The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition held its annual AnchorNets conference October 29-31. Throughout the conference, sessions aligned with these dimensions as they touched on many topics including broadband infrastructure, workforce, healthcare and education and the impact of AI. Here is a recap about the conference from Leslie Scott, Digital Inclusion Program Manager at KC Digital Drive.
As part of our work analyzing the digital inclusion ecosystem, we have proposed that the “three legs of the stool” (a device, internet access and digital skills) works for an individual, but not a community. Instead, we need a broad, common framework and vocabulary for thinking about digital transformation in order for multiple organizations (local, state and federal government and the public, private, nonprofit and philanthropic sectors) to effectively navigate to system-wide impact. In addition to being a generally agreed-upon approach, it also needs to match specific strategies, tactics, goals and opportunities at an organizational level. KC Digital Drive developed the Digital Inclusion Guiding Dimensions for just this purpose.
They are:
- Network Capacity
- Access to the Network
- Quality of Network Access
- Participation in Digital Life
- Excellence, Innovation, and Growth
The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition held its annual AnchorNets conference October 29-31. Throughout the conference, sessions aligned with these dimensions as they touched on broadband and infrastructure, including spectrum policy and pole attachment challenges (network capacity), workforce, healthcare and education (participation in digital life) and the impact of AI, including considerations for schools and the intersection between AI and public trust and middle mile and edge infrastructure and how to leverage it to power rural innovation (excellence, innovation and growth). On many attendees’ mind was the fact that support for public Wi-Fi, digital skills, device and affordability programs (access to the network and quality of network access) is currently less available with the cancellation of the Digital Equity Act funding, the lack of funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program and cuts to E-Rate to pay for Wi-Fi hotspots distributed through libraries and schools.
As a result, the conference included a nearly three-hour session on overcoming the scarcity mindset and doing more with less to support sustainable digital opportunity in our communities.
Among the panelists, Carrie Coogan, deputy director of community engagement and public affairs at the Kansas City Public Library, and Tom Esselman, executive director of DEPO-KC, participated in the first panel session, highlighted the role of anchor institutions in providing computer labs, internet access and digital navigation support. KC Digital Drive’s Aaron Deacon, managing director, and Leslie Scott, digital inclusion program manager, participated in the second panel to provide an overview of our Digital Life Exchange, which helps to increase resources available to human and social service agencies that face a growing challenge in helping the populations they serve overcome technology-related barriers that are often tied to the delivery of core services and care.
One session focused on crowdsourced speed testing to improve broadband mapping stood out as directly applicable to our broadband and digital equity work with city and county governments. Panelists included leaders from the Fresno Unified School District, the Utah Education and Telehealth Network as well as Ookla, a service that measures internet speeds, and former director of NTIA’s BEAD Program, who discussed how this data can be used to shape infrastructure planning and policy decisions. While the focus was on K–12, the conversation extends beyond this single use case as broadband has become a basic utility for learning, health and opportunity.
We were particularly intrigued by how Fresno USD leveraged their 1:1 device program to obtain speed test data along students’ daily routes to school, which showed 27% of residents were unserved—compared to just 3% on the government map. Taking into consideration the often-ignored aspects of the quality of network access dimension, such as the impacts of jitter, latency and inefficient home Wi-Fi network setups, helps us better understand the nuances of the real experiences of broadband users.
As we embark on distributing laptops and Chromebooks through our DLX Device Access Program, supported by Kansas Office of Broadband Development (KOBD) through the ADOPT 2.0 Grant Program with funding from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, we are exploring how we could also gather speed test data via these devices to better inform our understanding of not just who has internet service and who does not but also whose access to the network is not meeting the advertised plan speeds and who might need support to ensure their home Wi-Fi is set up for optimal performance.
While this ultimately may not be a viable approach due to increased privacy concerns from those program participants who are increasingly more fearful due to their immigration or refugee status, it is an interesting idea to dive into further. As BEAD funding starts to roll out, it will be imperative that we go beyond the maps to provide a true picture of the network capacity of cell towers to provide dependable fixed wireless service as well as high-performing and affordable wired service to ensure everyone has high-quality network access.
To learn more about the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition, go to their website: https://www.shlb.org/