The A-List is an iOS app that can be used by institutions participating in the Diversity Program Consortium to track attendance. It is a utility app that uses a magnetic card reader to record attendance. This app is one component of a larger effort to document the affects and successes of programs specifically designed to increase the diversity of the biomedical workforce in the United States of America.
The Coordinating and Evaluation Center (CEC) of the NIH Diversity Program is located at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. The National Institutes of Health are supporting 10 program projects across the nation that are focused on building infrastructure leading to diversity (BUILD). These programs make up the larger part of the Diversity Program Consortium and are collectively call -- BUILD. The CEC in collaboration with the Computing Technologies Research Lab at UCLA have developed this app for capturing and tracking attendance at BUILD organized events. The App is title the A-List for BUILD. In conjunction with the online web application suite (https://tracker.diversityprogramconsortium.org/) this app makes collecting attendance data as easy as sliding an ID card through a magnetic card reader attached to your iPhone or iPad device.
A magnetic card reader from iDynamo is required to make use of this App. There are two versions of this device available: one for older iOS devices (30-pin connector) and one for more recent iOS devices (Lighting connector).
iDynamo (PN: 21073084 - 30 pin connector)
iDynamo 5 (PN: 21073131 - Lightning connector)
FUNCTION
The A-List works in conduction with a magnetic card reader attachment from iDynamo. The A-list receives a list of current and upcoming activities from the BUILD Tracker specific to the institution of the registered user. When an activity is selected from the list the app will then record students ID numbers when an ID card is swiped through the magnetic card reader. The list of attendees ID numbers are then transmitted to the online tracking system, and a record of attendance is added to that activity.
There is no charge to download and use this app. It will only be useful to registered administrative users at one of the participating BUILD programs.