The City of Victoria GIS Division held its sixth annual GIS Day on November 18, 2008.  This year the city visited Crain Middle School sixth grade world geography students (300 students).  The students had an opportunity to learn about geography and GIS through power point presentations, a demonstration of the City GIS website and Google Earth, and a demonstration of how a GPS unit is used utilizing GIS.  GIS Day provided an opportunity for students to get a hands-on experience with GIS through the use of computer stations and to have any of their geography questions answered.  There was a map gallery with various maps set up for the students to view as well as interactive games all using geography as the focal point.

The goal of GIS Day is to help educate children as well as adults on the applications of geography and computer-aided mapping.  GIS Day is a global event for thousands of users of GIS technology to educate the public and demonstrate GIS technology at schools and organizations around the world.  To learn more about GIS Day and all of the exciting events planned, please feel free to visit the GIS Day Web site at www.gisday.com.

As part of Geography Awareness Week, the GIS Division also created a public map gallery. This gallery was displayed at 700 Main Center and gave the public a chance to view a variety of interesting area maps. The display showcased the efforts of the GIS Division and gave them an opportunity to share their work with visitors.