or Immediate Release
Haskell County, Texas (October 8, 2021) The Haskell County Broadband Committee invites local stakeholders, community residents, and media to attend a special kickoff event on Monday, October 18th to discuss expanding and improving broadband access, adoption, and use throughout the county.
Attendees will learn more about broadband access in Haskell County, the Connected Communities program at Connected Nation Texas (CN Texas), and the project timeline. The meeting will conclude with a Q/A session.
The Broadband Committee, who will work closely with CN Texas, is made up of the following local stakeholders:
• Kenny Thompson: Haskell County Judge
• Bert Alvarez: Mayor, Haskell City Council
• Laura Bowers: Director, Haskell DCOH
• Renee Dudensing: Community Broadband Advocate
• June Ellis: City Manager, City of Haskell
• Jamie Ferguson: Appraiser, Haskell County Appraisal District • Dusty Garison: Editor and Reporter, Haskell Star Newspaper • Lonnie Hise: Superintendent, Haskell CISD
• Christina Isbell: Councilwoman, Haskell City Council
• Mary Belle Olson: COO, Haskell Memorial Hospital
• Tamara Smart: Municipal Judge, Rochester and Rule, Texas
The Broadband Committee is hosting a community kick-off event on Monday, October 18, at 5:30pm, at the Haskell Memorial Hospital Education Building.
“Haskell County is excited to be working with Connected Nation Texas to better understand the broadband landscape of our community. The more we understand the current digital resources of our community, the better we can serve the unique needs of the residents,” said Haskell County Judge Kenny Thompson. “I hope everyone takes part in the survey because improving broadband access, adoption, and use is important and your feedback plays a critical role.”
If you cannot attend the kickoff meeting, the Haskell County Broadband Committee is asking residents and organizations to take 10 minutes to fill out this short survey. Simply choose the survey category or categories that represent you or your organization.
The goal of the survey is to identify unique challenges and opportunities for expanding high-speed internet in Haskell County so that every family, business, and community organization can access the critical resources needed to be connected. Haskell County will work with CN Texas to help close the Digital Divide within the community. The project will have no cost to the county thanks to the Priddy Foundation, headquartered in Wichita Falls. Haskell County is one of seven communities in the region to receive funding for this type of broadband initiative.
A Technology Action Plan will be developed for the county by leveraging Connected Community Engagement Program and will be important to include as much information as possible so that no area is left out of this plan.
The Connected Program has been used in nearly 650 communities across the country to develop county or regional Technology Action Plans that have both short term and long-term broadband solutions.
For more information or if you have questions, email info@connectednation.org.
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About Connected Nation Texas: CN Texas is the statewide subsidiary of the national nonprofit Connected Nation. Our mission is to improve lives by providing innovative solutions that expand access to and increase the adoption and use of broadband (high speed internet) and its related technologies for all people. Everyone belongs in a Connected Nation.
Connected Nation works with consumers, local community leaders, states, technology providers, and foundations to develop and implement technology expansion programs with core competencies centered on a mission to improve digital inclusion for people and places previously underserved or overlooked. For more information, please visit: connectednation.org and follow Connected Nation on Facebook and Twitter.
About the Priddy Foundation: The mission of the Priddy Foundation is dedicated to the support of programs in human services, education, the arts, and health, which offer significant potential for individual development and community improvement throughout Northern Texas and Southern Oklahoma. More information can be found at: https://priddyfdn.org/
