RuralRISE

RuralRISE is a community of organizations that aims to increase opportunities and prosperity for small and rural communities across the United States.

Rural Tech

Strengthening Rural Broadband Development: Workforce Development

Rural Americans understand better than anyone that reliable access to the internet is not just a convenience; it is a necessity. In our digital world, internet access is key for economic growth, education, healthcare, and civic participation – especially for the remote and rural areas of the country.

In recent years, members of both the public and private sectors have championed policies and initiatives to boost access to the internet in underserved areas. Through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, $42.5 billion has been allocated to expand connectivity across the nation. As it is often more expensive to build broadband infrastructure in remote areas, this funding is a game changer for rural communities. The federal dollars are being divided up amongst the states to fund projects – primarily fiber deployment, but there is another layer to building out broadband infrastructure that is equally important: workforce development.

It is anticipated that approximately 70% of broadband deployment spending will be put towards labor costs.[1]  This provides profound opportunities for communities and workers across the country and creates a demand for skilled network technicians and specialists that we all must meet.

Bridging the Talent Gap

The White House expects the country’s broadband buildout to create 200,000 new jobs. Filling those roles requires a trained workforce capable of installing and maintaining new networks. However, as we deploy advanced fiber networks, the country is faced with a “talent gap” reflected in a gap between the number of open jobs available and the number of qualified applicants.

Fortunately, there has been a widespread push from both the public and private sectors to close this gap and prioritize workforce development. Businesses are offering training programs, apprenticeships, and internships to develop career pathways for these vital roles – from trained technicians and engineers to network specialists. Local and state governments are refining plans to train new employees and reskill existing workers. The importance of workforce development has been underlined in the initial proposals for BEAD program submissions. In fact, all 50 states’ initial BEAD proposals incorporate or mention workforce development.

Workforce Development Already at Play

Already, we are seeing collaborations within the telecommunications industry and partnerships with educational institutions share this knowledge and promote career opportunities.

The Telecommunication Industry Association (TIA) recently announced its new workforce portal, Broadband Nation. TIA partnered with state, industry and media partners to create a comprehensive database of information relating to the broadband workforce, new job openings, and trainings around the country. Individuals looking for training opportunities or workers with network skillsets can access the portal to learn more about the career opportunities that are available to them.

Similarly in Arkansas, Heartland Forward, a “think-and-do tank” serving states and local communities in middle America, unveiled its new Connecting the Heartland Broadband Jobs Board in June. The job board serves as a forum to connect job seekers, employers, and training providers to upskill residents and advance careers across the heartland. The board came to fruition thanks to support from Pew Charitable Trusts and through partnership with leading broadband industry employers including AT&T, Cablelynx Broadband, Cox Communications, and Ritter Communications.

Back in 2022, Corning Inc., the largest manufacturer of fiber optic cable in the U.S., and AT&T launched a Fiber Optic Training Program, where trainees receive hands-on experience from industry experts to equip them with the skills they need to enter the workforce. This program is uniquely designed to encourage the knowledge and skills to cascade throughout the industry by setting up graduates of the program to train others, as part of a larger initiative to upskill thousands of American workers. The training is preparing recruits to fill much-needed roles at carriers, construction providers, and broadband companies.

That same curriculum is now being used at technical colleges as well. The Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) is just one educational institution that utilizes Corning’s curriculum to offer training courses that prepare students for jobs building, maintaining, and repairing broadband networks.

Why Does it Matter for Rural America?

The BEAD program’s investment in rural broadband presents a unique opportunity for workforce development that can lead to sustainable economic prosperity in these communities.

Broadband deployment and job creation work hand in hand. As BEAD money is earmarked for connecting underserved areas, new jobs are being added to the pipeline in those same communities.

By investing in people alongside technology, we pave the way for a brighter more inclusive tomorrow, for everyone, regardless of where live.

[1] Fiber Broadband Association, 2023 Fiber Deployment Cost Study

Rural America and the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP)

Of the 28 million households in the U.S. that lack broadband internet in their home, 18 million say it is because they cannot afford an internet connection.

For rural Americans, that lack of affordability – paired with the rural-urban digital divide – often means insurmountable challenges to accessing an affordable connection to the internet.

In September of 2023, the Rural & Agriculture Council of America (RACA), the National Grange, RuralRISE Tech, and the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association sent a letter to Congressional leadership urging renewal of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). 

Let’s look at the program and how it can help rural communities. 

What is the ACP?

The Affordable Connectivity Program is an FCC program that focuses on broadband affordability for American households. 

A young Black girl sits at a laptop. The text on the image reads, "Affordable Connectivity Program, Helping Households Get Access to Broadband"

The benefit provides a discount of up to $30 per month toward internet service for eligible households and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands.

Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers if they contribute more than $10 and less than $50 toward the purchase price.

Why Does it Matter for Rural America?

Excerpting from the letter, emphasis ours:

Overwhelmingly, rural communities’ connectivity has been categorized as a long-term problem to address. These Americans have been overlooked as lawmakers view the digital divide through the simplistic, narrow lens of “who can we help with the most immediate impact”. 

This is because the historical narrative around broadband access holds that households are unconnected because they simply lack access to high-speed internet infrastructure. Indeed, broadband deployment has been toughest in hard-to-reach areas, which in turn causes high costs for internet on rural consumers. 

However, the ACP has alleviated such high costs through providing a discount. This affordability initiative ensures the billions of federal dollars that Congress and The White House have designated to states help build out more broadband infrastructure, through the Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program, are going to have a tangible impact for the Americans who need it most. 

So, what can you do to support the program?

Help Get the Word Out

There are a number of ways to support the ACP, including reaching out to your representatives in the House and Senate. 

You can read the letter of support here. You can help your community get enrolled, and share the information with others in rural areas. You can also learn more about the program, including eligibility and enrollment information, by visiting https://www.fcc.gov/acp or calling 877-384-2575.

FCC Affordable Connectivity Program 10 Ways to Spread the Word 1. Help your community enroll 2. Spread the word 3. Request printed materials 4. Connect with local institutions 5. Involve your local government 6. Share ACP info on your websites and social media 7. Request a speaker for an event 8. Help connect the unconnected 9. Find local providers 10. Let everyone know

How Replenishing America’s Spectrum Pipeline Will Result in Better Rural Wireless Service

The wireless industry has been on a journey to continuously improve networks since its inception two decades ago. The newest generation of wireless technology, 5G, is designed to enhance some of the current industrial technology rural America runs on. 

As wireless technology continues to improve, the networks themselves will need more wireless spectrum. Additional wireless spectrum for 5G networks will enable farmers to monitor crops, inspect soil conditions, and measure carbon levels at faster and more reliable speeds than ever before. 

But what does that mean for rural residents?

5G Will Revolutionize Rural America 

5G technology delivers fast download speeds and quick connection times in areas currently deploying 5G networks. For rural areas, everything from education to healthcare will be revolutionized once 5G networks are deployed and accessible to rural users. 

For remote learners in rural communities, 5G mobile broadband helps close connectivity gaps so students can connect to educational resources anywhere. 

A person types on a laptop with a stethoscope next to them. Healthcare will be positively impacted by improved 5G coverage.

In healthcare, professionals use 5G to monitor diagnostics, manage hospital inventory, and even support robot-assisted surgery. This is game-changing in rural areas where patients are driving as much as 2 hours to access quality healthcare, then are sometimes unable to return to that provider for follow-up appointments or necessary ongoing therapies.

With 5G networks, the innovations are exciting, and the opportunities are endless. We know what’s next for rural residents with 5G: dependable precision agriculture data collection, consistent access to first-class learning materials and practices, and improved healthcare.

But how do we get there and make these exciting 5G innovations possible? 

Replenishing the Spectrum Pipeline

To keep America competitive, we should start by replenishing America’s pipeline of wireless spectrum. 

Think of spectrum as communications signals that power everything from mobile phones to satellite TV. Spectrum also supports 5G networks, delivering profound social, economic, and environmental benefits to small and rural communities. 

A cell phone with 5G wireless and several apps on the screen.

Unfortunately, the United States is out of step with our competitors when it comes to spectrum policy. Simply put, America’s pipeline of wireless spectrum is running out, and we risk losing out on cutting-edge innovations unless we fill the gaps. 

A new report from Accenture found that the commercial wireless industry holds just 5% of lower mid-band spectrum – compared to 61% held by the government. 

Mid-band spectrum is best for deploying 5G technology and innovation across rural America. To do so, the wireless industry must play a more active role, and government should repurpose valuable spectrum so wireless assets are managed more efficiently.

Replenishing the spectrum pipeline begins by identifying spectrum bands that can be repurposed from government use for commercial 5G and used to their full potential. 

One place to look is the 3.1 to 3.45 GHz band. This band’s large coverage range makes it ideal for supporting 5G and fixed wireless access in rural areas. 

Another reason is mid-band spectrum boasts speeds similar to broadband internet in some instances, which makes it a convenient solution for rural residents without home internet. 

Closing the Rural Digital Divide is Within Reach

Delivering fiber internet service to the home is the gold standard of connectivity, but deploying fiber across the U.S. will take time. No one should have to settle for sub-par service or sit outside a local library simply to access the internet.

Luckily, 5G has an immediate role to play in filling connectivity gaps. Accenture estimates that industry’s 5G fixed wireless deployments could serve nearly half of rural households in a much shorter timeframe. 

Necessary tools to close the rural digital divide are out there. Millions of households, thousands of businesses, and countless entrepreneurs living in small and rural communities across America are ready to innovate, but they need wireless tools to get started. 

5G does not come without challenges. But regardless of your thoughts on 5G, it will be a component in closing the rural digital divide along with other solutions. 

We’re calling on policymakers to replenish the spectrum pipeline so 5G can unlock next-generation innovations for rural America.

​​How the Rural-Urban Divide Impacts Digital and Technology Literacy

As most people know, traditional literacy refers to reading, writing, and the skills needed to perform those tasks, such as phonetics, context clues, and a willingness to think critically about communication.

As a society, we are developing a more modern type of scholarship – digital literacy – which takes literacy skills and applies them to technology. 

Digital literacy, sometimes called technology literacy, uses information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring cognitive and technical skills.

Digital literacy expands the scope of traditional literacy by including skills such as:

  • interacting with varying technology devices,
  • using digital applications,
  • digital production,
  • critical consumption of media and websites,
  • courseware, or
  • cloud computing.

But what does digital literacy look like in rural areas?

Digital Literacy’s Rural-Urban Divide

The gap between people who have access to broadband services (and know how to use them) and those who don’t is referred to as the “digital divide.”

Many factors contribute to this digital divide, including age, socioeconomic status, race, and living conditions, such as rural and urban community living. In addition, the current landscape of broadband infrastructure – who has Internet access and how they get it – influences technology literacy.

As broadband infrastructure is deployed across more accessible, affluent, and densely populated communities, low-income, minority, and rural communities have been neglected; their experience of low digital literacy contributes to this digital divide.

Of the 25 million Americans without broadband access, 19 million live in rural areas. Survey data from the Pew Research Center reports that 58% of adults in rural areas have a high-speed broadband connection at home, as opposed to 67% in urban areas and 70% in suburban areas.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this rural-urban digital divide and made Americans more aware of the importance of digital literacy for daily living. 

Telehealth, for example, has drastically expanded under the COVID-19 pandemic. Where possible, more providers now rely on technology to assist rural residents with health concerns, prescriptions, and treatments.

With this digital gap potentially holding back rural areas, what can our communities do to help bridge the divide?

Digital Literacy Skills Teaching

Just like traditional literacy, we can teach digital literacy. A number of initiatives are already in place that work to improve technology literacy. Some of these efforts target rural communities to help close the rural-urban divide.

Here are a few examples of these technology literacy programs:

Schools are critical players in the advancement of digital literacy. The federal E-Rate program has encouraged broadband deployment to rural schools and libraries. As schools and libraries integrate these digital tools into their curriculums, users are more likely to develop digital literacy skills.

The U.S Department of Education has many digital literacy initiatives, including a program focused on teaching adults how to use digital tools for problem-solving.

The private business Techboomer is a free educational website that teaches older adults and other inexperienced Internet users basic computer skills to help improve their quality of life. In addition to many online classes, they assembled a list of the 31 Best Digital Literacy Organizations; each includes a link to the organization’s webpage, a short description of its background, and its primary goal.

DigitalLead is working to increase digital skills programming and access to technology in rural communities, specifically in rural libraries. Libraries apply for the program that provides hardware and digital skills training and resources, helping rural populations reap the benefits of broadband internet connectivity.

The Rural LISC Digital Navigators program is increasing digital literacy for all rural residents by connecting residents to discounted or subsidized Internet service plans. Rural LISC is also pursuing strategies to increase internet adoption, including:

  • affordable housing communities that work to deploy low-cost or free connectivity in common areas and residential units, and 
  • increasing the availability of public-access WiFi networks by engaging small businesses.

Let’s also look at the people and organizations most impacted by technology literacy in rural areas.

Who Will Benefit from Improved Digital Literacy?

From the self-checkout line to online banking to vetting which recipe you want to use at home, digital literacy is becoming entwined in day-to-day American life and will become even more critical as technology continues to advance.

Teaching and learning digital literacy skills is as relevant now as it ever has been, especially as we seek to reduce the current digital divide.

Rural residents can benefit from improved digital literacy in many ways. Let’s look at a few of them.

Students in rural education systems can benefit from digital literacy programs and programs that integrate technology into the classroom. Education technology connects rural students with resources outside of their immediate learning environment. 

For example, rural schools may not offer Advanced Placement courses which prepare students for college, but with the right technology available, students can virtually participate in those courses. 

Furthermore, more colleges offer education virtually, and the Online Learning Consortium reports that one in four students is taking courses online.

Improved digital literacy will empower elderly residents of rural areas to access online community resources and simple tools like grocery shopping and bill pay. In addition, there are efforts to connect elderly rural residents to telehealth resources to cut their cost of care and improve relationships with primary care physicians. 

Rural immigrants can access cultural community resources and second-language training tools. Furthermore, the internet is a valuable tool for immigrants who use it to communicate with community members in their nation of origin.

From a workforce development perspective, closing the gap in digital literacy is critical to ensuring individuals can participate in an increasingly digital economy. Job seekers use the internet for job searches, communication with potential employers, and training.

Tribal Lands are characterized by rural and remote locations, and residents on Tribal Lands have some of the lowest rates of broadband access; this makes the need to close this gap even more significant.

For Indigenous people, the internet is a tool for cultural survival and a hub for languages and traditions. Those who have access to the Internet can virtually learn traditional skills, find role models, create community, obtain an education, access healthcare, and more.

Knowing all this, you might wonder what’s next for rural digital literacy.

Closing the Rural-Urban Digital Divide

In this modern era, digital literacy is increasingly necessary, with technology woven into daily life. Closing the urban-rural divide will benefit not only our nation as a whole but also specific rural residents, including students, elderly individuals, immigrants, and Tribal Land residents. 

As we move into this new digital age, conversations about the impact of programs closing the urban-rural digital literacy divide will help communities understand what it takes to build successful programs and potential program pitfalls. 

We want to know: what are your experiences with current solutions, resources, and programs for digital literacy? You’re invited to share your personal experiences by commenting here or visiting us on Twitter (@RuralRISE).

Broadband Funding is Coming. Now What?

This guest post comes from Maggie Drummond-Bahl, the Senior Program Officer at Maine Community Foundation, working with donors and other partners to improve the quality of life for all Maine people.

More funding is (finally!) coming to support better broadband connectivity.  What can we do to ensure that rural and remote communities can maximize this much-needed investment? What role should funders play?

For rural states and communities – and the people and businesses that live and work in them – federal funding through the Economic Recovery Act to expand high-speed internet is welcome news. That news is sweet indeed after a grueling and heartbreaking year of COVID-19 when our ability to connect virtually was more important than ever. 

Before we can jump at this opportunity, though, we have work to do. And we need to do it quickly. Here are some thoughts about how we can approach this unprecedented opportunity to become better connected than ever before.

Work to build community capacity

Successful broadband expansion often starts with a few committed champions, much like entrepreneurial ecosystem building often begins with a few key connectors. Champions can identify and recruit others to create broadband committees or working groups and help launch a conversation. 

Two women sit with their backs to the camera at a community event.

Bolstering these local and regional planning efforts can help educate community members about what they need and what goals they share as a community.

Local efforts can, with limited resources:

  • Conduct community surveys, 
  • Host meetings, 
  • Engage with local organizations, institutions and businesses, 
  • Develop maps, 
  • Talk to providers, 
  • Evaluate options, and 
  • Eventually make progress toward implementing infrastructure.

All of these steps are essential, so the community knows what it needs and wants – and more importantly why – long before large-scale funding is available.  

Leave no person behind

Successfully building even a fiber-to-the-premise network isn’t enough. We must consider who can afford the service and how to ensure that people can access devices to connect.  

Children work on a science project in their classroom. Ensuring equitable broadband access for all children is imperative.

The digital divide is about more than the lack of broadband infrastructure itself — it’s about ensuring equitable access to high-speed internet for everyone in our communities.

Broadband committees, working groups, and community outreach should meaningfully include a broad range of people: students, low-income families with children, older people, Black, Indigenous and other people of color, entrepreneurs working from their homes, and critical institutions in our communities.

We should constantly ask ourselves: 

  • Who is not at the table? 
  • Who is not being served and why?  

This pandemic has made painfully clear the inequity in our systems, especially the ability to connect to affordable, reliable, high-speed internet. When we’re all involved in the conversation, we all benefit.

Forge meaningful partnerships

In Maine, a place that prides itself on a certain hearty independence, building trust across institutions, between communities and government, between neighboring towns, and even between customers and providers, has been critical as we move forward.  

A group of four colleagues stand together, with two people shaking hands.

A great example is the growth of the broad and diverse stakeholder coalition, the Maine Broadband Coalition. The coalition was founded as an ad-hoc group with scarce resources several years ago to elevate the voices of broadband users in policy and other conversations. 

The Coalition now regularly communicates and shares information with over 2200 people — up from just 220 when we made our first grant to the group in early 2019. 

The Coalition is also the home of several unifying initiatives including a successful bond campaign in 2020, a new statewide speed test campaign, and an annual conference where communities and partners share their learning and connect with one another.

We’ve also seen great partnerships emerge between social service agencies serving vulnerable populations and digital literacy experts placing hotspot tablets into the hands of people who need them — along with 24-7 technical assistance.

Coordination between funders is another highlight, where our own grantmaking has been informed and bolstered by our state partner, the Connect Maine Authority, and other private foundations and donors. 

This has allowed flexible early-stage capital to move planning efforts, community engagement, and digital inclusion. These are just a few examples, but partnership is the secret sauce for all. 

Be flexible and entrepreneurial

It has become abundantly clear that the solution for one community is not likely to be the solution for another. We should all strive to be nimble and support varied approaches to increase connectivity.  

An illustration of a computer with the words "stay connected" is painted in yellow on a turquoise blue wooden background.

Here are a few examples of what this looks like in communities around the state:

  • A municipal broadband utility was the right approach for several communities in remote Downeast Maine — and they were the first in the state to try it. 
  • Other communities are pursuing dark-fiber, open-access networks. 
  • Some needed to add WiFi networks on Main Street or upgrade routers at the library for public access. 
  • Still others are opting for an upgrade with an incumbent provider.  
  • And some communities are experimenting with affordability funds to support households that struggle to afford monthly service costs.  

One of our strong nonprofit partners in Maine (Island Institute) has developed a playbook for communities that emphasizes an effective community process without predetermining the outcome.  

All options should be on the table and partners should constantly adjust to support community needs and priorities.

Funders: now’s the time to stay at the table

As a community foundation with a small percentage of discretionary funding available, we initially did not think we could meaningfully support the work of expanding broadband. If we didn’t have the scale of funding to invest in infrastructure and it is really the role of government anyway, we wondered: what could we contribute?  

Other small and mid-size funders might feel the same, especially now that we know significant federal funding is coming for broadband investment. But now is the most important time for philanthropy to stay engaged. 

That Maine Broadband Coalition started as an informal, ad hoc network. Targeted investments in organizational capacity have turned a passionate and loosely affiliated group of stakeholders who care about the benefits of broadband into an active and growing coalition. 

The end result is a group that elevates the voices of all who depend on good internet in statewide policy discussions, supports communities through a train-the-trainer model, and acts as a convener to deepen our collective understanding of the connections between broadband and the community, economic, and climate resilience work we all care about. 

We can use whatever level of capacity we have to support community planning efforts, build the strength of organizations and coalitions doing the work, get ready for emerging opportunities, and raise our voices to advocate for better connectivity.  

Now is the time to stay at the table, and pull up a few extra chairs for others to jump in.

On April 15, please join us at the first RuralRISE Technology Summit, a virtual event that will include expert panels, real-world success cases, and networking — all focused on the critical development of broadband and the people and organizations driving the effort. 

Register for the Summit (April 15, 2-5 p.m. EST), and make sure to tune in for our fireside chat about the creative partnerships that are helping to close the digital divide in Maine!