09/04/2014 Upper Midwest Community Broadband Workshop

September 03, 2014

Building a Community Broadband Roadmap:
Lessons in Implementation

Hosted by the National Telecommunications and
Information Administration
U.S. Department of Commerce

Location:

Hyatt Regency Minneapolis Northstar Ballroom
1300 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN 55403

Date:

Thursday, September 04, 2014

Time:

9:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) invites you to join us in Minneapolis for an interactive workshop to examine and learn from successful broadband projects across the Upper Midwest. This is the second in a series of community broadband workshops being hosted by NTIA, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The day-long program will bring together state and local leaders, federal officials, industry representatives, community advocates and others working to close the digital divide in the Upper Midwest to explore effective roadmaps for expanding broadband capacity and utilization across the region.

Using network infrastructure build-outs and digital inclusion programs from Minnesota and surrounding states - including projects funded by NTIA’s Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) and State Broadband Initiative (SBI)

Program - the agenda will present best practices and lessons learned in the field. It will feature a series of practical discussions focused on everything from business models and funding options to public/private partnerships and stakeholder engagement.

The working agenda is below, and it will be updated as more details become available. Pre-registration is required, and space is limited. You may register using this link.

As workshop materials become available, they will be posted here.

If you have questions, please contact Karen Hanson.

For media inquiries, please contact Juliana Gruenwald.

Thursday, September 4, 2014

7:30 a.m.	Registration opens – Northstar Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis
9:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.	Opening Remarks Douglas Kinkoph, Associate Administrator, Office of Telecommunications and Information Applications (Acting), NTIA, U.S. Department of Commerce Glenn Reynolds, Chief of Staff, NTIA, U.S. Department of Commerce
9:15 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.	Highlighting the State Role in Promoting Broadband – Minnesota’s Story Moderator: Anne Neville, Director, State Broadband Initiative, NTIA State Senator Matt Schmit State Representative Ron Kresha Margaret Anderson Kelliher, President and CEO, Minnesota High Tech Association, and Chair, Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Dan Dorman, Executive Director, Greater Minnesota Partnership Danna MacKenzie, Executive Director, Office of Broadband Development, Minnesota Office of Employment and Economic Development
10:15 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.	NTIA’s Lessons Learned about Broadband Implementation Presenter: Aimee Meacham, Director, Program Services, NTIA
11:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.	Break
11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.	The Community Broadband Roadmap: Ingredients for Successful Projects Moderator: Jean Rice, Senior Communications Program Specialist, NTIA Elwood Downing, Vice President, Membership Outreach and Engagement, Merit Network, Inc. (Ann Arbor, Mich.) Seth Arndorfer, CEO, Dakota Carrier Network (Fargo, N.D.) Rick Mervine, Alderman (Aurora, Ill.) Maria Alvarez-Stroud, Director, Broadband & E-Commerce Education Center, University of Wisconsin Extension (Madison, Wisc.)
12:30 p.m. – 1:45 p.m.	Open Space/Networking over Lunch
1:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.	Deep Dive into Business Models: The Upper Midwest Region as a Laboratory Moderator: Sandeep Taxali, Senior Policy Analyst, NTIA Greg Flanagan, Senior Director, Wholesale Services, Enventis (Duluth, Minn.) Gary Shelton, Scott County Administrator (Scott County, Minn.) Essam El-Beik, Illinois Century Network, Department of Central Management Services (Springfield, Ill.) Kevin Beyer, General Manager, Farmers Mutual Telephone Company (Bellingham, Minn.) and Federated Telephone Cooperative (Chokio, Minn.)
3:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.	Break
3:15 p.m. – 4:55 p.m.	Tapping into Funding Streams: Federal and Private Funding Options for Broadband Deployment and Adoption projects Moderator: Glenn Reynolds, Chief of Staff, NTIA Federal/Philanthropic/Industry Representatives Panel: Carol Mattey, Deputy Bureau Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Keith Adams, Assistant Administrator for Telecommunications, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Derrell Turner, Minnesota Division Administrator, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Bernadine Joselyn, Director of Public Policy and Engagement, C.K. Blandin Foundation (Grand Rapids, Minn.) Paul Weirtz, President, AT&T Minnesota (Bloomington, Minn.) Patrick Haggerty, Midwest Regulatory & Legislative Affairs, CenturyLink (Minneapolis, Minn.)
4:55 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.	Closing Remarks Douglas Kinkoph, Associate Administrator, Office of Telecommunications and Information Applications (Acting), NTIA
5:00 p.m.	*[Optional]* Tapping into Funding Streams: Continue the Discussions with Funders

Friday, September 5, 2014

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

[Optional] “Office Hours” with NTIA staff: NTIA staff will be available (by appointment) to answer questions and provide guidance about how to expand broadband availability and adoption. To make an appointment, visit this link, email Lynn Chadwick, or sign up at the Registration desk outside the Northstar Ballroom on September 4^th. Office Hours will be held at the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development in St. Paul, Minn. Directions will be available at the Registration desk.

Topics

Broadband Technology Opportunities Program

State Broadband Initiative

Funding Program Home

Program

High-Speed Internet

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