A press conference was held this afternoon to announce our area will receive $11 million in federal grant money to improve communication services. The money will be used to lay fiber-optic cable to connect local government, schools and public safety.
"We currently do a lot with video distance learning, some with online learning, we've been limited in the past by the amount of work we can do because of the lack of bandwidth," says Ross Wilson, CESA 10 Director of Education Technology. "This will give increased bandwidth to a number of school districts."
"How amazing would it be to show a doctor in the ER what the patient looks like if it was a car accident or trauma scenario, what that looked like, actually show them pictures of what that looks like," says Fire Chief Ed Kassing, Eau Claire Fire and Rescue. "We can do some of those things now, but it's on a very limited basis."
The project is scheduled to take three years to complete, and is expected to create 150 jobs statewide.
---
The Chippewa Valley is one of five Wisconsin demonstration communities that will share in two federal grants totaling $32.3 million to improve high-capacity Internet access and use. The grants, awarded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, were announced today by University of Wisconsin-Extension Provost and Vice Chancellor Christine J. Quinn. The UW-Extension led the grant application process.
"In today's global economy, broadband is transformative to our lives, and this grant is a win-win-win for all of us in the Chippewa Valley," said Ross Wilson, director of educational technology services for Cooperative Educational Service Agency 10 (CESA 10). "Broadband services allow people access to new career and educational opportunities, help businesses reach new markets and improve efficiency, and support communities in attracting new industries and in spurring private investment. Broadband expansion will also enhance city and county governments' capacity to deliver critical public safety and other services, and support improved health care communication that can save and improve lives and reduce costs through shared efficiencies."
Wilson also is the fiscal agent for the Chippewa Valley Inter-networking Consortium (CINC), which is leading the broadband expansion project in the Chippewa Valley. CINC is a regional community area network formed in 1999 to coordinate regional communication infrastructure projects with city, county and state government, educational institutions, libraries, non-profits and technology providers. Through a coordinated regional communication infrastructure, CINC is committed to broadband serving the public interest.
Approximately $11.5 million of a statewide infrastructure grant will be invested in the Chippewa Valley to help with the construction of more than 200 miles of fiber-optic cable connecting key community institutions, including government, public safety agencies, health care providers, libraries, schools and other sites. The construction also will include more than 1,300 square miles of WiMax (wireless) coverage in Eau Claire and Chippewa counties to serve city and county governments and schools. The project also will improve the Chippewa Valley's fiber-optic access to Superior, Menomonie, Mondovi, Wausau, Marshfield and Stevens Point.
In addition to the grant money, investments in the infrastructure project will come from local CINC partners including UW-Eau Claire, UW-Stout, city and county governments, schools and educational institutions, libraries, hospitals, medical clinics, Chippewa Valley Technical College, Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College and the Chippewa Valley Regional Airport.
A second federal grant will help fund outreach to teach people how to use high-capacity broadband. In the Chippewa Valley, $163,800 in grant funds will be used to create four mobile labs with the Indianhead Federated Library System and support computer centers at libraries, senior centers and other community centers. The outreach and education project also will provide the Chippewa Valley with interactive tools and content to build local capacity for education, awareness and training about broadband.
Quinn said UW-Extension's role in the broadband expansion project has been to facilitate partnerships among public and private interests and to promote community engagement.
"This effort is community driven," Quinn said. "This is a wonderful example of the Wisconsin Idea at work. People all over the state will be able to learn from the experience of these five demonstration communities. The long-term impact will be stronger communities with broader access to education, employment, global markets, health care and other resources."
Work on the fiber-optic lines will begin this year and is expected to be completed within three years. Educational efforts to help communities maximize the use of the new high-capacity Internet access and to build demand for high-capacity Internet service by government, business and residential users will begin in fall 2010.
In addition to the UW-Extension, statewide public and private partners in the broadband expansion project include the UW System, WiscNet, CCI Systems Inc., UW-Madison, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board. Each of the five demonstration communities also has local partners that have contributed to the project.
Both grants were awarded by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's Broadband Technology Opportunities Program. Allocations of grant dollars by community are estimates and do not reflect additional statewide investments to benefit all the demonstration communities. Statewide benefits include training on topics such as e-commerce, e-government and telemedicine; the creation of an online inventors and entrepreneurs club; and support for project evaluation and reporting required of grantees.
---
Quelle/Source: WQOW TV News 18, 18.08.2010
Bitte besuchen Sie/Please visit:
