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Mayor Walsh appoints new, tech-savvy CIO

Boston Mayor Martin Walsh announced Wednesday that Jascha Franklin-Hodge, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumnus with 15 years of information technology experience, will serve as the City’s new Chief Information Officer.

Franklin-Hodge will be responsible for overseeing the Department of Innovation and Technology to bolster online service delivery, equip city employees with digital tools and improve Bostonians’ access to technology and the Internet . He will replace current Interim Chief Information Officer Justin Holmes on July 28.

“Jascha Franklin-Hodge will be a vital addition to our City’s leadership team, following the exceptional work of Justin Holmes,”  Walsh said in a Wednesday release. “Jascha has directed large, high-profile technology operations, and I know he comes well-equipped to help Boston continue its leadership as a world-class tech city.”

In 2004, Franklin-Hodge cofounded Blue State Digital, the new media strategy and technology firm that served President Barack Obama during his 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns. BSD’s work on Obama’s 2008 campaign garnered $500 million in online donations from more than three million people, thanks in part to the firm’s creation of my.barackobama.com, the Obama campaign’s interactive headquarters for organizing supporters online.

Through BSD, Franklin-Hodge has processed $1.6 billion in online donations for over 500 clients, including the Democratic National Committee, Google and the NAACP.

Walsh, who has used a variety of social media outlets to communicate with Boston’s residents, shares a goal with Franklin-Hodge to make Boston a stronger city through its use of technology.

“We can use technology to make it easier for Bostonians to do business with the City and to empower city employees to provide great service,” Franklin-Hodge said in the release. “Access to the Internet and technical skills can enhance educational and economic opportunity, and Mayor Walsh and I share a vision for a more connected Boston.”

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