2015 ATALM Library Summit: What Funding Is Available to Help Tribes Adopt Broadband?

In this panel, Scott Steiner, from the Broadband Initiative Program at the Department of Agriculture (USDA), explains what costs are eligible for coverage under the program and other rules for funding. He discusses the Community Connect Program, which builds out infrastructure to provide broadband coverage to low coverage areas. Katrina Stevens, Senior Advisor at the Office of Education Technology at the US Department of Education, discusses how the Office attempts to expand access to broadband technology within schools and libraries. She elaborates on the difference between simply bringing in technology and using technology in a manner that improves education. Finally, Geoffrey Blackwell, Chief of Federal Communications Commissioner's Office of Native Affairs and Policy, discusses how the Connect America Fund impacts both small and large providers. This panel was part of the Library Summit during the pre-conference activities for the 2015 ATALM annual conference in Washington, DC on September 9, 2015.