Meeting #4 -- Friday 4/13/12

http://howard-apps-dev.blogspot.com

2:00 pm to 3:30 pm

The group held its fourth meeting in the conference room in the iLab . Eight members attended, and it was another very productive meeting ... :-)
A. Members Present

• Mr. Zachary Scott, Jr (Business)
• Mr. Paul Alade, Junior (Electrical Engineering)
  
• Mr. O. Joshua Durodola ((Electrical Engineering)
• Mr. Vernon Jones (Enterprise Technology Systems)
• Mr. Nigel Randall (Computer Science)
• Mr. Jeremy Blackstone (Computer Science)
• Mr. Timothy Staton-Davis (Computer Science)
• Dr. Roy Beasley (Office of the Provost)

 B. Brief Summary of Main Points

• After brief introductions of new members and reintroductions of old members to each other, it was noted that three of the six students attending had backgrounds in finance or financial technology, and three were focused on computer science.
• The three students from finance/financial technology had had internships with Goldman Sachs and UBS
• The group discussed the "Framework" that Dr. B. had posted on the blog
• It was noted that the Framework's section on "Key Players" (Section II) was missing an important segment, Howard University's alumni, some of whom were working in investment firms that were supporting high-tech start-up operations and/or had their own funds to invest. It was also missing a section on business plans and business models -- which are as important as technology for a successful high-tech start-up operation.
• It was agreed that the group should utilize LinkedIn and/or Google Plus to mobilize a network of current students and alums
• Mr. Jones asked for examples of apps that other colleges had developed that were similar to the proposed Howard App ... Dr. B referred him to the links on the "Howard App" page on the blog for examples ... Then Mr. Jones asked for a specific list of the functions that the Howard App would provide for its users ... and Mr. Scott volunteered to provide such a list. The group agreed that it would develop an early Beta for the Howard App that would provide just a few of these functions; the full Howard-App would be developed and maintained by the University's Enterprise Technology Systems (ETS) department.
• It was noted the Dr. Burge, Chair of Computer Science and a member of the group, is currently running a class that introduces students to mobile apps. The other students in that class should be invited to become members of our group
• Mr. Scott volunteered to provide Dr. B. with the names/contact info for investors in the Washington, DC area who might support the Howard-Apps-Dev student incubator, e.g., Robert L Johnson (billionaire founder of BET) via his RLJ investment company (Bethesda, MD)
• When Dr. B asked if Stanford U had any special mechanisms in place that accounted for its extraordinary productivity of alums who founded successful high-tech start-ups, Mr. Scott noted that Stanford had a fund that financed student projects for new enterprises. It was agreed that the Howard-Apps-Dev group should approach investors to establish a similar fund at Howard for developing mobile app start-ups.
• The group will only hold two more meetings, then break for the summer. 
• Despite Dr. B's efforts to engage students from the Information Systems Department, none showed up today, but perhaps some might attend the last two meetings.
• During the summer, the student members should master the fundamentals of how to use the SDKs and other tools to develop mobile apps. These self-study programs should use the SDKs, Web-based tutorials, books, and other sources
• During the summer, Dr. B and the group's other staff and faculty will engage key players inside the University to obtain the formal recognition of the group by the University, arrange for course credit for students' participation in the group's activities, and arrange for permanent access to computers in the University's labs. They will also engage outside players to become members of an advisory committee, adjunct instructors, and  contributors of software tools and phones & tablets that can be used to test the apps developed by the group. 
• When the group reconvenes in the fall it will launch app development projects, including the first beta of the Howard App

C. Tasks to be Completed by Friday, April 27th, our last meeting.

• Invite other students in Dr. Burge's class to join the group ... Mr. Staton-Davis???
• Provide names and contact info for Washington DC investors who might become supporters of the group ... Mr. Scott
• Modify the Framework to include Howard Alums and business plans & models ... Dr. B
• Install the Apple SDK and other tools on workstations in the iLab's Mac classroom when the current install of Lion OS is stabilized ... We need volunteers
• Obtain a list of the functions that other colleges are including in their college apps ... Mr. Scott & Mr. Carey
• Load SDKs on designated machines in the CLDC (Engineering) for weekend access ... We need volunteers
• Compile a list of twitter feeds that deal with mobile apps ... Mr. Njoku
• Add the feeds to a twitter widget on the group's blog ... Dr. B.
• Check out intellectual property laws and regulations that may impact our group's activities ... Mr. Anozie  
• Initiate networking via LinkedIn  ... Dr. B ... DONE
• Initiate networking via Google Plus (for "huddles" with video, etc) ... Dr. B.