SHLB Updates

Summary of Policy Calls

• Infrastructure - Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced SHLB's Rural ABC Plan into the record of the Senate Infrastructure hearing. FCC Chairman Pai is also pushing for President Trump to include broadband in the infrastructure bill. SHLB hosted its most recent Grow2Gig+ webinar on recommendations for the infrastructure bill.
• E-rate - Senate Democrats criticized Chairman Pai's withdrawal of an E-rate report. Chairman Pai gave a speech in Pittsburg suggesting E-rate should have a one-page application process and student-centric model.
• Rural Healthcare Program - Six senators sent a letter calling on the FCC to protect broadband funding for rural healthcare and specifically referenced SHLB's petition. Read SHLB's press release. Chairman Pai gave his first policy speech and announced the continuation of Commissioner Clyburn's Connect2Health task force.
• Broadband Study - Senator Capito (R-WV) and Senator Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced a bill requesting a study on the benefits of broadband

Grow2Gig+ Webinar Series

Rural Healthcare Program:
Solutions to Connect Our Rural Communities

April 20, 2017
11 am - 12 pm ET

Previous Webinar

Beyond the Walls - DEADLINE EXTENDED!

TVWS uses the unused spectrum in the TV bands. It can deliver broadband to a hotspot miles away, even passing through trees, buildings or other obstructions. Installing TVWS hotspots can improve your community’s resilience by adding another communications capability for disaster preparedness.

Save Your Seat at "United States of Anchors"

SHLB will hold its Seventh Annual Conference, May 31 – June 2, 2017, just outside Washington, DC. The SHLB Annual Conference is the premier conference on anchor institution broadband. It brings together broadband providers, local, state and federal government leaders, and officials from the education, library, and health communities.

DON'T MISS THESE IN-DEPTH WORKSHOPS:

•   E-rate Fiber Workshop Wed, May 31
•   Digital Inclusion Workshop Wed, May 31
•   Public-Private Partnership Workshop Thurs, June 1
•   Health Workshop Thurs, June 1

Additional SHLB Updates

• New Members: We accepted four new members since our last newsletter. We are excited to welcome Kirby Information Management Consulting, Alliance for Community Media, North Georgia Network, and Kent County  as new SHLB Full members!

SHLB Member Updates

• Next Century Cities' Executive Director Deb Socia and Crosby Kemper, Kansas City Public Library's Executive Director, participated in the “Digital Equity: Power of Community Collaboration" panel at  SXSWedu in Austin, TX. They discussed how their organizations are working to provide creative solutions to ensure all have the necessary training, devices, and home Internet access to improve their quality of life. Read more about the panel.
• Next Century Cities sent a letter with 62 mayors' signatures to the Trump Administration urging broadband to be included in infrastructure bill.
• Read Funds for Learning's blog "E-rate Now More Than Ever" on how the E-rate program continues to grow and help schools and libraries connect.
• American Library Association and Cox Communications partnered to narrow the digital divide for low-income families. Through this new partnership, more low-income families will have access to digital literacy training and resources in their local libraries and online at www.digitallearn.org.
• National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) released a mapping analysis of FCC broadband availability data that strongly suggests AT&T has systematically discriminated against lower-income Cleveland neighborhoods in its deployment of home Internet and video technologies over the past decade.
• GCI plans big expansion of broadband in rural Alaska, with federal help.
• ENA Helps Close the Digital and Achievement Equity Gap for Idaho’s Students - Idaho’s Wilder School District was one of 114 schools selected by Apple to participate in its ConnectED initiative. As part of Apple’s program, Wilder received iPads for every student and faculty member, as well as significant infrastructure upgrades, including the deployment of ENA Air, ENA’s managed Wi-Fi service. 
• CENIC High Capacity Broadband Network Broadens its Reach and Provides Ultra High-speed Connectivity to its Members - As a result of a $76M investment by the State of California, CENIC and its partners are overcoming barriers to Internet connectivity in 312 of California’s hardest-to-reach public schools. Approximately 95,000 students in some of California's lowest-income and most-remote regions will benefit from these connectivity upgrades.
• CENIC announces 2017 Innovations in Networking Awards. Recipients include Sunesys and Women in IT Networking at SC (WINS) program.

• Apply to Gigabit Libraries Network's "Beyond the Walls" project to win $15,000 to install TVWS technology in your library. Applications are due March 27. 
• Mobile Beacon Grant Opportunity Available for Schools - Mobile Beacon is accepting applications for its Connect for Success grant. The Connect for Success grant will give education organizations the tools needed to harness the power of the internet and get it into the hands of those students who need it the most. The grant provides schools with up to 25 laptops and 4G LTE hotspots with free 4G LTE high-speed Internet service for 12 months. The deadline to apply is March 27, 2017. Learn more and apply today!
• Internet2's Final Presidential Primary Sources Project 2017 Presentation:  The final presentation in the PPSP program series, "Propaganda Posters of World War II" from the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum, will be held on Wednesday, March 29.  For more information on this free, interactive distance learning program, please visit the Internet2 K20 Initiative website.
• NDIA Webinar: How the Evolution of Internet Service Technologies Impacts Digital Inclusion - Friday March 31, 2017 at 1:00 ET. Register Now!
• Applications to Sprint’s 1 Million Project are due by March 31, 2017. Read a success story from Crawford High School.
• CoSN will commence its milestone 25th year at its Annual Conference, April 3-6 in Chicago, IL. Join CoSN as they Invent the Future and cement their commitment to providing essential resources and professional advancement opportunities that help EdTech leaders achieve successful technology integration and transform learning.
• Next Century Cities announced their next regional broadband summit, Digital Southwest, in Mesa, AZ, April 17-18. This full-day event will bring together broadband champions from federal, state, and local government, as well as community leaders and broadband policy experts from the Southwest and across the nation. Registration is free for all government employees, and $100 for general admission. Sponsorship slots are still available! Please contact Deb Socia for more information. 
• Register for National Digital Inclusion Alliance's conference May 16-17 in St. Paul, MN before Early Bird closes April 6!
• The University of Alaska and University of the Arctic invite you to attend the 2017 Arctic Broadband Forum May 8-9, which will unite educators, researchers and industry from across the World to discuss the challenges, successes and potential of telecommunications and broadband deployment in the Arctic for economics, healthcare and education. Specific emphasis will be placed on the role of broadband and digital technologies on the cultural preservation and self-determination of indigenous populations throughout the Arctic.
• The Benton Foundation opened the application for its Charles Benton Junior Scholar Award to recognize a scholarship in the area of digital inclusion and broadband adoption. This special honor will be awarded at the TPRC Conference. Junior scholars are invited to submit. The Charles Benton Junior Scholar Award recipient will be presented with a $1,500 cash prize. Apply before May 30.

Member Mention: CENIC

CENIC connects California to the world—advancing education and research statewide by providing the world-class network essential for innovation, collaboration, and economic growth. This nonprofit organization operates the California Research and Education Network (CalREN), a high-capacity network designed to meet the unique requirements of over 20 million users, including the vast majority of K-20 students together with educators, researchers and others at vital public-serving institutions. CENIC’s Charter Associates are part of the world’s largest education system; they include the California K-12 system, California Community Colleges, the California State University system, California’s Public Libraries, the University of California system, Stanford, Caltech, and USC. CENIC also provides connectivity to leading-edge institutions and industry research organizations around the world, serving the public as a catalyst for a vibrant California.
 
CENIC positions California for the future –California has long been a leader in innovation and scientific breakthrough. As the 6th largest economy in the world, connectivity is the currency of growth and opportunity. In every realm of research and scientific inquiry, ultra-high bandwidth speed and capacity are a necessity. CENIC’s role is critical to California’s continued advancement in all realms of innovation. Our future relies on the engagement of all Californians in the digital economy, and CENIC equips them with the high-bandwidth, high-capacity network to enable that engagement by partnering with national and international research and education networks, governmental networks, and commercial networks to expand access broadly, working to support broad public access to the educational, research, and cultural assets that position California for a prosperous future.

Learn more at http://cenic.org/