniel Duff and Robert Merner about helping to stop, prevent and solve crime together, the use of social media by law enforcement, and homicide investigations.

I asked the officers if they were delivering the same presentation they had done at the Homicide Seminar to the law-enforcement-only audience. They indicated that it would be the same presentation. I asked if they would be interested in live-streaming their 90-minute presentation on the CraigsList Killer case they were about to deliver to the assembled students. Without hesitation, the officers said yes. They made a quick call back home to their colleagues and sent them the link where their presentation would be streamed. I broadcast on the Crime Stoppers International and SMiLE Conference social media platforms where law enforcement and the community are engaged on community safety issues, that the broadcast would occur. When all was said and done, there were 18 viewers on the live stream at the time. Colleagues of the officers were texting them afterwards, from back home in Boston, saying they looked and sounded good.

I asked the officers afterwards if they thought that if a potential victim of Philip Markoff could take precautions to avoid being victimized by online predators in similar situations if they saw their presentation. They both thought that their story could most definitely prevent victimization. I asked them if it were possible to leave the archived copy of the video on the Internet for others to watch. They both said they were fine with this. Since this event, I have had requests from people in attendance that day wanting the link to the video to share with others, thus my inspiration to do this blog post.

Some reading this, especially in the law enforcement community, may ask why I am writing this post. It is quite simple. In my 22 years of police work, it is my humble opinion that we as the police and law enforcement community need to “Get Human”. I firmly believe that if we speak more with the public about our investigations and experiences, we will create a more informed community and a safer world. Social media is merely the vehicle for this extreme change in police culture. I have thought about this post for a long time. I have heard my Deputy Chief Peter Sloly speak several times and say that police culture can be a barrier to the success of police use of social media to effect our mandates.

The issue of being more human, and transparent is something I truly believe in, and have pretty much taken the position to be the change I wish to see. This need for change doesn’t come without its frustrations and fellow officers who disagree. I can honestly say that I believe what Daniel Duff and Robert Merner have done here can create the leadership needed to use social media more effectively for both communications and investigations within policing and within law enforcement.

The idea of posting information to social media platforms like YouTube came from Detective Sergeant Jorge Lasso of Hamilton Police Service in 2006 after he posted a 72 second video on YouTube that was successful in identifying the killer of 22-year-old Ryan Milner in a Hamilton nightclub murder. I found it interesting that officer Lasso had got the idea from listening to his own kids that a good idea would be to post the appeal for information on YouTube. Lasso probably to this day doesn’t know the influence his own kids have had on homicide investigations in Toronto! Before writing this, I counted the number of YouTube videos that had been posted to the Toronto Crime Stoppers Youtube account and the Toronto Police Service youtube account relating to homicide investigations in Toronto. There are well over 50 YouTube video appeals that we have filmed in Toronto Crime Stoppers or Toronto Police Service and/or posting to assist investigators in Toronto to help solve homicide cases. Detective Larry Straver was the officer who really empowered this use of social media for communications to appeal to the public to solve homicides. We have had cases that were solved after posting the appeal, however we have many more that remain unsolved. The good thing about having the appeals in social media is that the appeal videos can be resurrected always without having to call a press conference or cause a victim family to experience the stress of a traditional media appeal. We have also found the use of social media much less intimidating for crime victims making the appeals, as well as less stressful for and more convenient the officers making the appeals.

Detective Sergeant Peter Code has used the following video in his training at The Canadian Police College on the benefits of social media. This case is still before the courts, and the full story will be known upon the completion of the case. The video has been left posted for training purposes in law enforcement circles.

The current leader in the Toronto Homicide Squad for using social media for communications is veteran Homicide Detective Sergeant Frank Skubic . The official twitter for the Toronto Police Service Homicide Squad is @TPSHomicide . Click here for the official Toronto Police Service Homicide Facebook Page

Toronto Police Homicide Detective Sergeant Frank Skubic Shows International Audience At SMILE Conference, Dallas, Texas September, 2012 A Youtube Video Appeal In The Keegan Allen Unsolved Toronto Homicide

Detective Sergeant Frank Skubic has talked about using social media at the Social Media Internet Law Enforcement Conference in Dallas, Texas in 2011, where he was very supportive of the potential of using social media. Det Sgt Skubic was a key collaborator with me in preparing the Colonel Henry F. Williams Homicide Seminar presentation that led to the introduction to the Boston Homicide Officers and the relationships we have developed, allowing us to have the content and connections to share this information with the world for community safety.

Presentation slides from 2011 Colonel Henry F. Williams Homicide Seminar on topic of Social Media and Homicide Investigations. Please feel free to download and share.

Leadership in policing is essential for an effective social media strategy. Chief William Blair’s leadership has been superb on the issue of social media for preventing and solving crime in Toronto. One video that Det Sgt Skubic found was very important to show delegates is that of Chief William Blair talking about the importance of using social media for police.

Here are three Toronto homicides that remain unsolved where officers have used social media appeals:

Detective Sergeant Brian Borg is hoping that one day information will help solve the Shawn McLean homicide

Detective Sergeant Gary Giroux is hoping that one day information will help solve the murders of Dylan Ellis and Oliver Martin

Detective Sergeant Wayne Banks is hoping that one day witness information will help solve the murder of Mike Piminetel

Now deceased community member Amber O’Hara, cousin of Toronto homicide victim Carolyn Connelly used YouTube before her death to appeal for information to solve her cousin’s murder. Amber hoped that even in her own death that her voice would live on in social media to continue the appeal. Ironically, the former President of Crime Stoppers International Amber is speaking with in this video died in 2012, but both of their community safety messages live on in social media.

There are many more appeals which everyone is encouraged to view and share relating to unsolved Toronto homicides. They are posted on the official Toronto Police Youtube account and the Toronto Crime Stoppers Youtube account.

In conclusion, there are still many challenges for social media issues relating to homicide investigations. I have had the opportunity, as a police officer dealing with social media issues every day, to see and hear many opinions on the issue. One challenge that presents itself is the volume of information that is available in social media, and the extra investigative work that social media leads can create. There are many other safety issues and investigative considerations that need to be thought out.

One thing is for certain. The Hamilton Police Service have seen success using social media in their investigations, as has the Toronto Police Service. The Boston Homicide detectives certainly see the potential for preventing victimization by sharing their story in this public forum.

Detective Sergeant Peter Code opened up the social media dialogue for homicide investigators in 2009 at the Ontario Homicide Investigators Association Conference in Niagara Falls.

Once Peter Code saw this blog post, he insisted that the video appeal in Chinese for an unsolved Toronto murder of 17yr old Tien Pham youtube appeal in Cantonese be added to the post!

Investigator Robert Appleton of the New York State Police has opened the dialogue on social media at the Colonel Henry F. Williams International Homicide Seminar

Constable Scott Mills, Toronto Police Service & Crime Stoppers International, Peel Homicide Detective Sergeants Randy Cowan and James Kettles At The 2011 Colonel Henry F Williams Homicide Seminar in Albany, New York

At the 2012 Ontario Homicide Investigators Association Conference on May 1, 2012 in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Constable Warren Bulmer and Sergeant Tim Burrows from Toronto Police Service will further the dialogue.

One thing is for certain going forward with social media and homicide investigations. The need to prevent and solve homicides using social media as a tool is a topic that needs to be addressed, and global teamwork inside and outside of law enforcement through such organizations as Crime Stoppers and other community partners is a necessary consideration. Colonel Henry F. Williams has set the bar very high, and we thank him for this.

A Candle Was Light In Memory of Fallen Officers At Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Conference 2012

Making A Difference ~ Generating Success" Was Theme of 21st Annual Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Inc Meeting & Training Conference in Lake Delton, Wisconsin April 27, 28, 2012

Check out @WICrimeStop on Twitter! Jennifer Jennings & Many Volunteers Worked Tirelessly Setting Up Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Inc. On Social Media Platforms At 21st Annual Meeting & Training Conference In April, 2012

Catherine Mariscal and Scott Abrams at Great Wolf Lodge April 27, 2012 Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Embrace Social Media For Success And Safety

Leah Lechleiter-Luke, Teacher Scott Abrams President Wisconsin Crime Stoppers Inc & Chairman Crime Stoppers USA & Crime Stoppers Volunteer Jennifer Jennings Embraced Youth Engagement & Social Media For Success And Safety At 21st Annual Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Meeting & Training Conference

by Scott Mills

Crime Stoppers USA are on the map for using social media for community success and safety after great conference April 27, 2012 in Wisconsin.

It was an honour today to be able to present about social media for success and safety at the Wisconsin Crime Stoppers Conference in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin at Great Wolf Lodge. Some amazing positive outcomes happened for social media for success and safety worldwide to help stop, solve and PREVENT crime together. Themes of “think global” and “act local” were discussed at length with the audience by a number of presenters including Judge Richard Carter and Dave Perlman, Assistant Attorney General Training And Standards Bureau Wisconsin Department of Justice.

A Google Hangout was part of my presentation thanks to the collaborative work of community volunteers Mike Downes in United Kingdom, Jeff Brown in Truro, Nova Scotia, Rob Cairns in Toronto, Canada, and cops Paddy LeGrand and Henk Twit from The Netherlands.

We are speaking together after the conference sessions today learning how to use wordpress for our websites for Crime Stoppers programs. Talking with Catherine Mariscal of the Waukesha County Crime Stoppers program and Scott Abrams, the President of Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Inc. and the Chairman of Crime Stoppers USA.

We are posting this blog to put all the videos that were streamed today, along with all of the presentations that are available into one link to share with others for the purpose of learning how the Internet and the real time web applies to changing saving lives locally and globally. We hope you enjoy our post and our videos.

If you want to share or repost this information, feel free to do so. We would be honoured.

For more information contact Scott Mills, Social Media Advisor to Crime Stoppers International.

American National Anthem Opens Wisconsin Crime Stoppers Conference April 27, 2012

Video streaming by Ustream

Candle Lighted In Memory of Fallen Heroes

Video streaming by Ustream

“Crime Stoppers 101″ With Director of Legal Services Crime Stoppers USA Judge Richard Carter

Legal Issues in Law Enforcement
Dave Perlman, Assistant Attorney General Training & Standards Bureau Wisconsin Department of Justice
Judge Richard Carter (Ret.) Crime Stoppers USA Legal Services Director

Video streaming by Ustream

TipSoft – How It Works To Protect Anonymity For Crime Stoppers Programs
Troy S. Daniels, Deputy Chief, Champaign Illinois Police Department
Board Member Illinois State Crime Stoppers

Video streaming by Ustream

Legal Issues In Law Enforcement | Dave Perlman Assistant Attorney General Training And Standards Bureau Wisconsin Department of Justice & Judge Richard Carter Crime Stoppers USA Legal Services Director

Screen Capture of Mike Downes in United Kingdon and Robert Redi in Vienna, Austria on a Google Plus Hangout Preparing Social Media For Success And Safety Talk With Scott Mills taken in hotel room at Great Wolf Lodge in Lake Delton, Wisconsin April 26, 2012

Mike Downes of United Kingdom Led A Google Plus Hangout Live Streamed To Youtube of Crime Stoppers International Social Media For Community Success & Safety Talk At Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Inc 21st Annual Meeting & Training Conference in Lake Delton, Wisconsin April 27, 2012

The following link is not able to be embedded in this story, presumable due to the system of live streaming a Google Plus Hangout to Youtube is still in the beta testing phase. Click on the link here to view the presentation of Scott Mills on Social Media For Success And Safety that was live streamed by Mike Downes in United Kingdom. This was inspired by tweets that Scott saw from Mike Downes like: I have a LIVE YouTube Channel powered by g+ #hangoutsonair .. it should be used for good.. get in touch” The presentation slides for the social media for success and safety talk are embedded below. Thanks everyone for all your service. This conference truly was in keeping with its theme “Making A Difference ~ Generating Success”

Steve Ferrara of WellAndGood.ca Listens Cautiously To Toronto Police Talk About Graffiti | Graffiti By-Law Fernando Aceto in Background At Toronto Police College Training Seminar April 3, 2012

StreetARToronto Is Part of New City of Toronto Graffiti Managment Plan

The Faces Of An Inclusive And Balanced Graffiti Management Plan For Toronto

City of Toronto Graffiti Management Plan 2012 – Presentation Slides of Jodi Callam and Gus Michaels at Toronto Police Service Graffiti Training Seminar

Thank you to Sergeant Branko Novinc, Staff Sergeant Steve Pipe of the Divisional Policing Support Unit , Jodi Callan and Kristina Hausmanis of city of Toronto Graffiti Management Plan , Steve Ferrara of community building art specialists Well And Good and all the police officers, by-law officers and city staffers who attended the training session for the new Graffiti Management Programs for both Toronto Police Service and the city of Toronto at the Toronto Police College on Tuesday April 3, 2012.

In one simple thought, I can honestly say that we have made huge progress in what matters for both property owners, stakeholders and the graffiti arts community. There is no doubt that everyone wants to stop graffiti vandalism. The positive part of this seminar was that a distinction was made between graffiti vandalism and graffiti art, and not just in words. The Toronto Police Service’s Graffiti Eradication Program was renamed to the Graffiti Management Program. The original program started by now Staff Inspector Heinz Kuck had a great foundation and was a balanced program. Heinz worked tirelessly and often alone to collect and document the facts, engage community stakeholders, and was accepting of graffiti art projects. The challenge was that by the name of the program alone, the graffiti community were turned away. The word ‘eradication’ did not sit well with community building graffiti artists like Kedre Browne and Jessey Pacho, two of the artists who I believe are now pillars of the community making a difference, not vandalizing community.

Leaving the seminar, a police officer working in the Rexdale area of Toronto in attendance, approached me and told me that he was a graffiti artist and wanted to get involved with our new program to help kids and the community. He did not want his photo taken or posted here, or his name used. This might have something to do with the fact that an accomplished crime prevention police officer in attendance flat out and passionately stated to the room that the approach of community building and graffiti would not work. He stated this despite the fact Officer Scott Mills along with graffiti community spokesperson Steve Ferrara cited example after example of youth being helped by working together with cops and kids on the graffiti issue, and that videos and social media of cops and kids working together on graffiti themed projects have gone viral worldwide with a positive message of trust, success and community safety. See graffiti artists Kedre Browne and Jessey Pacho in New York City at the State of NOW #140Conf in a talk called Twitter, Graffiti Art And The Police in June, 2011 by Clicking on Webdoc embedded on a facebook page

To see youtube video with over 3/4 million views since 2007 of Staff Inspector Bryce Evans, now head of the Toronto Police Service Financial Crimes Unit painting a BMX Bike Ramp that was part of the 2007 Grey Cup Argos Foundation BMX Youth Engagement Project at an event known as Style in Progress in the Parkdale area of Toronto. It is videos like these that I credit with helping to build trust and relationships between cops and the community that lead to helping to stop, prevent and solve crimes together.

It is not an accident that in two years of engaging in community building projects and celebrating them in social media our anonymous Crime Stoppers tips in Toronto tripled from 300 per month to 1000 per month. The good part is the tips are getting guns off our streets, and we are looking at spray cans as more of a positive, and not a negative! The vision of the policy document titled “Youth In Neighbourhoods: A Positive Approach To Graffiti Management” in the Ontario School Resource Officers Training Manual is slowly coming into action on a sustainable basis in Toronto.

The bottom line for me is that this training day paved the way for other police officers to build community and trust on the graffiti theme using a relationships and technology strategy.

It is exciting that Constable Isabelle Cotton and Constable Jennifer Sidhu , officers who will be working hands on with our community members like Steve and Lisa Martin at Well and Good, Leyla Bulcan at Community CAVE and Judith Snow at Laser Eagles, Karin Eaton at Mural Routes and the entire graffiti community are all newly trained in using social media for communications as a result of the Toronto Police Service Social Media Initiative.

The good news is that we are communicating more efficiently than ever before. The vision of Heinz Kuck, Janna Van Hoof and many more people on the cop side and on the graffiti community side of the graffiti debate are really the same. Peace Love and Community is what everyone is all about. I have much praise, admiration and respect for people like Heinz on the cop side of things and Janna on the graffiti community side of things. A special mention needs to go to Mike Young from Ottawa who tirelessly worked behind the scenes over the years to build the bridge that we are now seeing.

We now now have a term to describe our programming that that is positive and good, and will go a long way to reducing graffiti vandalism and increasing opportunities for our property owners and our arts community. A key person assigned to the graffiti portfolio at the city of Toronto David Twaddle is now talking to a key child physician about truly helping youth experiencing autism, aspergers syndrome and attention deficit disorder through engaging youth in a positive way on a graffiti art and community building theme. Healthy Relationsihps = Healthy Community. Amen.

Watch archived UStream videos of all the presentations at this event here:

Pearl And Her Father

Crime Stoppers International Social Media To Find Missing Children & Track Fugitives

In today’s reality, social media tools and platforms such
as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Foursquare, Webdoc, QR Codes and Google
Plus are important two way communication tools that improves the reach
of the Crime Stoppers mission of helping to stop, solve and prevent
crimes together. It is important to have access to all the social
media platforms that your program is using to reach your communities
on your websites in the form of the service provider icons like
Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn and Google Plus hyperlinked to
your accounts.

Many Crime Stoppers programs in Canada and throughout the world have
adapted a social media presence that has resulted in some notable
success stories. There are still many programs struggling to
establish their social media, and a number who simply don’t know how
to do it. At the Crime Stoppers International Training Conference in
Jamaica in 2011, an online guide for social media set up was provided.

This guide is available on the official Canadian Crime Stoppers
Association Facebook Page ( http://Facebook.com/CanStopCrime ) and on
the official Crime Stoppers International Facebook page (
http://Facebook.com/CSIWorld ) by clicking on the Webdoc app on the
top left corner of the pages. Social media terms of use, styles and
settings are constantly changing. The ‘Webdoc’ format has been
adapted because it is free and is easily to update everyone who is
operating a social media set up for a Crime Stoppers program. In
addition, as you will read below, Webdoc is a great way to pull all of
the information from traditional media and social media on a
particular case into one location online, and is very easy to update.

In dialogue with the President of the Canadian Crime Stoppers
Association, Ralph Page, I was asked to describe a ‘case study’ using
social media. I decided to describe one case that social media was
used for a case of an abducted child and a wanted fugitive to give
those programs some basic suggestions on how to set up social media
for their programs.

Before I chronicle the story here, it should be
pointed out that the undisputed leader when it comes to using social
media for abduction cases, for his own case, and to help others facing
similar, and complicated situations is Mr. Stephen Watkins. Stephen
has leveraged every social media tool there is to try to locate his
two boys and seek justice. I have often followed his lead on the
effective use of social media, and Stephen is to be commended for
always thinking of making the tools and resources that he has found
through his personal case available for others to use effectively to
bring peace of mind to so many people who are searching for answers
due to an unsolved crime. The same social media approaches can and
should be used in crime prevention, to stop violence before it starts,
and Crime Stoppers is one of the keys to success worldwide, in my
humble opinion.

The case I will talk about is that of a missing little girl named
Pearl Gavaghan Da Massa who was alleged to have been abducted by her
biological mother from England, and last seen in the Parkdale area of
Toronto when I was asked to get involved using social media by a
fellow officer, Constable Wendy Drummond, a media relations officer
for the Toronto Police Service. I subsequently worked very closely
with Henry Da Massa, Pearl’s biological father, the officers in the the
Toronto Police Service Fugitive Squad led by Detective Rick Mooney. as
well as the Missing Children’s Society of Canada, who had offered a
reward in the case.

When we started out, Henry had a Facebook profile called ‘Missing
Pearl’ that had about 400 ‘friends’ on it, all of whom were following
Henry’s journey to find his daughter. We assisted Henry to set up a
Facebook Page for the case, and encouraged all Facebook traffic to be
directed to the page. The reason for setting up a page, is that
multiple people can then post officially as “Missing Pearl”. This
could include investigators, family members or Crime Stoppers
affiliated people. The other good thing about a Facebook page is that
a Crime Stoppers Leave A Tip tab can be installed to any page, which
allows a reader to click on the Leave A Tip Facebook app and be
directed right into the Tipsoft / Crime Reports anonymous tip submit
system that many Crime Stoppers use to process tips.

Henry started up a Twitter account dedicated to his search
http://Twitter.com/MissingPearl and started a hash tag on Twitter
#FindPearl. For clarification to people new to Twitter, a hash tag is
a key word and clickable link that anyone can start that you post in a ‘tweet’ that
allows for anyone ‘tweeting’ about the case to use, thus allowing
anyone who is following the situation the ability to type into the
search bar on twitter the hash tag and see what is being said and by
who. One thing to keep in mind as a Crime Stoppers program using
social media, is that you should always be in contact with the
investigating officer of the the case to ensure that the social media
posts are complimentary to what the investigators are doing on their
investigation. Social media is very public, and what is being stated
on social media sites quite often is being followed by the the very
people that are alleged to be suspects in cases like this. We
maintained dialogue behind the scenes with the investigators to ensure
that we were not stepping on anyone’s toes.

Henry also started up a Youtube account, which he used to post some
videos of he and his missing daughter.

It was the first time we tried to live stream an appeal using Crime
Stoppers International. Immediately after broadcasting the appeal of
Henry from our office in Toronto, his facebook friends in England
started sending him messages that they had seen his appeal video live!

You can watch the this live stream video here:
http://bit.ly/LiveStreamAppealFindPearl

Fast forward a month or so, and Crime Stoppers International President
Michael Gordon-Gibson was coming in to Toronto from the United Kingdom
to speak at the Toronto International Fugitive Investigators
Conference. Michael had asked me to co-present with him on the
effective use of social media.

Here is where the true value of Crime Stoppers came into play. The
partnership of the community, the police and the media, and now social
media was leveraged at this Fugitive Conference.

A community member from the Parkdale area named Paisley Rae offered her assistance to make some youtube videos appealing for information on the whereabouts
of Pearl. She worked tirelessly filming and editing a video
chronicling the last known places that Pearl had been seen in Toronto.

Watch the video here: http://bit.ly/CommunityVideoFindPearl

Rae’s video was posted to her Youtube account to assist the cause.
Michael Gordon-Gibson filmed a video appeal that was posted to the
Crime Stoppers International Youtube account that explored the value
of using QR Codes (Quick Repsonse Codes).

These codes are great for
including on public handouts about the case. The idea is that a
member of the public can scan the QR Code using their smart phone and
get instant information about the case, who to call if they know
something or how to submit anonymous information to Crime Stoppers.

Watch this video here: http://bit.ly/QRCodesForCrimeStoppers

Kevin Masterman, Media Coordinator for Toronto Police attended the
Fugitive Conference presentation that was for law enforcement only,
and wrote a story that included the appeal videos for finding Pearl,
which was further shared into social media circles.

You can read the story here:
http://bit.ly/TorontoFugitiveConference2011SocialMedia

Mac’s Convenience Stores contributed to the appeal by adding a video
appeal onto their digital display terminals in stores across Canada
thanks to Sean Sportun, of the Toronto Crime Stoppers Board.

Watch this video here: http://bit.ly/MacsDigitalDisplayTerminalFindPearl

At one point during the summer of 2011, an online canvass using Facebook Places check ints and Fourquare check ins was done at Yonge Dundas Square in downtown Toronto that resulted in a lot of people attending a concert that featured Canadian rapper Classified, Hollerado and the Crash Test Dummies.  A few photos were taken of this appeal with some of the band members to try to boost the public appeal for tips to solve the case.  Some photos of this are here:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/109884504634986594519/albums/5630403214920780641

If you are saying to yourself at this point “How do you keep track of
what everyone is doing?” This is where the Webdoc application we
talked about earlier comes into play.

Everything we were doing in social media, I was compiling into one
Webdoc about the case, that was easily shared at any time with anyone
willing to assist with the appeal in social media, whether it be a
fellow officer, a community member, citizen journalist, or a reporter
from the traditional media.

This Webdoc became the living breathing filing system of the social
and traditional media.

View the #FindPearl Webdoc here:

http://bit.ly/WantedFugitiveAbductedChildWEBDOC

The poster for the Missing Pearl case was featured in the slide show at the popular State of NOW conference in New York City.

View the slide show here:  http://www.webdoc.com/documents/C4CFE6E1-7400-0001-7829-13B631002920#!/posts/C4CFF319-8970-0001-75D0-C1881F00C710

From this document we made a QR code, which eventually was published
in a book of 350 unsolved missing person cases written by retired
Toronto Star reporter, and Halton Crime Stoppers program board member
Cal Millar called Missing Find Me. The book was recently published and
is available on Amazon.com.

By the time I got a copy of the book, 5 cases had already been solved.
Ironically, Cal had included a QR code in the book for the Webdoc on
the Missing Pearl case. Cal said to me he was going to have to do an
update to the book because the cases were getting solved. Not even
Cal quite understood the proper use of  QR Codes, but it became quickly apparent to him that the use of QR Codes was essential for his work with Crime Stoppers chronicling unsolved murder cases and missing person cases.

I quickly got my smart phone out and scanned the QR Code for the
Missing Pearl case. It came up to good news.. that on September 26,
2011 Pearl had been safely located in Montreal after a tip from a
member of the public to a patrolling police officer about suspicious
activity by an adult female and a child.

The exact wording was as follows, with a link to a traditional media
story about how Pearl was located.
“Good news: Pearl was located safely in Montreal September 26, 2011.
Thank you to everyone who assisted with this case – the public, media
and the police.”

As it turned out Pearl was located with her biological mother. Her
mother was arrested, and Pearl is now back in England with her father.
By scanning the QR Code in the book, the reader was immediately given
reliable and up to date progress of the case. Cal has now told me that
he will be using this format for his future research into unsolved
murder cases and missing person cases… and it was right after this
experience with Cal, and a talk with Ralph that Ralph asked me to
writer this out for publication in the Crime Stoppers newsletter.

I have been told by some long time Crime Stoppers board members that
this is ‘very complicated’.

It really isn’t complicated at all. It is a very efficient way to chronicle ongoing cases for Crime Stoppers programs across Canada and worldwide.

It all starts with a proper set up in social media of your program.
The Webdoc on how to set up your Crime Stoppers program in a similar
way to how Henry set it up to find his missing daughter is posted on
the Canadian Crime Stoppers Association and Crime Stoppers
International official facebook pages at the top left corner.

Click here: http://Facebook.com/CSIWorld or http://Facebook.com/CanStopCrime

Social media platforms and settings are constantly changing, and
updates will be posted often to the webdoc by myself and others who
are trusted contributors to Crime Stoppers, and familiar with social
media. This is the beauty of using Webdoc.. If someone in a program
in Vancouver for instance comes up with a good way of doing things,
they can post what worked for them on the Webdoc for other programs to
reference, and they can tweet and facebook everyone following their
social media with their updates to notify others. There are no trade
secrets being shared, just very accessible data for all who care to
contribute, with reliable people in Crime Stoppers moderating the
information to keep our most important assets in tact… our Crime
Stoppers brand, and our trust that we have with the public.

The effective use of social media for Crime Stoppers is something that
all Crime Stoppers coordinators should be making a priority. It can
be a little bit scary at first if you are new to social media, but
with modern communication tools like Skype widely available, we are
always here to assist, no matter what the question is.

Next newsletter we will talk about what your program should be doing with
Google Plus as it develops.

To contact Scott Mills via skype add graffitibmxcop to your contacts.
E-Mail Scott at SocialMedia@CSIWorld.org

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Sergeant Pat McGrade | 22 Divsion Toronto Police Service

Constable Ryan Drapack presents Golf Program Graduate Gregory Letounov $500 Cheque Towards His Ryerson University Education

Kids succeeding in life with help from the game of golf, the vision of Constable Ryan Drapack is carrying on in a big way in the west end of Toronto thanks to funding of ProAction Cops And Kids (on Twitter @CopsAndKidsca and Facebook.com/CopsAndKidsca) and The Longest Yard. Two year youth participant Gregory Letounov was a shining example of the success and sustainablity of the program On November 29, 2011 at an appreciation night held at Islington Junior Middle School on Cordova Av in Toronto. Letounov was all smiles receiving a $500 scholarship towards his Business Management Program at Ryerson University from mentor officer Ryan Drapack.

Dedicated members of 22 Division Toronto Police Service led by Detective Pat McGrade (on Twitter follow @Det2347) coordinated the Islington Community Golf Association Community Appreciation night, celebrating the closing of the fall session of the ICGA Golf Program, bringing together cops, kids and community for success and safety.

For 9 weeks, youth learned golf skills from community golf enthusiasts, and the Islington Club assistant pro, as well as cops passionate about the game and their community.

Bishwesh Uprety was all smiles at the lunch after the day’s golfing, very proud of his achievements with his golf skills, ready and willing to tell his story for a Youtube video for the official Toronto Police Youtube account.

Islington Golf And Country Club members John Tyers and Bob Tebbutt were key players in helping the youth of the Mabelle community of west Toronto excel through this golf program. MCgrade offered special thanks to Andrew Szewczuk, the assistant pro at the Islington Golf Course, a key contributor to the program’s success, as well as”Sue” from Toronto Public Health. Det McGrade thanked his colleagues, Sergeant Russ Clark and Detective John Clarke for their dedication attending the program each week for the 9 week duration.

Islington Golf Club Members Give Back To Community Teaching Golf To Youngsters

Judging from the smiles on the faces of the kids at the appreciation night, it was clearly evident that these officers had made a difference in the lives of the youth involved in the program.

Youth Golf Program Participant Bishwesh Uprety Says Golf Is Fun!

Superintendent Jim Ramer attended the appreciation evening, and praised his officers, the community volunteers and the youth who participated on a regular basis, building trust and respect in the spirit of community safety. Supt Raymer indicated that he was excited that his officers were using social media sites like Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and a WordPress blog to carry on the positive connection made with the kids and the community with his officers.

Superintendent James Ramer Toronto Police 22 Division

The Toronto Police Service adapted an official social media policy in 2011, and expect 170 officers throughout the Service to be officially trained by the end of calendar year 2011. Supt Ramer was very supportive of his officers’ use of social media, and was anxious to get more officers trained and connecting with the community in a positive way. The majority of the kids present indicated that they used Facebook on a regular basis.

The public and fellow officers are invited to view the posts from the event on the official 22 Division Facebook page here: Facebook.com/TPS22

Graduates of Cops + Kids Golf Program Move On To Post Secondary Education

Cops Kids And Community Team Up Through Golf For Youth Success

Islington Community Golf Assocaiton Appreciation Night 2011

CanadianSafeSchools.com

Lawyer Supports Social Media For Success And Safety

On Friday November 25, 2011 Education and Internet Lawyer Eric Roher spoke to an audience of 60 education professionals in Toronto, Ontario Canada about legal issues surrounding social media and students. Toronto Police Corporate Communications Social Media Officer Constable Scott Mills attended the presentation, along with Earl Haig Secondary School Safety Monitor Dave Bradley, community member Paisley Rae, and Toronto Police Service Media Coordinator Kevin Masterman, at the invitation of Dave Fraser, the Canadian Safe Schools Network Events Manager.

Arrangements were made to live stream the presentation of Eric Roher for the purpose of sharing with others not in the room the relevant and up to date information about the state of the law in Canada relating to social media and education.

A few photos were taken and are included here. There are many more references to policy development and solutions for social media challenges throughout the blog InternetViolencePrevention.com that is operated by Scott Mills. We hope that the information presented here is useful to others for social media strategy going forward.

The video was streamed on the Social Media, Internet And Law Enforcment UStream account of Lauri Stevens, the founder of TheSmileConference.com , a conference designed to assist professionals in law enforcement, education, business and the community to understand and effectively utilize social media tools for success and safety.

For inquiries about this post please contact Scott at scotmills@gmail.com

Teamwork: Social Media For Success And Safety | @PaisleyRae, Kevin Masterman @TPSPix, Eric Roher @ERoher, Dave Bradley @DavePicsBradley, Scott Mills @GraffitiBMXCop

Dave Fraser @CndnSafeSchools

School Safety Monitor Uses Facebook For School Safety Using Relationships, Technology And Partnerships With Police And Crime Stoppers

What is Crime Stoppers International and how can anonymous tips to Crime Stoppers help with social media for success and safety policies?
Eric Roher attended at this video streamed talked by Scott Mills, Social Media Advisor for Crime Stoppers International (volunteer position) recently at the Norton Cyber Safety Expo at Yonge and Dundas Square in Toronto. The archived video is posted here for reference:

Education Summit Oakwood Library Nov 21, 2011

Cops And Community Team Up For Safety

Toronto Police Service 13 Division officers hosted their 2nd annual Education Summit at the Oakwood Library for educators, community members, fellow police officers, and anyone interested in the success and safety of our community, in particular our youth. The event was organized by Sergeant Jimmy Browne, Staff Sergeant Michael Matic and an entire team of dedicated police officers working collaboratively with community partners. The day started with opening remarks from Staff Inspector Mary Lee Metcalfe, and featured a special greeting from Member of Provincial Parliament Mike Colle. The topics discussed were as follows:

1. Detective Lynda Hilborn 13 Division Family Violence Unit “How Youth Bureau Officers And School Administrators Can Work In Partnership In Relation To School Investigations”
2. Constable Martin Douglas Toronto Crime Stoppers Community Youth Officer “The Role Of Crime Stoppers Within School Administrations”
3. Constable Scott Mills Toronto Police Service Corporate Communications “Relationships, Technology and Social Media For Success And Safety”
4. Joel Gardner Toronto East Detention Centre “What It Is Like To Spend A Day Incarcerated”
5. John Ilika Field Intelligence Officer Ontario Corrections “Project G.R.A.N.T. Gang Reduction After Neighbourhood Traning”

The day finished with closing remarks from Staff Sergeant Michael Matic.

A number of photos from the event will be posted on the official 13 Division Toronto Police Service Facebook Page Facebook.com/TPS13 as well as on the Project G.R.A.N.T. Facebook page Facebook.com/ProjectGRANT.

The presentations on Crime Stoppers, Prisons and Gangs were live streamed on the Toronto Crime Stoppers official LiveSTream.com account. The archived videos are included here.

I must say, as the author of this post, a 21 year police officer, an Executive Board Member of the Ontario Gang Investigators Association, and the Social Media Advisor of Crime Stoppers International, that the education provided at this event was the absolute best information on gang prevention and awareness I have ever seen presented. Congratulations to all the people who were in attendance, and to all the organizers for a very well done event. It is hoped that the content shared here will be used by others freely to achieve our collective community safety goals.

Introduction by MPP Mike Colle:

Crime Stoppers Presentation by Constable Martin Douglas:

Prison Life: What It Is Like To Spend A Day Incarcerated by Joel Gardner of the Toronto East Detention Centre:

Gang Reduction After Neighbourhood Training Project G.R.A.N.T. by John Ilika Field Intelligence Officer Ontario Corrections

For the key messaging of the presentation on social media for success and safety by Constable Scott Mills see the slides below:

For more information please visit the following social media sites:

Facebook.com/TPS13
Facebook.com/ProjectGrant
Twitter.com/PreventGangs
Twitter.com/ONGIA
Hash tag #ES13Div

Relationships And Technology Strategy Using Social Media Leads to Success And Safety

Presentation on Relationships and Technology – Using Social Media For Student Success And Safety by Scott Mills October 6, 2011 at Strategy Institute 8th Annual Summit On Emergency And Disaster Planning For Colleges, Universities and K-12 Schools

Introduction by David Black @DB7 of University of Toronto:

Collaborators on this topic are: Dave Bradley, School Safety Monitor Earl Haig Secondary School, Toronto, Canada and Eric Jacksch of Ottawa, Ontario

See video from 2009 Summit here:

What do the lawyers say about this?
Watch video of Strategy Institute Speaker Eric Roher LLB here:

Presentation Slides of Scott Mills “Internet Violence Prevention”

Policy 2007 Ontario School Resource Officer Training Manual “Using Internet As Crime Prevention Tool”

http://internetviolenceprevention.com/2011/05/using-internet-as-crime-prevention-tool-policy-ontario-school-resource-officer-training-manual/

What is the Strategy Institute 8th Annual Summit On Emergency And Disaster Planning For Colleges, Universities and K-12 Schools ??
Check link:

You owe it to yourself – and your students – to be well versed in all aspects of security and emergency response protocols and procedures.

Canada’s ONLY emergency management conference for ALL schools will provide you with the resources to meet your preparedness challenges.

Your vigilance and judgment are your most important tools.

Refine and improve both by engaging with leading experts and discussing the LATEST high-level, practical case studies from around North America.

Your first step in school security? This conference!
Emergency & Disaster Planning Summit Early Bird Special
Source solutions from over 14 leaders, including:

Information and Privacy Commissioner, ON
Cornell University
Mother Teresa Catholic Secondary School, London, ON
University of California, Davis
Toronto Police Services
Red Deer College
St. Francis Xavier University
University of California, Los Angeles
Medicine Hat College
Texas Tech University
Canadian Centre for Threat Assessment
Drexel University
North Dakota State University
University of Toronto

Emulate their success, learn from their experience.

Don’t miss this important opportunity. Register now for Canada’s ONLY Emergency Planning event for schools. This event is sure to sell out!
Essential post-conference workshop offering hands-on training:
Using the Internet as an effective tool to monitor and prevent school violence.
Take away 14 practical solutions and strategies, including:

Balancing security with privacy: Hear directly from the Commissioner
Mass notification: A case study for small colleges and private schools
Emergency response training: How to train high school students
Lockdown protocols: How to comply with new/revised police protocols
Bill 168: Up to date analysis and guidance
Cost-effective budget planning: How to work within your budgets
Planning for unlikely emergencies: What you should be anticipating
Mental health awareness: Responding to the challenges/options
Cyberbullying updates: Practical solutions for schools of all levels
Risk assessments: Roadmap and unique insight into managing risks
Achieving buy in: How to engage your administration
Sexual assault response systems: Working with survivors
Building security: Increase security and safety through better design
Lockdowns: An EXPERIENCED Principal discusses how his school responded

Take away 8 ADDITIONAL benefits from this exclusive event:

EXCLUSIVE Q&A with Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner
Legislative updates
Extended networking opportunities
Meet 16 of North America’s leading emergency management professionals
Extensive Q &As
Group discounts
Special brainstorming session
Complete binder of materials

This is your most valuable networking opportunity, with unparalleled access to the experts – and your industry peers – that are driving the future of emergency management.

If you are involved in any aspect of school safety, you can’t afford to miss this unique forum. Take advantage of this exciting opportunity to network and explore new ideas and successful initiatives presented by experts with hands-on experience. You will take away the latest strategies to tackle YOUR challenges with real life case studies!

Alyson’s message gives society a wake up call that every parent, educator and politician should hear. Proceeds of the evening talk went to York Region Youth Shelter and to Building More BMX Parks and Legal Graffiti Art Projects funded by donations to CommunityCAVE.com. A gang prevention message and NoToGangs.org were represented at the evening sponsored by Espresso Blu Cafe.

For more information on this evening and more awareness initiatives, please contact Angel Freedman at angelfreedman@rogers.com or 905-780-8119 (or @AngelFreedman on Twitter)

Parenting Expert Alyson Schafer Talks About Teens

Angel Freedman Organizes Organizes "Undertanding Teens" Education Evening in Richmond Hill @AlysonSchafer + @GraffitiBMXCop

Watch a short clip of Alyson Schafer speaking about teens at this parenting education event below:

Many references to help parents here: http://Alyson.ca

Parenting Book by Alyson Schafer

When Yelling, Screaming, Threats, Bribes, Time-outs, Sticker Charts and Removing Privileges All Don't Work

Why Struggle A Day Longer? Iimprove Your Parenting In One Weekend With Alyson's Parenting Bootcamp

Ruth Markel

iPhone and iPad Are Key Modern Day Tools For Educatiors

Chances are your children are safe and the police and school staff are
working in a coordinated effort. To learn more, read on and check out the
enclosed two presentations by Toronto police officers, who have been
dealing with these school safety issues for many years.
All your questions pertaining to an emerging school emergency are now
posted in the social streams on the official Toronto Police Service
website, http://TorontoPolice.on.ca.

You can also learn many up-to-date pieces of information about
connecting with the police and school-safety specialists at a school
near you in Toronto at this link: http://SchoolActionTeams.com

On August 11, 2011, Staff Sergeant Sharon Davis of the Toronto Police
Service Community Mobilization Unit, a specialist in school-police
protocol issues co-presented a workshop on school safety with
Constable Scott Mills @GraffitiBMXCop | @TorontoPolice Toronto Police
Service Corporate Communications Social Media Officer to school
administrators at the Associated Hebrew Schools, 252 Finch Av E,
Toronto, Ontario Canada.

The two officers were invited to present by Ruth Markel, a management
consultant who had diligently prepared for the workshop, after being
referred to Sharon and Scott by Eric Roher @ERoher a lawyer
specializing in Internet issues, and legal counsel for a number of
school boards.

It was a unique perspective having the two officers speak, as both
come from very different perspectives. Sharon is a specialist on
school protocol procedures relating to lockdowns, “hold and secure”
situations, threat assessment and many more issues relating to school
safety… with the exception of social media..

Scott is very passionate about using relationships and technology, in
particular social media, to prevent violence. Together, the two
officers present the “left brain and the right brain” for school
safety.

To say the least, at this event ‘old school’ philosophy was colliding
with ‘new school’ philosophy in back to back talks. The question
became.. would these school administrators see any value in any of the
information that either officer had to offer.

It turns out that perspectives did collide this day and the end
product was a very balanced and fact filled talk, that hopefully will
go a long way to enhance community safety in the family of Associated
Hebrew Schools, and beyond.

For the first time, Sharon’s excellent school lockdown and ‘hold and
secure’ safety points were live tweeted by Scott..effectively
education others far from the ear shot of the presenter. The official
version of what exactly a ‘Lockdown’ is compared to a ‘Hold and
Secure’ were being tweeted by Scott as Sharon spoke. .. Online people
were listening.. and re-tweeting! The Toronto District School Board
social media coordinator TJ Goertz @TJGoertz | @TDSB_Official quickly
re-tweeted the information to his vast network of educators online.

Presentation Slides of Scott Mills “Relationships And Technology

“School Emergencies”
Presentation slides of Staff Sergeant Sharon Davis, Toronto Police
Service Community Mobilization Unit (officer in charge of School
Resource Officer Program)

Here is a snapshot of what the tweets looked like that day. All the
tweets and facebook posts were live feeding to the home page of the
Toronto Police official website, a brand new version of the website
thanks to a team of dedicated, in house Toronto Police staff members
led by Pedja, our brilliant webmaster. A number of the school
administrators in attendance were following the social stream on their
personal smartphones and ipads. It was evident that social media and
school safety were colliding, and a cultural revolution was underway
in that room!

Here is what the tweets looked like:

Register your school tess@TorontoPolice.on.ca

Register your school tess@TorontoPolice.on.ca

TorontoPolice Toronto Police
“Life Trumps Privacy” when dealing w school safety issues says
Staff/Sgt Sharon Davis #Toronto #Police School-Police Protocol
Specialist ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
SchoolActionTeams.com is a reference website for school | police
protocol in #Toronto that is being updated w/ relevant info regularly
^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
School-Police Safety Protocol discussed Aug11/11 at Associated Hebrew
Schools #Toronto by Officer Sharon Davis #140confEDU c @jeffpulver ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
“No One Just Snaps” says S/Sgt Sharon Davis to Associated Hebrew
Schools Admin School-Police Protocol training talk #Toronto ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
@Blackbird_2 great info! Thanks for sharing – worth a read for sure c:
@DCCTayside @DeputySloly @Lawscomm @T_Burrows @mrsmeaghangray ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
. @TJGoertz Thanks TJ 4 re-tweeting education info 2day re: difference
between “Hold And Secure” + “Lockdown” 4 school-police protocol ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
If your school in #Toronto wants training session for an emergency w/
Police contact Staff Sergeant Sharon.Davis@torontopolice.on.ca ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
If you r a staff member inside a school in “Lockdown” or “Hold+Secure”
if safe 2 do, check updates Twitter #fb feeds TorontoPolice.on.ca ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
Is your school in #Toronto registered with TESSS for police emergency
response? If not contact officer sharon.davis@torontopolice.on.ca ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
In #Toronto “Hold+Secure” means danger near a school | movement in+out
of bldg is restricted | within bldg movement not restricted ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
In #Toronto a school “Lockdown”=”danger on site” Goal is concealment
or escape(hide or run away) movement restricted in+out|within bldg ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
#Toronto #Police Staff/Sgt Sharon Davis is talking about school +
police protocol for safety #livenow at Associated Hebrew Schools ^sm
11 Aug

Toronto Police
Associated Hebrew Schools r hosting a school safety talk 4 Admins
today w/ guests #Toronto Police S/Sgt Sharon Davis | Cst Scott Mills
^sm
11 Aug

For more information from Sharon you can e-mail:
sharon.davis@torontopolice.on.ca
For more information from Scott you can e-mail: scotmills@gmail.com
or connect in social media with the official Toronto Police sites.

@TorontoPolice on twitter:
15,030Tweets
2,328Following
16,017Followers
843Listed

Facebook.com/TorontoPolice

In conclusion .. please check out the hash tag #140EDU on Twitter for
some amazing information on how social media, when embraced to its
full capacity can be used by educators for student success….and
safety .. here is a video from @JeffPulver with links to much more
information about social media and its value for education and safety
in a modern world.

Video streaming by Ustream

How to connect with some key people using social media for education who were a part of #140EDU in August, 2011 in New York City http://140conf.com via @JeffPulver

[#140edu] Back To School Special: Videos from #140edu

With Labor Day approaching and the beginning of school upon us, I’ve been looking back at our recent #140edu, and how something very special took place at the 92nd Street Y back on August 2nd and 3rd.

I wanted to share the experience with the videos captured with the worldwide #140conf community.

During #140edu about 400 people joined us in the audience while at the same time, the event was seen on 19,693 unique computers around the world.

I thank Chris Lehmann for helping to co-host the conference, his help in encouraging some of his friends to speak at the conference and his continued support of #140edu. I also thank everyone who came to #140edu and shared their ideas on our stage and from the audience.

#140edu will return to New York City at the 92nd Street Y on July 31st / August 1st, 2012.

I hope you enjoy watching these talks and find them to be as inspiring as I did.

Best regards, Jeff

=========== Videos On Demand from #140edu – Day 1 ===========
Welcome to #140edu
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-welcome-5465616

Speakers:

Chris Lehmann (@chrislehmann) – Principal of the Science Leadership Academy
Jeff Keni Pulver (@jeffpulver) – founder, #140conf

Get up and Move
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-jack-hidary-5475010
Speaker: Jack Hidary (@jackhidary) – entrepreneur – business, social, political

Opening Doors to 21st Century Learning

The template for K-12 education in this country persists at using an industrial/agrarian model that is long past useful and relevant. We’ll talk about how a diverse suburban public school district has worked to upend and disrupt a legacy of tracking and low expectations into one that is focused on equity, access, rigor and adaptability. And how we are retooling policies and practices to develop high level critical thinking skills needed for the 21st Century — for all students at all ability levels.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-david-singer-louis-wool-5465907

Speakers:

David A. Singer (@DavidASinger) – School Board Trustee, Harrison School District

Louis N. Wool (@louisnwool) – Superintendent of Schools of the Harrison Central School District (and the 2010 NYS Superintendent of the Year).

Parents are Partners not Pawns
Parental involvement. Real, on the ground, loud, messy and effective parental involvement in the schools. As a blogger and Co-President of the PTA of my daughters’ NYC public school I have seen the power of speaking out and of bringing parents together.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-rebecca-levey-5465920
Speaker: Rebecca Levey (@beccasara) – Founder/Queen Bee, KidzVuz.com and the 2011 NY State Delegate to the Mom Congress on Education and Learning

Design Thinking as the Only Legit 21st Century Pedagog
As one of many who are deeply invested in the educational shifts happening all around us, I’m eager to explore an authentic 21st century pedagogy that isn’t simply
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-christian-long-design-thinking-5483591
Speaker: Christian Long (@ChristianLong) – Vice President – Education, Cannon Design

How Twitter Chats Are Changing Eduaction
As co-founder of the largest and most popular education hashtag (#edchat) we have helped to shape what educational chats are on Twitter. My co-founder (@tomwhitby) and I will address the changes that we have seen, how these chats provide a platform for ed.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-steven-anderson-tom-whitby-5469136

Speakers:

Steven W. Anderson (@web20classroom) – Educator, Speaker, Blogger, #Edchat Co-Creator, #140Conf Character, NOW Award Winner, ASCD Conference Scholar

Tom Whitby (@tomwhitby) – Prof of Education. Founder: #Edchat, The EDU PLN Ning, Linkedin group Technology-Using Professors et al.

Connecting School Life to Real Life
If school should be preparing young people for the world, why does the world behind school doors look so different from the world outside those doors. If we want students to be successful in the real world, schools need to get better at connecting school life to real life and give students the freedom to learn. I will share ideas about how schools can do this work.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-lisa-nielsen-5474229
Speaker: Lisa Nielsen (@InnovativeEdu) – Speaker. Author. Educational innovator.

Are schools burning books?
Are schools burning books? Can schools efficiently ban students from using social media during school time and pretend it doesn´t exist? Can we prepare our students enough for life and work in the Information Society by relying first and foremost on text.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-inga-r%C3%B3s-5474278
Speaker: Inga Rós (@Inga_Ros) – Teacher, Commercial College of Iceland

The Buzz Book
Lost amid all of the education reform talk is an insidious problem plaguing our schools: our students are losing a sense of shared cultural literacy because they are not reading as much as they need to.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-patrick-higgins-5469157
Speaker: Patrick Higgins (@pjhiggins) – Supervisor of Humanities, Verona Public Schools

Slowing Down Education, 140 Characters at a Time
Immersed in a constant stream of information, losing our ability to meaningfully read anything longer than a page, and connected through a social network that in users represents the 3rd largest country in the world, how can we promote thoughtful and meaningful discussions?
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/cynthia-lawson-5469188
Speaker: Cynthia Lawson (@cynthialawson) – Assistant Professor and Artist, Parsons The New School for Design

What I learned in Kingergarden
When do school systems, tv and society suck the creativity out of our children? As early as kingergarten? Are the intellectual misfits in kingergarden the ones who are more apt to succeed later in life? Are we doing enough to ensure that youngsters maintain and develop their curiosity, wonderment, originality, and ability not only to answer questions, but to ask them as well.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-mel-rosenberg-5469255
Speaker: Mel Rosenberg (@MelRosenberg) – scientist and inventor, children’s book author, youtube newbie

Growing up in Real-Time
Alumni of Science Leadership Academy share their experiences of attending SLA and how the Internet is effecting their lives.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-panel-growing-up-in-real-time-5475039

Speakers:
Danielle Duncan
Danielle Villa (@yoovilla) Jerome McLeod (@jmcleod)
Josh Hendarto (@JoshuaRinaldi)
Maya Wright

MicroInterns: Taking the show on the road with middle-schoolers
The MicroIntern program is driven by the need to get kids out of the classroom not only virtually, but physically. The NY tech startup scene is a phenomenon happening right in our backyard and if I can release my kids to explore in that ecosystem, they will get to be a part of history.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-george-haines-5469357
Speaker: George Haines (@George_Haines) – Director of Technology, Sts. Philip and James School

Launching the Learning Career- The Critical Period of Years 0 to 3:? Although we don’t expect to see a 6 month old tweeting anytime soon, there are a host of PostPC era tools emerging – from touch screen to motion sensing to 3D interfaces – that make the digital world accessible to toddlers. Parents, as well as their toddlers, should be using these tools to better understand and support their babies as they transform from a relatively helpless newborn to a fully competent walking, talking, problem-solving 3 year old. There is no more important 3 year period in anyone’s learning career.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-don-burton-5469338
Speaker: Don Burton (@dcburton) – Founder, eebee’s Adventures

Feeding the hungry, using Twitter and PLN’s to bring the world to Rural Schools Yes, I come from a place where in some cases there are more cows than people. That is, however, no reason to isolate my staff and students from the big wide world. I have used my PLN, all of whom I have “met” using Twitter to create, connect and collaborate. – http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-katie-mcfarland-5469369
Speaker: Katie McFarland (@Katiemc827) – Staff Development Specialist, Cattaraugus Allegany BOCES

Working On The Edge of Learning Through Digital Media The Edge Project, designed by Global Kids with support from the MacArthur Foundation, expands the capacity of civic and cultural institutions to use new media as innovative educational platforms that engage youth in learning and promote civic participation.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-barry-joseph-5469388
Speaker: Barry Joseph (@barryjoseph) – Online Leadership Program, Global Kids, Inc.

My campaign against corporal punishment in public schools.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-marc-ecko-5469424
Speaker: Marc Ecko (@marcecko) – founder, Marc Ecko Enterprises

Parents Panel: Parents of SLA A discussion with the parents of students attending Science Leadership Academy
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-parents-panel-parents-of-sla-5469471

Speakers:
Anthony Stover
Carla Sanders
Chris Lehmann (@chrislehmann) – Principal of the Science Leadership Academy
Lisa Heller
Melody Demis

The Living Museum: A model for education
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-janos-marton-5469496
Speaker: Janos Marton – Director, The Living Museum

Get Wiki With It I will share the variety of web-based tools students can utilize to enhance content area learning.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-michele-haiken-5469532
Speaker: Michele Haiken (@TeachingFactor) – Founder, theteachingfactor

The Tech Commandments – Ways we can revitalize education using technology I believe there are ten basic ideas that can help us better integrate technology in the academic setting and make education better in this country.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-adam-bellow-5469551
Speaker: Adam Bellow (@adambellow) – Founder, eduTecher

Changing our ring tones Changing our “default settings” as learners
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-shelly-krause-5474324
Speakers:
Michael Fedorochko (@mikefed)
Nikila Kakarla (@npkakarla)
Shelley Krause (@butwait) – Academic Matchmaker & Tribe Finder, Rutgers Preparatory School

#harvard: university communications & the social web Harvard will celebrate its 375th anniversary this autumn, and at the same time is developing a forward-looking digital footprint consistent with 21st century communications.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-perry-hewitt-5474355
Speaker: Perry Hewitt (@perryhewitt) – Director – Digital, Harvard University

Higher Education: Real Alerts in Real Time When news breaks audiences want to know information as soon as possible. Journalists and bloggers are now working with local citizens to report what happens in real time using social media and smart phones. The same can be said for education.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-andrea-michnik-5469595
Speaker: Andrea G. Michnik (@AndreaGenevieve) – Director of PR and Social Media Marketing, International Studies Abroad

Telling the Truth Telling the truth makes what seems impossible manageable, and our technology now mandates we do so. The tremendous potential of a world with full transparency via platforms like Twitter is the heightened accountability demands our fullest potential.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-will-craig-5469623
Speaker: Will Craig (@WillCraigatPWP) – Educational Director at Partners With Parents and Director of Educational Programming at The Handel Group

Majoring in Life Our education system is not producing innovating thinkers but rather training student to follow directions. People are afraid to leave university to pursue their passions because a college degree is considered requisite for success. We must move beyond this thinking.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-dale-stephens-5469901
Speaker: Dale J. Stephens (@DaleJStephens) – Leader of the @UnCollege movement. Evangelist

=========== Videos On Demand from #140edu – Day 2 ===========

Less talking. More Doing
Public education is the biggest Fail Whale of our generation and we are all to blame. Our Federal and State governments have dropped the ball. People with financial means have fled to private schools. And Silicon Valley has not succeeded in any technical innovation. The current public dialog is filled with divisive finger pointing and circuitous debate. Yet there still is no roadmap for change. We don’t have to be victims of this dysfunction. Education is an inherently local issue and we all have the power to rise up, organize and transform our schools for the 21st century.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-barry-schuler-5469972
Speaker: Barry Schuler (@BSchuler) – Chairman, New Tech Network; Director, KnowledgeWorks Foundation

Teaching kids to program around the world
Using social media to scale guerilla teaching
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-lynn-langit-5474396
Speaker: Lynn Langit (@llangit) – co-founder of Teaching Kids Programming

YouTube, MyTube
How Kids see online video
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-samantha-langit-5474378
Speaker: Samantha Langit – 6th Grade Student

School Improvement One Character at a Time
Since joining Twitter in March of 2009 I have successfully learned and effectively utilized a variety of social media tools to improve my school. I would like to share how I have harnessed the power of these tools to improve communications
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-eric-sheninger-5469999
Speaker: Eric Sheninger (@NMHS_Principal) – Principal, New Milford High School

Protecting Kids’ Privacy Online Protecting Kids’ Privacy Online A discussion about what parents and educators can do to teach themselves and their kids about protecting and respecting their privacy and the privacy of others online. She’ll also share what Common Sense is doing to improve the privacy climate.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-tali-horowitz-5470009
Speaker: Tali Horowitz (@CommonSenseEdu) – Education Program Manager, Common Sense Media.

Levering Social Media to Increase and Quantity Student Engagement The internet is a decentralized place, with a lot of small, loosely-connected pieces, where individual engagement acts like a finicky firefly. Our traditional rules of on-campus physical student engagement need to be modified for an online world.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-tom-krieglstein-5470025
Speaker: Tom Krieglstein (@tomkrieglstein) – Helping colleges create, increase, and measure student engagement as the founder of Swift Kick, creator of #SAchat and organizer of The NYEdTech Meetup.

Delicious.com for Education
Delicious.com and how educator’s can leverage it for teaching.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-gina-johnston-5474416
Speaker: Gina Johnston(@NHSoCal) – Social Media Strategist, New Horizons Computer Learning Centers of Southern California

Global collaborations for elementary age children
Blog project with 4th grade students with visits from around the globe. Twitter was used to connect teachers globally with the ultimate goal of creating authentic learning experiences for kids.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-kim-sivick-5470043
Speaker: Kim Sivick (@ksivick) – Coordinator of Lower School Technology, Springside Chestnut Hill Academy

Expressing Sustainability, Map by Map
Using the community as the classroom and drawing out youth perspectives on their home place as they map it – this has had really amazing impacts, and can transform a young person’s view of what they can do as a citizen designer without waiting to ‘grow up’
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-wendy-brawer-5470079
Speaker: Wendy Brawer (@GreenMap) – Designer of services and products for sustainable communities, locally and globally.

Alternatives to an Outdated Education Model
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-panel-alternatives-to-an-outdated-education-model-5470112

Speakers:

Donna Murdoch (@donnamurdoch) – Technology, Communication, and Education Sector, New York

Dr. Douglas Green (@drdouggreen) – Retired Principal, Education Consultant based in Endicott, New York and blogger for DrDougGreen.Com

John Mikulski (@JohnMikulski) – Middle School English Language Arts Teacher, Host of the Tightwad Teacher podcast, Classroominthecloud.net

Shelly S Terrell (@ShellTerrell) – Educator, tech trainer, Edtech, Elearning, TEFL. #Edchat coordinator.

How school districts can engage their communities using technology
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-erik-endress-547012
Speaker: Erik Endress (@erikendress) – Interactive & Social Media Specialist, New Jersey School Boards Association

The Intern / Big Business Relationship How speaking up can help both interns and companies can get more out of internships, and what results business leaders need to see from these programs.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-jane-barratt-5470147
Speaker: Jane Barratt (@JaneBarratt285) – Global Marketer & Advertising Agency President

Cheating Students: Can the Real-Time Web Create Truth-Telling in the Humanities? Issues of cheating and privacy are at the forefront of professors’ concerns about social media in higher education (Pearson Social Media Study, 2011). Our lack of trust is systemic. Engagement is so minimal listening to students is rarely allowed. Classroom conversation is often limited to the last 5-10 mins of a 75-minute class. With over 18 million students currently enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities, how can professors justify the mission of producing great citizens, future professionals and great human beings with a 44% dropout rate? That’s nearly 8 million people. Facebook, alone, has more than 750 million active users as of Jan 2011. Here, I’ll share how my participation on Twitter, along with other real-time web tools, helped me cultivate an environment for truth-telling and making a difference in my anthropology and racism courses. Twitter is a sharer’s market and it (along with other real-time web tools like Skype and Facebook) has taught me more about how professors cheat students when we don’t listen to them as adults rather than protecting some abstract “privacy” or answer key.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-kyra-gaunt-5470171
Speaker: Kyra D. Gaunt, Ph.D. (@kyraocity) – TED Fellow 2009. Voicing the unspoken thru song, scholarship & social media.

Using Games to Deliver Motivation for Learning
Many people talk about “gamification” for education, but I think that oftentimes the idea (and the products) get developed without a real focus on *why* we might implement game mechanics over educational content. This talk is about the ways that games can serve to provide a context for delivering motivation. Within a game, we have concrete definitions for reward, competition, collaboration — and there are specific mini-goals that build up to a larger achievement. All of these things, if implemented correctly, can mesh with educational content to motivate and engage kids to learn the content. In an ideal implementation, this is a “deep integration,” rather than a discrete layer that’s painted over what is essentially a set of flashcards. Throughout my talk I’ll give examples of software that does it well — pulling from my company’s own creations, my competitors’ work, and historical examples.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-mahipal-raythattha-5470860
Speaker: Mahipal Raythattha (@mahipalr) – Founder, Brain Racer Inc.

“Is College Worth It?” Discussion Featuring those in the midst of it – young adults from the Net Generation – we will be discussing how the real time web is influencing – and continuing – the “Is College Worth It?” debate.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-2-11-debra-eckerling-5474465

Speakers:
Debra Eckerling (@campusexplorer) – Senior Editor, Campus Explorer

Ethan Bodnar (@ethanbodnar) – - Designer and senior at Hartford Art School (@HartfordArt)

Kristen Durkin (@Kristen_Durkin) – Graduate student at New York University, Huffington Post Blogger and Marketing Manager at Kforce Inc.

Linnea Keys (@linneakeys) – Junior at Johns Hopkins University with a double major in History and East Asian Studies

Ahead Out of the Gate: Students Using Social Media to Hack Their Education
More and more, students are securing jobs and careers for themselves while spending less time in the classroom. By plugging themselves into Twitter, Tumblr and the host of social sites, students put themselves on an equal playing field with journalists
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-kelly-sutton-5470892
Speaker: Kelly Sutton (@KellySutton) – Founder, HackCollege

Giving Credibility to the Shadow Education System
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-douglas-crets-5470912

Speakers:

Douglas Crets (@DouglasCrets) – Director, dB C Media
Jeremy Johnson (@jeremyj)
Matt Mahoney (@mpm)

Let’s Start a Learning Revolution Michael Karnjanaprakorn, founder of Skillshare, debunks the myth that a college degree leads to success and explores how we can create a learning revolution together.
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-mike-karnjanaprakorn-5470958
Speaker: Mike Karnjanaprakorn (@mikekarnj) – Co-founder, Skillshare

Educators Taking Control of their Own Professional Development: The Edcamp Model
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-panel-educators-taking-control-of-their-own-professional-development-the-edcamp-model-5471079

Speakers:

Ann Leaness (@aleaness) – HS English Teacher, Grad Ed Adjunct and EdCampPhilly co-organizer

Karen Blumberg (@SpecialKRB) – NYCIST President.TEDxNYED,TEDxYouth@TheSchool, EdCampNYC, RoboExpo organizer.

Meenoo Rami (@mrami2) – HS English teacher- Founder & moderator of #engchat. Teacher-Consultant for #nwp through #philwp and teacher at the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia

Shelly S Terrell (@ShellTerrell) – Educator, tech trainer, Edtech, Elearning, TEFL. #Edchat coordinator.

The Philly Youth Poetry Movement
- http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-gregory-corbin-5471120
Speaker: Gregory Corbin (@JustGregPoet) – Executive Director, Philly Youth Poetry Movement.

Beer Parties and Math: Teaching Math so students GET IT! The reason that we are now #34 in the world in mathematics has nothing to do with our kids. It has a lot do to with who is teaching the mathematics, and how the information is being communicated – actually NOT communicated.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-randee-schneeberg-5471136
Speaker: Randee Schneeberg (@RandeeCEO) – Founder, Just Math Enterprises

The Education Bubble There’s a massive Education Bubble that’s brewing, with people coming out of college $100-200K in debt, prepared for a world that not longer exists, with degrees not worth the paper its printed on. Then there’s the DIY and self-education movement, especially for entrepreneurs and creatives who are continuing to reinvent the playing field of their careers as they go along. Not to mention a $6 billion self-help industry and growing. Which is why online education is also blowing up. Social media is a force for self-learning if not self-actualization…exploring the process of identity formation, creative voice, and self-definition.
– http://blip.tv/140confevents/140edu-8-3-11-michael-margolis-5474488
Speaker: Michael Margolis (@getstoried) – President and Founder, Get Storied

====
Links to the twitter accounts of the #140edu speakers:

Adam Bellow – @adambellow
Andrea G. Michnik – @AndreaGenevieve
Ann Leaness – @aleaness
Barry Joseph – @barryjoseph
Barry Schuler – @BSchuler
Chris Lehmann – @chrislehmann
Christian Long – @ChristianLong
Cynthia Lawson – @cynthialawson
Dale J. Stephens – @DaleJStephens
Danielle Villa – @yoovilla
David A. Singer – @DavidASinger
Debra Eckerling – @campusexplorer
Don Burton – @dcburton
Donna Murdoch – @donnamurdoch
Douglas Crets – @DouglasCrets
Dr. Douglas Green – @drdouggreen
Eric Sheninger – @NMHS_Principal
Erik Endress – @erikendress
Ethan Bodnar – @ethanbodnar
George Haines – @George_Haines
Gina Johnstonl – @NHSoCal
Gregory Corbin – @JustGregPoet
Inga Rós – @Inga_Ros
Jack Hidary – @jackhidary
Jane Barratt – @JaneBarratt285
Jeff Keni Pulver – @jeffpulver
Jeremy Johnson – @jeremyj
Jerome McLeod – @jmcleod
John Mikulski – @JohnMikulski
Josh Hendarto – @JoshuaRinaldi
Karen Blumberg – @SpecialKRB
Katie McFarland – @Katiemc827
Kelly Sutton – @KellySutton
Kim Sivick – @ksivick
Kristen Durkin – @Kristen_Durkin
Kyra D. Gaunt, Ph.D. – @kyraocity
Linnea Keys – @linneakeys
Lisa Nielsen – @InnovativeEdu
Louis N. Wool – @louisnwool
Lynn Langit – @llangit
Mahipal Raythattha – @mahipalr
Marc Ecko – @marcecko
Matt Mahoney – @mpm
Meenoo Rami – @mrami2
Mel Rosenberg – @MelRosenberg
Michael Fedorochko – @mikefed
Michael Margolis – @getstoried
Michele Haiken – @TeachingFactor
Mike Karnjanaprakorn – @mikekarnj
Nikila Kakarla – @npkakarla
Patrick Higgins – @pjhiggins
Perry Hewitt – @perryhewitt
Randee Schneeberg – @RandeeCEO
Rebecca Levey – @beccasara
Shelley Krause – @butwait
Shelly S Terrell – @ShellTerrell
Steven W. Anderson – @web20classroom
Tali Horowitz – @CommonSenseEdu
Tom Krieglstein – @tomkrieglstein
Tom Whitby – @tomwhitby
Wendy Brawer – @GreenMap
Will Craig – @WillCraigatPWP
Michael Margolis (@getstoried)