BEACON, Henson School Mapping Sciences Group project earns recognition

SALISBURY, MD ---Shore Transit, a creative, forward-thinking and results-driven government program serving Somerset, Worcester and Wicomico counties, is among the 99 semifinalists in the prestigious 2002 Innovations in American Government Award competition--often referred to as the Oscars of government. The award recognizes outstanding programs that devise imaginative and effective ways to meet urgent social and economic challenges.

The Business, Economic and Community Outreach Network (BEACON) at Salisbury University's Franklin P. Perdue School of Business and SU's Henson School of Science and Technology's Mapping Sciences Group(MSG)helped to launch Shore Transit by leading regional stakeholders through a year-long transportation master planning process. Both BEACON and MSG have continued to provide logistical and management support to this network.

"Reaching this level in such an important competition demonstrates that the University's talents and resources can have a lasting impact on the surrounding community," said David Buchanan, provost of Salisbury University.

"We are very proud of this recognition for Shore Transit," said Memo Diriker, director of BEACON. "As the first fixed-route public transit system to link the three counties of the Lower Shore, we believe it really does represent innovative thinking that's making a difference."

Dedicated to making government work better, the Shore Transit program provides seamless, non-duplicative and cost-effective regional transportation services for residents of Somerset, Worcester and Wicomico counties.

The tri-county effort was selected from a pool of nearly 1,000 applicants. Fifteen finalists will be selected from the semifinalists in early winter 2002. Each semi-finalist is eligible for one of five top grants of $100,000.

The Innovations in American Government Award is a program of the Institute for Government Innovation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. The Institute is funded through an endowment from the Ford Foundation.