EDUCAUSE Joins Coalition Dedicated to Improving Broadband Accessibility at Anchor Institutions

Today EDUCAUSE joined the Schools, Health and Libraries Broadband Coalition.  Dedicated to improving broadband capabilities for anchor institutions around the United States, the newly formed coalition says high-capacity broadband will provide benefits for those who need it most- rural, low-income, and disabled or elderly people. Institutions that could play a large role in expanding access include K-12 schools, colleges and universities, libraries, and hospitals.  The coalition urges that government at all levels pay special attention to these entities, because they are uniquely positioned to affect and help the many citizens in need of broadband.   

With funding provided for broadband deployment in the economic stimulus package and the Federal Communcations Commission (FCC) charged with creating a new National Broadband Plan, the coalition is interested in creating visibility for anchor institutions at a time when they need it.  The members believe that the stimulus money would make the greatest impact by connecting those entities that already exist in communities and provide essential public services.  The group plans to work with institutions that are actively engaged in writing their grant proposals for broadband funding.  They will also work with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is responsible for administering the vast majority of broadband money from the economic stimulus package. 

The group urges that federal policy encourage the deployment of broadband with a minimum speed of 100 Mbps. They also say that it is especially important that institutions in rural or economically deprived areas receive assistance because it is oftentimes unaffordable in those areas.  Furthermore, they say the broadband networks must be “easily upgradeable to meet the enormous growth in demand that is expected from high-definition video, distance learning, telemedicine, job-training and other … beneficial applications.” 

The importance of connectivity for higher education is specifically mentioned in the mission statement the coalition released today:

“Community colleges and higher education require high-capacity broadband to provide online degree programs and job training skills, to promote research and collaboration, and to give rural and low-income areas remote access to experts and laboratories.  Research universities are often at the center of innovation in our economy; they need high-capacity broadband to propel the U.S. forward and to restore our global leadership in advanced technologies.”

A list of participants in this diverse coalition is as follows:

American Association of Community Colleges
American Hospital Association
American Library Association
Benton Foundation
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Center for Media Justice
Center for Rural Strategies
Consortium for School Networking
Consumer’s Union
Council of Chief State School Officers
EDUCAUSE
Free Press
International Society for Technology in Education
Internet2
Main StreetProject
Media Access Project
Media and Democracy Coalition
Media Mobilizing Project
Microsoft
National Alliance for Media, Arts and Culture
National Hispanic Media Coalition
National Rural Health Association
New America Foundation
Public Knowledge
Sunesys
Texas Media Empowerment Project
United Church of Christ
U.S. Public Interest Research Group (USPIRG)