2024: Expansion and Repositioning

VERSO’s third year marked dramatic expansion in scale, scope, and impact. Building on the growth and institutionalization of 2023, student engagement increased five-fold, research collaborations nearly doubled, and the project portfolio grew from four to twenty-three repositories across diverse domains. A strategic organizational restructuring moved VERSO from the UVM Library to the Vermont Complex Systems Center and positioned it toward becoming an independent institute under the Office of the Vice President of Research. This repositioning strengthened interdisciplinary work while deepening connections with community engagement, establishing VERSO as both a research center and a bridge between academic innovation and real-world application.

Organizational Restructuring and Leadership Expansion

2024 brought significant structural changes that positioned VERSO for long-term sustainability. In January, the organization transitioned from the UVM Library to the Vermont Complex Systems Center, establishing greater independence and interdisciplinary reach. This move aligned VERSO with the Office of Engagement, deepening connections for community-focused research translation and positioning the office toward becoming an independent institute under the Office of the Vice President of Research.

Kendall Fortney’s role expanded accordingly, with a part-time lecturer position at the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences (CEMS) to teach the ORCA student internship course. Jonathan St-Onge rejoined VERSO as a Ph.D. Fellow, bringing specialized research expertise to deepen the organization’s scholarly contributions. These staffing changes supported VERSO’s evolution from a startup initiative to an established academic hub.

Spring 2024

Spring 2024 demonstrated VERSO’s growing visibility in regional and national forums. On January 9, Kendall Fortney presented “Empowering Research: Open Data Platforms in Academia” at UVM’s Day of Data Techniques and Tools. The organization expanded educational offerings through guest lectures at UVM (April 11) and a presentation at Leadership Champlain’s Energy and Environment Day (April 9) on the Vermont Zoning Atlas project.

A major curricular initiative launched in January: an upper-level course on open-source principles co-taught by Juniper Lovato and Kendall Fortney. This course became foundational to the ORCA student internship program, with materials made available both for academic credit and as free educational content on YouTube, significantly expanding accessibility to open-source knowledge beyond UVM’s campus.

Summer 2024

Summer 2024 solidified VERSO’s leadership role in national and international open-source conversations. Kendall Fortney presented “Empowering Innovation: The Journey from Academic Research to Open Source Impact” at the Rural Entrepreneurship Symposium (June 19-21), and participated in the RISE Summit 2024 panel “Placemaking Tools: Maps, Drones, and Data” (June 24-25) alongside Holly Morehouse and Paige Brochu.

VERSO’s convening power expanded significantly with the organization of the CURIOSS Members Summer Workshop (June 27), a member-only gathering exploring challenges and opportunities for open source in academia. Kendall Fortney participated in the United Nations OSPOS for Good (July 9-10, New York City) panel on “Cooperating OSPOs – Across Society,” and engaged with the Linux Foundation working group on starting OSPOs in academic institutions (July 11). In late July, VERSO organized and hosted PyData Vermont 2024 (July 29-30), a major data science conference in partnership with NumFOCUS, featuring interactive sessions on the future of data science in the region.

Fall 2024

Fall 2024 continued VERSO’s intensive engagement across academic, community, and advocacy spheres. Guest lectures expanded across multiple UVM courses: Design Innovation (September 16), Advanced Programming (October 24 and November 12), and Data Science 1 (October 30). Beyond campus, VERSO engaged with regional initiatives including a presentation on open data logistics for the FSRC Sustainability Metrics discussion (October 18) and participation in the Green Mountain Water Fall Trade Show (November 7) discussing the Wastewater Infrastructure Mapping project. The Vermont Zoning Atlas continued to gain visibility with presentations at the Vermont Statewide Housing Conference (November 14).

Media and public engagement expanded with Kendall Fortney’s appearance on the Innova802 Podcast (September 12) discussing the power of open-source community in shaping human-scaled technology solutions. These diverse engagements demonstrated VERSO’s evolution into a multi-faceted organization serving academic, community, and policy communities simultaneously.

Year Three Summary

2024 represented VERSO’s transition from an emerging initiative to an established academic and community institution. Student engagement exploded with a five-fold increase in ORCA participants (5 to 25) logging thirteen times more hours (338 to 4,414 hours), while retention climbed to 72%. These dramatic metrics are detailed in the impact measurement section. Research collaborations increased from 25 to 45 UVM-based partners, with expansion into two active ORCA research projects and three community projects. The project portfolio expanded dramatically from four to twenty-three repositories across new domains including municipal zoning, community planning, public works, and geospatial analysis—demonstrating VERSO’s ability to translate academic open-source practices into concrete solutions addressing regional challenges.

The organizational restructuring positioned VERSO for sustainable independence and deeper institutional integration. Moving from the Library to the Vermont Complex Systems Center and aligning with the Office of Engagement strengthened interdisciplinary work and community-focused research translation. Leadership expansion, including Jonathan St-Onge’s return and Kendall Fortney’s CEMS appointment, formalized VERSO’s role in student training and research mentorship. The launch of an open-source principles course with free YouTube content democratized access to knowledge. With fourteen external partnerships spanning nonprofits, state agencies, and local governments, VERSO had evolved beyond a campus initiative into a regional hub bridging academic research and real-world community needs. By year’s end, the organization had demonstrated sufficient scale, impact, and institutional support to pursue greater independence while deepening commitments to equity, community engagement, and sustainable research practices. This strong foundation positioned VERSO for the maturation and impact that characterized 2025.