Community Outreach Update

August 2012

Message from the CEO

RandyZila

 

At EAGLE-Net Alliance we are continuing our efforts to deliver secure, high-speed broadband connections to more than 170 communities statewide.  Through our cooperative model, we are building a sustainable network that will offer long-term communication benefits to many school districts and various public institutions, both urban and rural. 

 

A recent study, conducted by the Evergreen Education Group and prepared for the Colorado Department of Education in July 2012, noted that many opportunities involving online and blended learning options, educational tools that combine online and face-to-face instruction, are not readily available to those students living in rural districts along the plains and western slope.  This is something that we at EAGLE-Net hope to help alleviate because it is imperative for all students, particularly those in rural communities, to have access to online learning in order to better receive high-quality education, especially for more specialized and high-demand topics and courses.

 

This same study focused on three statewide programs that support blended learning. These three programs are: Colorado Online Learning which provides virtual online courses created specifically for students, eNetColorado which allows access for learning professionals to technology and training, and our EAGLE-Net project which will use a cost-sharing cooperative model to deliver a broadband network to more than 230 community anchor institutions (CAIs) by August 2013.

 

EAGLE-Net is happy to be a part of "a model for best practices as Colorado looks to use online and blended learning to better meet student needs statewide."  Ultimately, we are proud to help provide broadband access to students across the entire state, in both rural areas as well as across the Front Range.

 

Thank you for your continued support and please feel free to contact us at any time.  Remember to visit our website for the most current information on our construction progress as we plan to make service available to many of our CAIs over the next few months.  Wishing you well.

 

Sincerely,

Dr. Randy Zila

CEO

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A Network Under Construction

 

We've seen a flurry of increased activity around the state as we continue with the construction of Colorado's statewide broadband network, which created and retained nearly 200 jobs in July! With all of the activity, we wanted to share an update about our construction across the state.

 

We are a Colorado state authorized intergovernmental entity that was awarded a federal grant to create a new statewide network to connect 170 communities statewide. Our statewide network will connect schools, libraries, government entities, emergency services, public safety and health care facilities to broadband services and other research and education networks, including Internet2, services which are not available through conventional networks.

 

We are bringing middle mile infrastructure to places that have had insufficient or nonexistent broadband connectivity, and partnering with local service providers and communities for the last mile connections.  By providing the middle mile network, we believe local service providers will be incentivized to upgrade or expand the last mile to connect more Coloradans to high-speed broadband via a network that connects rural and urban communities. 

 

Prior to EAGLE-Net's creation, Colorado did not have a statewide network like the one we are building.  By leveraging existing infrastructure and building new facilities throughout the state, EAGLE-Net is creating this new statewide network that will create greater access and provide affordable, available broadband access to community anchor institutions.

 

We are working with local communities and state leaders to pave the way with the construction of the broadband "interstate highway system" of the 21st Century.  As you can tell by our Construction Zone! page that is updated weekly, our crews are busy throughout the state, and we're making progress in connecting Colorado.

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Progress Report

 

In addition to the 1900 miles of leased and upgraded network miles, we currently have awarded 1,007 network miles of construction and installation work.  Presently, we have 24 construction crews working in the fields. Work continues in (4) main areas of the state: the Northeast, Front Range, San Luis Valley and the Western slope. To date, over 235 miles of conduit has been placed in the ground with fiber optic cable beginning to be installed.  Network equipment along our main corridors in the Northeast is also being turned up.  

 

Stay tuned to the EAGLE-Net website for current construction updates.

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Did You Know?

 

Did you Know? The Federal Communications Commission describes broadband or high-speed Internet access as allowing users to access the Internet and Internet-related services at significantly higher speeds than those available through "dial-up" Internet access services. Broadband speeds vary significantly depending on the particular type and level of service ordered. Broadband services for residential consumers typically provide faster downstream speeds (from the Internet to your computer) than upstream speeds (from your computer to the Internet). One of the goals of the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan is to provide 1 Gbps (Gigabit per second) of broadband access to community anchor institutions.

  

Did You Know? that a VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a network that interconnects remote and often geographically separate locations.  VPN's allow for access across the network for such remote resources such as files, printers, and data bases in a secure manor.   

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Open Requests 
 
EAGLE-Net continues to work with partners and vendors to complete the BTOP grant project.  There are currently no open requests at this time. Please continue to check the Procurement Page for the most recent announcements. 
 
If you are a Vendor/Contractor and are interested in receiving updates regarding EAGLE-Net's open requests, please register HERE.
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Community Outreach

 

Launches:

As construction season continues in full force, we are preparing for many of our CAI locations to have service available very soon.  In an effort to communicate and maintain our relationships with each of these entities, we are planning a launch process that will involve both our Community Outreach team and Business Development team.  In the weeks prior to a CAI going live, we will be working internally to contact public entities, all levels of governments, and local providers in each area so everyone knows that access into the EAGLE-Net network will be available and ready for use. 

 

As CAIs have service available regionally, we are planning to hold regional launch events that will help bring the community and its leaders together to celebrate the potential access to work with EAGLE-Net.  Keep your eyes out for an event in your region soon!

 

This process will continue throughout the stretch of the grant period as all CAIs will be able to access our network by August 31, 2013.

 

Website:

We continually work to provide the most up to date information on our website and are adding new features every day.  Below are a few examples of new features and pages that are now on the EAGLE-Net website.

  • We have taken the information from the Cone Zone! box on the homepage and created an entire page dedicated to sharing our construction progress over the past few months.  On the new Cone Zone! page, you can find detailed information about where our crews have been working though out the state on a week by week basis.
  • To share even more construction information, you can now access our Construction Statistics page to see our progression as it relates to network miles awarded, miles of conduit and fiber placed, etc. on a weekly basis.
  • In an effort to better communicate the basics of broadband and explain how broadband service is increasingly necessary for communities to have access to the full range of services and opportunities that the Internet offers, we have created a Broadband 101 page.  Find a list of benefits, helpful links, and other articles and papers all related to the topic of understanding broadband.  Take a minute to check it out!
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Stories from the Road

 

With several new Regional Community Representatives (RCRs) on board, EAGLE-Net will continue to reach out to stakeholders across the state in coordination with the implementation and launch schedule. These talented individuals will be the local and regional resource for the public and will facilitate key communications and planning activities for the project in the most rural parts of the state.  This effort enhances and improves contact with EAGLE-Net staff in the regions, who then work directly with the Business Development, Communications and Operations staff at headquarters to coordinate  pertinent day to day activities.

 

Over the past month, meetings have been held with government entities located in Wray, Otis, Akron, Holyoke, Haxtun, Julesburg, Milliken, Durango, Montrose, Delta and Craig as well as county officials from Rio Blanco, Moffat, Las Animas, Phillips and Huerfano counties.

 

The RCRs attended a cooperative Business Development and Communications training and team building meeting in July, to enhance understanding around vision, mission, messaging, business process and various cross training elements within Operations, Finance and the BTOP program. These sessions are valuable in unifying efforts around community outreach messaging, schedule deployment and market launch timing for maintaining project milestones and deployment of broadband services, to meet customers' needs.  

   

EAGLE-Net Business Development team:

Chip White, Executive V.P. of Business Development
Doug Kissler, Director of Business Systems and Healthcare Vertical
Dr. Neil Schaal, Director of K-20 Education Vertical
Andrew Wright, Director of Government Vertical and Value Added Member Services

 

EAGLE-Net Regional Community Representatives and the regions they cover:
Pat Swonger, Southwest/ West Central Colorado
Allison Cortner, Mountain Central Colorado
Dave Kavanagh, Northwest/ Northern Colorado
Darlene Scott, Eastern Colorado
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RCRMeet Our Staff
Darlene Scott
 
Darlene Scott 
Regional Community Representative - Eastern Plains
 

Darlene Scott has been working with local, state and federal governments for the past 25 years representing rural communities and businesses.  She has been involved with the economic development organizations and local governments in the Eastern Colorado Region with the intent to retain expand and create quality jobs and to work closely with local businesses, governments, and economic development organizations to achieve these goals through the numerous resource programs.   She developed and managed the successful Colorado Community Assessment Program that provided leadership, direction and resources to assist communities in meeting their economic development goals and objects.

 

Darlene has a strong background in community relations, marketing, tourism development and promotion, grant writing, public relations, special events, strategic planning and business development.   She worked for the City of Burlington for 17 years as the Director of the Old Town Museum and then was appointed as the Community Development Director, and spent the last 8 years as the Eastern Plains Business Development Director for the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade serving 18 rural communities.  Read More...

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EAGLE-Net in the News!
 
Take a look at the news coverage and other mentions that EAGLE-Net has recently received:
Please continue to check News Coverage for more coverage!

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