IT and digital media jobs in RI pay an average of $69,510k, far above the state's median income. It's no surprise then that the state Economic Development Corporation wants to grow this sector. For the last six months, they have been working on building an online community - RI Nexus.

Since late last year, Providence Geeks has attracted over 100 IT/digital media specialists to their monthly meetups at AS220. Last night featured the debut of the new online hangout, a permanent place for local programmers, software developers, and designers.

“It’s the one sector that’s kind of invisible,” said Jack Templin, who helped start Providence Geeks and designed RI Nexus for the EDC. “There’s a lone-wolf mentality. A lot of the players are smaller, and they’re spread out.”...

...Saul Kaplan, the head of the EDC, says he hopes RI Nexus will expand the sector by making it easier for companies to find employees. It will also help technology savvy Rhode Islanders “connect, communicate and collaborate,” trading ideas and forming new firms, Kaplan said...

...“For me, the shocking thing was that this community existed,” said Brian Jepson, a cofounder of the Providence Geeks, who has attended similar networking events in Oregon and Washington state. “We found this, we didn’t create it. We’ve got something going on here, and it’s awesome.”