Broadband Policy

The release of the National Broadband Plan on March 16, 2010 marked a major milestone in the quest for fast, affordable, ubiquitous broadband for the United States.  The Plan is extremely comprehensive and cuts across all sectors of our economy. EDUCAUSE is proud that it includes many ideas that EDUCAUSE first established in 2005 in the Higher Education’s Perspective on Telecommunications Reform.  Since then, we have urged the federal government to adopt policies that insure a broadband Internet that:

• Is secure, affordable, and available to all, supporting two-way, gigabit-per-second speeds and beyond. 
• Is open to all persons, all applications, and all lawful content …
• Is a level playing field… so that market forces can drive continued innovation and affordable access.

In addition, EDUCAUSE has advocated for the right of State and local governments to build and operate their own networks when necessary to satisfy the needs of their communities, and for a renewed federal investment in research and development of the requisite technologies.

We hope you find this resource page helpful to find the various EDUCAUSE documents, presentations, policies, pod casts and blogs that continue to accumulate surrounding this topic. The release of the Plan is just the beginning… EDUCAUSE will continue to work to transform the Plan’s recommendations into a reality that will benefit all of us.  You might be interested in a specific recommendation that EDUCAUSE plans to devote much of its attention to in the coming months. The Plan endorses the formation of a unified community anchor network (UCAN) that would build on the legacy of our research and education community to connect all community anchor institutions. You can read a description of this proposal on page 154 of the Plan or as it was originally described to the Federal Communications Commission by the Schools, Health, and Library Broadband Coalition, of which EDUCAUSE is a founding member.

What You Can Do

1. Find out what your broadband options are and contribute to a national census on broadband speed and choice. Go to the Consumer Broadband Test.
2. Spread the word about how the recommendations in the National Broadband Plan, if adopted, could improve our ability to deliver quality higher education.
3. Educate your campus government relations office about the importance of the National Broadband Plan.
4. Visit, write, call, or email your congressional representatives both at the state and federal level and ask them for their support of the National Broadband Plan.

Updated March 25th 2010