The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is expected to award grants next year to expand broadband infrastructure to more communities and to help new Internet users benefit from broadband access, the foundation said. The funding is occurring through the new Broadband Technology Opportunities Program.
Through the partnership with the Gates Foundation, Alaska will get:
• Technical and consulting assistance to develop competitive grant proposals.
• Technical assistance to help libraries secure more federal funding to sustain ongoing broadband connection costs.
Linda Thibodeau, Alaska state librarian, said she expects the Alaska grant application will be made in the spring. If the state wins a grant, the Gates Foundation will provide most or all of the matching money needed.
Her goal is to "benefit those community libraries across the state that have slowest bandwidth for Internet connections. The Alaska State Library will reach out to those libraries to seek their participation in the project."
"For many Alaskans, their public library is the place to get connected to the online information and services they need," she said. "However, our bandwidth studies show that many Alaskan public libraries have connection speeds that are inadequate for high-quality Internet use."
Important warning about e-mails purporting to be from the adn.com staff.