Broadband

Residents in rural Marion County likened Internet service to “a dead turtle” while offering officials feedback on the state of broadband in the region. The input was gathered as part of a six-county listening session.

A $10 million grant from Google.org is expanding digital navigator programs in 18 rural or tribal communities nationwide, and advocates say the lessons could inform work for years to come.

Local nonprofit DigitalC has presented its $40 million plan, funded both publicly and privately, to improve Internet access in a city that has lagged behind its peers in this area.

One option would provide an affordable monthly broadband plan through a local nonprofit, while the second option would come through a proposed agreement with SiFi Networks to build fiber-optic lines across the city.

Plus, a new report looks at what digital inclusion efforts are lacking, a pair of organizations are partnering to promote broadband careers to students and more.

High school and college students will be part of Massachusetts' Digital Equity Partnerships Program, a grant funding initiative to train seniors in technology skills and how to use devices.

The Polis administration has made it a goal to get 99 percent of the state connected to reliable broadband by 2027, but nearly 194,000 households and businesses remain unconnected to the Internet.

Butler Tech and Butler County Educational Services Center are coordinating with telecommunications providers, as well as federal and state school funding through Broadband Ohio, to expand broadband access.

A $10 million project to bring broadband to rural areas of Lancaster County is underway, thanks to federal stimulus dollars earmarked by Lancaster County commissioners for the project.

Crawford County commissioners are expected to ratify a contract to expand broadband service to 2,000 homes in the next three years. The county has committed $3 million of its American Rescue Plan Act funds to the project.

Plus, philanthropists have launched a new effort to support women in the digital economy, New York City has announced a new Gigabit Center on Staten Island, and more.

Eden Town Supervisor Melissa Hartman, who ran against Republican-endorsed incumbent Michael Kearns for the county clerk's seat last year and lost, has been hired as executive director of Erie County's ErieNet Corp.

New Mexico Highlands University will run a program piloting new curricula related to the region's culture and ensuring students have quality computers and high-speed Internet necessary for online courses.

Plus, more states announce new broadband deployment funding, the White House launches a $1.5 billion innovation fund related to the telecommunications supply chain, and more.

County commissioners have approved a $2.5 million grant application to the Appalachian Regional Commission to help incentivize the buildout of broadband infrastructure in the region.

Some who spent considerable time and resources to enter the $1 million contest launched by state education officials say it was a sham, drumming up attention but demanding a miracle and turning down practical ideas.

According to The Center for Digital Equity at Queens University of Charlotte, more than 14 percent of homes in Mecklenburg County, almost 56,000 households, do not have Internet access.

Over the past few months, the city of Birmingham has helped enroll hundreds of residents in the Affordable Connectivity Program, while increasing digital skills expertise and expanding tech device accessibility through its CONNECT99 campaign.