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Group photo of BetaNYC staff and community members smiling on stage at an event. Overlaid text reads: “What’s New in NYC Civic Tech? Week 41 of 2025.” Below, a white text box lists highlights: “Share your insights in our Workforce Development Employer Survey! • School of Data and Open Data Week 2026 call for proposals • Join us at our upcoming events!” The bottom text reads, “Curated by BetaNYC and YOU!”

What’s New in NYC Civic Tech – October 10, 2025

Gabby Langston

This week, we’re pausing our usual civic tech news and updates to share something special. Our Chief of Staff, Jazzy Smith, has an exciting update about how BetaNYC is growing our efforts to support the next generation of public interest technologists. Read her message below!

Calling All Employers Working for the Public Good! 💼

At BetaNYC, we believe the next generation of technologists should be ready to serve for the public good. For more than a decade, we’ve invested in CUNY students and community-minded learners through a year-long fellowship that builds real-world skills in open data, GIS, event production, leadership, local government, and accessible data visualization.

With support from the Siegel Family Endowment, we’re now researching to expand this program into a workforce development program to prepare students for emerging Public Interest Technology (PIT) careers and for a future where AI impacts our fields. AI jobs—We need your insight to ensure our training reflects the realities of today’s workforce.

If you’re an employer working at the intersection of technology and the public good, we invite you to give your input in our short Workforce Development Employer Survey:  https://beta.nyc/pit-wfd 

Your feedback helps us improve and update our training curriculum so it better aligns with workforce needs, while also informing partners across higher education, government, and industry to strengthen New York City’s PIT talent pipeline. It also guides the design of future workforce development and alumni programs—ensuring our graduates continue to grow as civic technologists.

As a thank-you for your time and thoughtful feedback, we will be selecting a small number of survey participants to join an exclusive dinner with BetaNYC staff, an employer partner, a university representative, and a student fellow. Stay tuned for the surveys for academics, university partners, and students—we can’t wait to hear from you!

— Jazzy Smith

This Week’s Civic Tech Actions ✅

Light purple graphic promoting BetaNYC’s workforce development survey. Text reads: “Are you an employer using tech for the public good? Your input can help shape NYC’s tech workforce! Take our survey! beta.nyc/pit-wfd.” To the right, a simple black line drawing depicts a hand holding a megaphone. The BetaNYC logo appears in the top right corner.
Graphic announcement for NYC School of Data’s Call for Proposals. The phrase “CALL FOR PROPOSALS” is repeated twice in alternating blue and orange block letters. To the right, there’s an orange and blue megaphone with the words “NYC School of Data” inside. At the bottom, text reads: “Learn more at schoolofdata.nyc,” alongside the NYC School of Data 2026 and BetaNYC logos.

Upcoming Events with BetaNYC 🎊

Flyer titled “Mapping for Equity.” The event takes place at Luther Gulick Park & Sidney Hillman Playground. Subheading reads: “Using OpenStreetMap and BetaNYC’s Mapping for Equity Toolkit in Your Community.” Below that, it states: “Field Mapping On-Site, Friday, October 10th, 3pm–5pm, Luther Gulick Park.” Text explains that BetaNYC will teach participants how to create equitable and accessible spaces by mapping parks and public spaces into OpenStreetMap to ensure equal representation in data. Illustrations include a vintage streetlamp, a wooden park bench, a green wire trash can, and a red fire hydrant. At the bottom, there’s a green registration button labeled “Register: beta.nyc/e251010-rsvp,” followed by BetaNYC’s logo and contact email (events@beta.nyc ).
Bright fall-themed flyer with an orange-to-yellow gradient background decorated with floating autumn leaves and a smiling jack-o’-lantern. Large text reads: “Join us for the Fall Open Data Week Meet-up Happy Hour.” Event details: Thursday, October 16, 2025, 5–8 pm at Sound + Fury Brewery and Kitchen, 141 Lawrence St, Brooklyn, NY 11201. Icons of a calendar and map pin appear next to the details. At the bottom are logos for NYC Office of Technology and Innovation (NYC OTI), BetaNYC, and Data Through Design (DxD).
Colorful sci-fi themed poster for the NYC Public Interest Technology (PIT) Pop Up event. The background features a futuristic cityscape with skyscrapers and subway signs for Fulton Street and the 4/5/A/C lines. In the foreground, three stylized figures in futuristic gear look upward — one with large headphones, another holding digital tablets, and a third in an orange and blue outfit. Event details read: “The Oculus, Oct 27 – Nov 6, 2025.” At the bottom are logos for CUNY (The City University of New York), CUNY PIT Lab, PIT-UN (Public Interest Technology University Network), and BetaNYC.
Flyer titled “Mapping for Equity.” The event takes place at Herbert Von King Park. Subheading reads: “Using OpenStreetMap and BetaNYC’s Mapping for Equity Toolkit in Your Community.” Below that, it states: “Field Mapping On-Site, Saturday, November 15th, 10:30am–12:30pm, Meeting point: Almira Kennedy Coursey Amphitheatre.” The text explains that BetaNYC will teach how to create equitable and accessible spaces by mapping parks and public spaces into OpenStreetMap and ensuring equal representation in data. Illustrations include a vintage lamppost, a wooden park bench, a green trash can, and a red fire hydrant. At the bottom, there’s a green registration button labeled “Register: beta.nyc/e251115-rsvp,” followed by BetaNYC’s logo and contact email (events@beta.nyc ).

Support BetaNYC Today 💗

Every week, we share the latest civic tech stories, resources, and events shaping a more open and equitable New York City. Our newsletter is built for residents, advocates, and public interest technologists who believe in using data and technology for the public good.

If our updates have helped you learn something new, connect with others, or take action, we hope you’ll consider supporting our work. 

Visit beta.nyc/support-us-no-king.

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