BALTIMORE (December 5, 2000) - The 6th annual Maryland Technology Showcase - spread over 325,000 square-feet of the Baltimore Convention Center - launches a two-day run Wednesday, December 6. Open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., the Showcase - which features more than 300 exhibits - is free and is expected to draw more than 12,000 visitors. Special $3 parking will be available at nearby Camden Yards.
Lt. Governor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, along with leaders from business, education and government, will participate in the official ribbon cutting ceremony kicking off the nationally recognized high-tech expo. Following the ribbon cutting, Lt. Governor Townsend will join State School Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick and officials from America Online (AOL) as they announce a major online education partnership between the Maryland State Department of Education and AOL.
When the Showcase opens at 10:00 a.m., visitors will gain insights into the State's vision for the new economy - how education and technology combine to impact workforce development, skills enhancement, higher education, and business. Additionally, the Showcase will provide Marylanders with a preview of the eMaryland Portal that is under development at the University of Maryland, College Park.
"High-tech is the fastest growing sector of our economy and is changing the way each of us communicates, works, learns and lives," said Lt. Governor Townsend, Chair of the Cabinet Council on Business, Economic Development and Transportation. "The Technology Showcase features an outstanding array of seminars and demonstrations of the latest advancements in technology and workshops featuring Maryland's leading edge companies. Marylanders will also be pleased to see what State agencies are doing to improve the lives of our citizens by facilitating the application of new technologies, including the new eMaryland Portal, into everyday activities."
The largest technology event of its kind in the nation, the Showcase allows visitors to learn about today's newest products and services in a hands-on environment where seeing is believing; meet face-to-face with hundreds of companies; and gain information to help them grow Maryland businesses with the best and most sophisticated products on the market today.
With its abundance of high-wage workers, a modern and efficient distribution network and several technology centers already in place, Maryland represents the future of technology. The Maryland Technology Showcase, the premier large-platform networking and applications event focuses on technology adoption and how it accelerates all sectors of Maryland's economy. And it's free!
Through keynote addresses, breakout sessions, roundtable conferences, and plenty of hands-on demonstrations, the Showcase advances Maryland's high-tech assets--technology, trade, and education. It provides practical knowledge about the latest advancements in technology and how they affect the lives of Maryland's citizens as well as the State's businesses, schools and government.
More than 150,000 high-tech jobs exist in Maryland today, according to the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. The number of high-tech jobs is growing at the phenomenal rate of almost 5.6 percent a year . . . nearly four times the rate of growth of the entire private sector.
Maryland is the national model for delivering government services over the Internet. The Showcase will provide a platform for a preview of the eMaryland Portal, which will allow citizens to come to one place electronically to access their State government. Fifty percent of State services will be available through the Internet by 2002, 65 percent by 2003, and 80 percent by 2004, according to Major F. Riddick, Jr., the Governor's Chief of Staff and Chairman of the State Information Technology Board.
Maryland State agencies will display leading technology initiatives. Featured pavilions deal with futuristic medical technology, transportation, workforce development and Maryland's federal labs. The Showcase also features free K-12 education workshops, the popular Library Media Center along with a panel discussion on Digital Learning, eGovernment workshops, four general session keynotes, more than 50 breakout sessions, two one-day workshops, an IT procurement vendor forum and the CIO Roundtable.
The lead-off keynote speaker for the Showcase is C. D. "Dan" Mote, Jr. president of the University of Maryland. Dr. Mote's December 6 kick-off breakfast (ticket required) topic is "Maryland Economic Development: The 150,000-foot View." Other keynote speakers include Jim Speros, CEO, Sideware Corporation; Jamie McKenzie, the editor of "From Now One" the Web-based Educational Technology Journal; and Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
Baltimore radio host Mark Steiner will broadcast his popular show live from the Portal Pavilion on December 6. Steiner's guests on WJHU-FM (88.1) will be University of Maryland president Dr. C. D. "Dan" Mote, Jr. and Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. They will discuss the role of research universities in regional economic development.
For more information, visit the Showcase Web site at www.mdtechshowcase.com.
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CONTACT:
Dave Humphrey, Director of External Affairs
DGS Office of External Affairs
410-767-4652
E-MAIL: Dave.Humphrey@dgs.state.md.us
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