Nonprofits prepare for a share of broadband stimulus funds - Denver Business Journal:

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billion of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allocated to provide broadban access to unserved and underserved populationss acrossthe nation, the region’s nonprofitsd are scrambling to bring a share to Southy Florida. Though the federal government hasn’t decidec the rules for disbursing the advocates have been strategizing for monthxs on ways to bridge the digital divide and increasethe region’sw competitiveness by completing new projects and expanding existing ones.
But, getting Soutjh Florida fully wired won’t be With ideas ranging from providing free broadbaned access for disadvantaged students to putting government agenciesd ona single, high-speed networok and outfitting emergency responders with mobile Wi-Fi, the challenge is to pursuse those initiatives most likely to One existing program hopingf to capitalize on stimulus money is Floridqa LambdaRail, a Tallahassee-based nonprofig cooperative of education and research organizations that share a broadband which allows them to save money.
, , , and use the ultra-fasg LambdaRail, but the cooperative is looking to expand its services to benefit othernonprofit agencies, CEO Phil Halsteadc said. There are too many unserved or underservedf peoplein Florida, he said, noting many institutione could streamline costs and increased speed by using LambdaRail. “Thee state is seeking a vision,” Halsteacd said. “We’re trying to create an Eisenhowe r interstate systemfor broadband.” To that end, LambdaRail is to host a “broadband summit” at FAU on June 16.
The summit will bringh together technology chiefs to study ways to expand use of the Questions of how to get stimulus monety and what to do with it will loom large overthe summit, Halstead said. The $7.2 billiojn up for grabs for broadband will be split betweenthe U.S. ($4.u billion) and the ($2.5 billion), said Linda Gov. Charlie Crist’s deputy coordinator for stimulua funds. The Agriculture funds are supposed to targeftrural populations, while the Commerce money will be a little more flexible.
Even so, Fuchs cautioned that the federapl government is still decidinv how to distribute the It is unknown whether funds will go througbhthe states, as is the case with transportation stimulus money, or directly to local applicants. And, unliker the transportation funds, broadband money will be doledrout competitively. In other words, South Florida may not see a Fuchs said. To maximize their each county has a nonprofitt agencymaking plans. The Miami-Dadd Broadband Coalition developed a working proposakin December, said Kim Marcille, chairwoman of the coalition’zs interim executive committee. There was about $200 millioj worth of need identified, she said.
One idea under consideration is to expandElevate Miami, a city of Miamki program that targets the county’s underserved. Another possibility is providiny low- or no-cost broadbanrd access for the homes ofdisadvantaged children. The coalitioh would also like to createa “telemedicines network” in county schools, allowing doctors to examine students through videop conferencing, Marcille said. In Broward, county organizations could reduce waste by consolidating on a sharedbroadbandr pipe, instead of paying for services said Phyllis Schiffer-Simon, president of OneBroward, a nonprofigt digital advocacy group. “We’d be creating our own network.
” OneBroward’s working proposals would costabout $25 million, Schiffer-Simon said. Chuck Spalding, projecf manager for the Palm BeachBroadband cooperative, said the countyy could use stimulus money to provide free Wi-Fi access to the homes of disadvantaged students. Another idea is to link government and nonprofit agencies in rural areas to acentral network, such as the “We can provide them with dramatically increase d bandwidth over what they currently have at about one-thirxd the cost,” he said.