The National Capital Area Tour de Cure is taking place this Sunday, June 5th 2011 at the Reston Town Center in Reston, VA.  The Tour de Cure is a series of fundraising events hosted by the American Diabetes Association (ADA).  The Tour de Cure is a “premier cycling event held in 80 locations in 33 states” that last year featured over 49,000 participants who helped raise over $19 million to support the ADA’s mission. The event is family friendly and features rides for all ages and cycling levels from the 10 mile ride to the big 100 mile ride.

Registration is still open and you can also check-in on the morning of the event. For all the information you need to know and to register, visit the National Capital Area Tour de Cure website at www.diabetes.org/nationalcapitaltourdecure

MetroStar Systems is proud to be a sponsor for this event and we will also be supporting the event with our MyStanly Twitter display tool. If you are participating in the event or if you are in the Reston area on Sunday, stop by our booth! You can follow the conversation on Twitter by searching the hashtag #TourdeCureDC, follow @TourdeCureDC, and keep track of MyStanly’s #TourdeCureDC feed.

The Department of State’s Tech@State team will be hosting the 5^th edition of Tech@State events at the Jack Morton Auditorium in the Media and Public Affairs building of George Washington University on Friday May 27 and Saturday May 28. Over 200 attendees will “explore the mechanics of games, business and sustainability, design, education, international aspects, games for social change and much more.”

MetroStar Systems will be supporting the Tech@State team with our MyStanly twitter moderation/display application, and our CEO Ali Manouchehri is slated to speak on two separate panels on Day 1. He will first address the topic of “Games, Business and Sustainability” and then present with a panel about “Military and Government games”.  The event features an impressive collection of government, academic, non-profit, and industry experts/tech innovators who will be sharing their experiences and exploring many aspects of serious games. The agenda and complete schedule is now available at the Tech@State blog.

Here are some additional URL links that may be helpful if you are interested in attending or want more information:

• Tech@State website:  http://tech.state.gov/
• Tech@State: Serious Games event registration:  http://techatstate-srsgames.eventbrite.com/
• Event Agenda & Schedule:  http://tech.state.gov/profiles/blogs/serious-games-content-and
• Bios of speakers & panelists:  http://tech.state.gov/profiles/blogs/serious-games-speaker-bios

For those of you who cannot attend the event, you are in luck! This event will be live streamed on Tech@State’s UStream channel: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/tech-state.  You can also follow the conversation on twitter by searching the hashtag #TechAtState and following our live tweets @metrostarsystem.

*** Updated 5/31/2011 ***

The event was a great success with excellent panels, great presentations, and great ideas shared. Here is a video of the “Military and Government Games” panel that Ali moderated at the end of Day 1:

Video streaming by Ustream

Video footage provided courtesy of Washington Adventist HealthCare.

Last weekend, our CEO, Ali Reza Manouchehri, was awarded the Spirit of Innovation Award at the Washington Adventist Hospital 2010 Black Tie Gala. This annual event celebrates the ongoing legacy of Washington Adventist Hospital and its vision for 21st Century Health Care.

On behalf of MetroStar Systems, Ali was recognized for his thought leadership in technological innovation, designing solutions for Health Care and life sciences in the 21st Century, and providing Web 2.0 tools and Social Media strategy to improve communication and outreach.

Washington Adventist Hospital also recognized other distinguished leaders who embody the philosophy of their 21st Century Health Care vision. Following is a complete list of the awards:

Inaugural Award Presentations

Drs. Lauretta & James Kress Spirit of Mission Award

Bill Novelli

Founder & Former President, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

Spirit of Partnership Award

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Russell J. Abbott, Deputy Commissioner

LabQuest

Betsy Bretz, Chairwoman

Spirit of Innovation Award

Ali Reza Manouchehri

Chief Executive Officer, MetroStar Systems

Distinguished Physician Legacy Award

Kenneth Cruze, MD

James Ronan, MD

William G. “Bill” Robertson Spirit of Service Award

William G. “Bill” Robertson

President & CEO, Adventist HealthCare

Many thanks to Jere Stocks (President) and the Washington Adventist Hospital team for hosting this great event.  To learn more about Washington Adventist Hospital and its vision, check out their new “Our Vision for the Future” video:

Our President, Robert Santos, sums it up best when he notes, “The talented and diverse individuals that make up our company continually provide innovative approaches to our customers’ challenges, allowing the company to grow and succeed.“

Here is a list of the awards and recognitions that we have recently won:

Washington Business Journal recognizes MetroStar Systems as the 10^th Fastest Growing Companies in the Washington region in 2010.

Honored as Number 45 on Washington Technology’s “Fast 50″ awards list

Ranked Number 139 in the Government Services section of the 2010 Inc. 5000

*You can read more about these awards in our latest press release.

The Imagine Cup U.S. Finals event was held on Monday, April 26, 2010 in Washington, DC at the Newseum.  The Imagine Cup is the world’s premiere student technology competition sponsored by Microsoft.  The annual competition, now in its 8th year, encourages and empowers students to use technology, innovation, and their creativity to change the world by addressing social and environmental issues.  Compared to the 2009 competition that had only 2,000 applicants, participation in this year’s U.S. competition skyrocketed and attracted over 22,000 applicants! Of these, a distinguished group of only 80 students were selected to compete in the finals over the weekend.

As a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, MetroStar Systems was invited to participate and attend.  Our CEO Ali Manouchehri was a featured representative on the Industry Partner Panel that reviewed the student entries and gave the students a chance to ask questions and get advice about technology, industry trends, and their future careers. I got the chance to attend the U.S. Finals event that featured the student Finalist Presentations, Keynote Addresses, and Award Presentations.

The student finalists got to showcase and demo their applications and games in presentations before the judges and a community showcase open to the attendees.  The finalists projects were quite diverse, innovative, and inspiring.  They included:

In the Software Design Finalist Presentations…

• Team Extraplaid: A pollution monitoring system accessible by mobile headsets
• Team MangoBunnies: A mobile & web message alert system to inform users of unsafe areas for women
• Team Mobilife: A mobile tool to diagnose vascular diseases
• Team Blob: A multi-touch designer to help teachers create interactive presentations

In the Game Design Finalist Presentations…

• Team Coffee Powered Altruism: A strategy game to tackle development issues of a country or region.
• Team Level 13: A video game that combats pollution through cultivating plants around the world.
• Team To Be Announced: An educational game that involves a series of quest challenges.
• Team Ifrit Salsa: A game that promotes a cleaner environment by collecting, sorting and recycling different items.

The keynote addresses were a highlight at this event and featured Academy Award Winning Master Filmmaker James Cameron to the surprise and delight of the attendees.  James Cameron spoke about his relationship and work with Microsoft that began years ago in development of his recent film Avatar that is now the highest-grossing film ever.  He worked with Microsoft on the innovative 3D initiatives and pioneering technology for the 3D stereoscopic cameras that is predicted to change the face of cinema forever.  Cameron spoke about the importance of technology, education, building strong future leaders, and how the Imagine Cup event is a wonderful “collision of social issues and technology” (much like his film Avatar).

Also giving great keynote speeches were Craig Mundie (Chief Research and Strategy Officer, Microsoft), Karen Cantor (Director of the Office of Education Technology, U.S. Department of Education), and Anthony Salcito (Vice President Worldwide Education, Microsoft).  You can view video of the keynote speeches and event highlights, check the image gallery for photos in Microsoft’s News Center, or visit the Imagine Cup website to learn more about world finals in Poland later this summer and to get more info on next year’s competition.  Congratulations to all of the students who participated this year and special congrats to the Imagine Cup U.S. 2010 Winning teams!

RESTON, VA, March 24 /PRNewswire/ – MetroStar Systems, a leader in full-service information technology (IT) and strategies for new media and social networks, today announced the launch of its new contest platform, Votridea, which is optimized for government use. Votridea fosters innovation by engaging and managing large communities in social networks. The contest platform is designed to foster challenges and capture ideas with proven community management tools.

On March 8, 2010, Federal Chief Performance Officer Jeffrey Zients released a memorandum outlining, “Guidance on the Use of Challenges and Prizes to Promote Open Government“.  This memorandum was in direct support of the Obama Administration’s commitment to open government, and how it can help drive innovation and other national priorities. The memorandum states, “The Administration believes that prizes and challenges have a number of potential benefits…they may allow the government to…highlight excellence in a particular domain of human endeavor to motivate, inspire and guide others…[to] further a federal agency’s mission by attracting more interest and attention to a defined program, activity or issue of concern…” Votridea fully complies within these guidelines and the newly released DOD Social Media Policy, allowing agencies to engage and expand their communities.

“MetroStar has proven performance in creating and managing contests to help drive government innovation and grow cultural awareness,” said Ali Reza Manouchehri, Founder and CEO of MetroStar Systems. “We’ve just completed the Department of State’s second ExchangesConnect Video Contest. Participants responded to the theme, ‘Change Your Climate, Change Our World.’ Votridea allows us to utilize our experience and lessons learned to help government drive innovation and public participation, creating the best possible platform and support for our customer.”

The Votridea Contest Platform seamlessly integrates with popular Web 2.0 tools such as Facebook, Twitter and Ning to catalyze rapid and scalable participant growth. The platform is scalable supporting agency communities, allowing agencies to target focus their contest within a small group or extend to a global reach. Votridea offers a Community Management Dashboard that allows even computer novices to manage the quality and quantity of participant contributions. Votridea supports text, photos and video to encourage participation in the selected medium of agency or contestant choice. For additional product information, please contact Johnny Nguyen (jnguyen@metrostarsystems.com) or @metrostarsystem on Twitter.

To learn more about Votridea, please visit http://www.metrostarsystems.com/socialtoolbox/

MCM Event Series 2010

As a part of our sponsorship of the 2010 Marine Corps Marathon (MCM) Event Series, we are pleased to announce our sponsorship of the MCM Run2Register 10K event that is taking place on Saturday, March 27, 2010 at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, VA.  Here are some important details about the event:

• Participants can secure a slot in the 35th Marine Corps Marathon Main event which will be held later this year on Saturday, October 31st, 2010 in Washington, DC.  All finishers of the Run2Register 10K ages 14 and older will receive a guaranteed, non-complimentary entry into the MCM, days before online registration is available to the general public.
• Date: Saturday, March 27th, 2010
• Time: 8:00 AM
• Location: Marine Corps Base in Quantico, VA
• Complete Info: MCM Run2Register 10K website

Members of the MetroStar Systems team will be participating in the race and others will supporting the Marine Marathon event team and cheering on the runners.  Immediately following the MCM Run2Register 10 K event will be the 28th Irish Sprint One-Miler that is still open to the public for registration.  We are proud to be supporting this event and are looking forward to it.  Let us know if you are participating or plan to be there!

]]> http://blog.metrostarsystems.com/2010/03/11/metrostar-is-sponsoring-the-marine-corps-marathons-run-to-register-10k-2010-event/feed/ 1 http://blog.metrostarsystems.com/2010/02/17/mostafa-elzohgbi-presenting-at-microsofts-2010-mvp-summit/ http://blog.metrostarsystems.com/2010/02/17/mostafa-elzohgbi-presenting-at-microsofts-2010-mvp-summit/#comments Wed, 17 Feb 2010 23:47:49 +0000 Daniel Nguyen http://blog.metrostarsystems.com/?p=2532 ... ]]> MetroStar Systems is pleased and proud to announce that our team member, Mostafa Elzohgbi, will be presenting at Microsoft’s exclusive 2010 MVP Global Summit which takes place February 16-19, 2010 at Microsoft Headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

Mostafa’s presentation will cover both C# and Sharepoint with his session titled “LINQ in Sharepoint 2010 Development.”

He will be joined by over 1,300 of the world’s top leaders from Microsoft’s MVP technical community who represent 96 countries, 37 languages, and span 94 Microsoft Technology areas.  Microsoft’s Most Valuable Professional (MVP) Program, in it’s 17th year, recognizes and awards individuals for their exceptional commitment in helping improve Microsoft’s products and in helping people around the world make the most of their Microsoft technology.  You can read more about Mostafa’s MVP recognition here: http://blog.metrostarsystems.com/2009/07/02/metrostar-systems-employee-receives-exclusive-microsoft-award/

You can follow the conversation around the 2010 MVP Global Summit by searching the #MVP10 hashtag and by following @MVPAwardProgram on Twitter.

For more information, you can also visit these links and resources:

• Connect with Mostafa Elzoghbi on Twitter
• Read Mostafa’s Blog
• 2010 Global Summit Website
• MVP Global Summit 2010 Blog
• MVP Award Program on Facebook
• The Microsoft MVP Award Program Blog
• Microsoft MVP Worldwide website

Source: www.FederalNewsRadio.com

You can read the web article “How Web 2.0 tools help victims of Hatian quake” and listen to an MP3 of the interview to learn more about these efforts.

How can you help?  A great benefit of technology and social media tools is that it makes it easier for us to help those in need. Here are some resources, links and information on how you can assist earthquake victims:

The following organizations are accepting SMS donations (U.S. only):

• SMS text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross relief efforts
• SMS text “YELE” to 501501 to Donate $5 to Yele Haiti’s Earthquake Relief efforts
• SMS text “GIVE10″ to 20222 to donate $10 to Direct Relief

For more information and ways to donate, you can visit the websites of these organizations that are providing support and aid to the earthquake victims and international relief efforts:

• American Red Cross
• UNICEF USA
• Yele Haiti
• Doctors Without Borders
• Direct Relief International
• Ushahidi

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti and all of those who are helping with this humanitarian emergency.

]]> http://blog.metrostarsystems.com/2010/01/15/how-web-2-0-tools-help-victims-of-hatian-quake/feed/ 1