Category: Education

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Broadband in WNC Education Lamar Owen Latency PARI Transylvania Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing and Education

Broadband and Video Conferencing

Broadband Matters

WNC Broadband Project series on broadband continues at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute with Marc Czarnecki learning from Lamar Owen, Chief Technology Officer at PARI… why broadband matters with video conferencing for education.

Broadband latency is critical to ‘glitch-freeness’ as Lamar states.

Bandwidth is really key. Latency is key reliability for glitch-freeness which is very important to the student experience to keep the educational experience from being impeded by technical issues.

Lamar Owen, CTO at PARI
Lamar Owen provides technical perspectives from PARI on broadband and latency.

Also See

Broadband at PARI Series

PARI Website

https://www.pari.edu/

Categories
Broadband in WNC Education Lamar Owen PARI Transylvania

Virtual Education with Broadband

Broadband Education Topics at PARI

Broadband at PARI or the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute series continues; with the topic of virtual education.

Lamar Owens, Chief Technology Officer discusses that good broadband is needed for:

  • Space Kits program – https://www.pari.edu/camps/space-at-home/
  • Video conference with Dr. Patricia Craig – https://www.linkedin.com/in/patricia-craig-b1495788/
  • Using online tools like :
    • Discord for students to communicate directly via voice, video, or text, and join servers where larger communities can interact together.
    • GroupMe for private chat room for small groups.

Broadband at PARI Series

PARI Website

https://www.pari.edu/

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Broadband in WNC Broadband Technology Data Education Lamar Owen PARI Transylvania

Broadband History

PARI History of Broadband

PARI’s Internet Connectivity

NO, broadband did NOT fall out of the sky and land in Rosman, NC; although PARI does have an impressive collection of artifacts from outside of our planet earth.

World-Class Collection of ‘Things from the Sky’

In part 1 of this series, Lamar Owen, Chief Technology Officer at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute continues to answer Marc Czarnecki’s inquiry about the history of broadband at PARI.

Part 3 – What has broadband enabled at PARI?

More about PARI’s World Class Facility, including their exhibit galleries – https://www.pari.edu/about/our-facility/

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Broadband in WNC Education Fiber Lamar Owen PARI Transylvania

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

Intro to Lamar Owen, Chief Technology Officer

Broadband in Western North Carolina can be hidden and the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) has a hidden gem of broadband knowledge.

Marc Czarnecki of the Western North Carolina Broadband Project Team had the special opportunity to seed a series of broadband questions with Lamar Owen, Chief Technology Officer of PARI.

Entrance Sign to PARI, Photograph by Marc Czarnecki

Part 1 of this series on broadband knowledge in WNC is with an introduction to Lamar Owen.

Part 1 of the Series – the Brief Introduction

More Information

Lamar Owen – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lamar-owen-0a28469/

PARI – https://www.pari.edu/

Part 2 of this series – the History of Broadband at PARI

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Broadband in WNC Dogwood Trust Education Healthcare Telemedicine

Dogwood Trust

Dogwood Trust - Jobs and Economic Development
Dogwood Trust - Jobs and Economic Development

Broadband in the Annual Report

Community broadband is needed for every resident in Western North Carolina for economic growth, education, and telehealth as some primary reasons.

Expand Broadband Access

Dogwood Trust – Grants approved in 2020 for strategy to expand broadband access

The Dogwood Trust annual report notes approved grants in 2020 totaling $552,450 as a listed strategy to:

Retain or catalyze +5000 jobs and to diversify the regional economy through advanced manufacturing and other suitable sectors

Dogwood Trust Annual Report Strategy

Economic Strategy

Broadband expansion is part of the strategy listed in the annual report linked below.

The Western North Carolina Broadband Project advocates for high-speed internet in our area.

Contact a member of our WNC Broadband Project Team with any questions.

https://dogwoodhealthtrust.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/DogwoodBOLDAnnualReport1120-v5.pdf

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Broadband funding Economic Development Education Telehealth

$7 Billion for Broadband

7 billion for broadband

United States Relief Package

Funding to help improve broadband in the US is coming. States, communities, counties, and cities need to have a framework to apply for this opportunity.

In North Carolina these frameworks can include:

  • NC Broadband Infrastructure Office
  • NC Councils of Governments or county COGs
  • Tribal Groups
  • Rural Electric Cooperatives
  • Tele & Cable Companies
  • Wireless Internet Service Providers
  • Local Broadband Providers
  • Internet Satellite Providers
  • Universities and Colleges
  • Cities and Municipalities

In the Metro Asheville area, there are two entities that advocate for broadband improvements for our economic future:

  • WestNGN for Buncombe, Madison, Henderson, and Transylvania Counties
  • WNC Broadband Project for North Carolina’s western counties

Learn More About the $7B for Broadband

Margaret Harding McGill. (2020, December 21). COVID relief bill provides $7 billion for broadband access. Axios

https://www.axios.com/broadband-access-covid-relief-bill-7-billion-5be48439-c1a4-4927-a0c4-515312a1d281.html

Kelly, M. (2020, December 21). US relief package provides $7 billion for broadband. The Verge.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/21/22193133/us-coronavirus-covid-relief-stimulus-package-broadband-huawei-zte

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Advocacy Broadband access Broadband in WNC Digital Divide Digital Inclusion Digital Inequality Economic Development Education

Homework Gap

Connected digitally

Now a Learning Gap In Rural America

I am already shocked. As a father of two digitally-connected children, I know first hand of the significant value of having broadband available. The digital value is having computers available, the knowledge of how to apply computers, with broadband being available on demand, to engage with society for knowledge, communication, health, and more.

Additionally, having volunteered at several area schools and community centers, I see the digital divide. If students don’t have broadband available at home, immediately the student is disconnected from our digital world of learning opportunities.

The pandemic has made getting computers and internet connections to households with school-age children a priority. The “homework gap” is sizable. Before the pandemic, some 16.9 million children under the age of 18 lived in households without wireline internet service and 7.3 million live in homes without a desktop, laptop, or tablet computer. What was a homework gap is now a learning gap.

John B. Horrigan

Digital Tools & Learning. (2020, December 10). Benton Foundation. https://www.benton.org/blog/digital-tools-learning

Also See

the ‘Homework Gap’ Video Will Shock You

The author of this article, Marc Czarnecki; helps to minimize the rural divide in America by supporting the WNC Broadband Project.

The WNC Broadband Team advocates for the necessary broadband improvements for our #digitallives.

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Asheville Asheville City Schools Broadband in WNC Buncombe Digital Equity Economic Development Education Henderson Madison Speed Test Transylvania

Connect K-12

WNC Broadband Speed Bar Graph
Comparison broadband speeds per student of major WNC school districts

Classrooms no longer have chalk boards. Children do have technology everywhere. Technology requires bandwidth. Digital tools are important for tech-infused educational growth. Adequate high-speed internet is needed for our schools future.

The homework gap is personified when there is digital inequality.

Broadband Speeds / Student

To enable digital learning in every classroom every day, the FCC recommends 1Mbps per student.

How do our bigger K-12 compare?

Connect K-12 has some current, free data for review:

Connected Nations Podcast

Learn more about digital equity for our WNC children.

Listen to this Connected Nations podcast.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/connected-nations-podcast/id1508008735#episodeGuid=Buzzsprout-6692588

Advocate for Broadband

The Western North Carolina is advocating for broadband for all residents.

Digital inclusion is critical to our economic future!

Categories
Broadband in WNC Digital Equity Digital Inclusion Digital Literacy Education

Digital Literacy

Digital Literacy

Computers & K-12 Students

The American Library Association (ALA) defines digital literacy as:

the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring both cognitive and technical skills

American Library Association

The heartbeat of digital literacy is broadband applied in classrooms on different computer hardware tools including smartphones, tablets, gaming devices, and desktop computers.

This classroom environment prepares young adults to become a digital citizen or individual who applies the internet to participate responsibly in social and civic activities.

Examples of Digital Citizenship

  • Using a computer, mouse or trackpad, audio, etc.
  • Avoiding harassment
  • Critical thinking
  • Ethical use of content
The Importance of Teaching Digital Literacy to K-12 Students

At the Western North Carolina Broadband Project, we advocate for digital inclusion and equity of broadband for all.

Share your digital citizenship stories by emailing digcit@wncbroadband.org.

Categories
Broadband access Broadband funding Broadband in WNC Community Development Economic Development Education Policy

Call-To-Action

Call-To-Action

WNC Broadband Activism

Western North Carolina has a ‘Call-To-Action’ from our recently published ‘2021 Broadband Policy Priorities.’

Your WNC Broadband Project team continues to be engaged in community, city, WNC county, and regional broadband topics. Our activism needs your support. How?

The Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated and continues to demonstrate the critical need for universally available and affordable high-speed broadband internet access for delivering quality remote education, telemedicine, and work-from-home capability.

Policy makers must lead an initiative to solve the WNC “digital divide” between the wealthy and the under-resourced and between our urban and non-urban residents.

Given the importance of broadband and the growing digital divide in our region, policy makers must create enabling legislation and policy that will ensure universally available and affordable broadband now.

Your Broadband CTA

A broadband policy maker is someone who sets the plan pursued by a government or business.

For broadband topics, your Call-To-Action or CTA is to communicate and follow-up with your network of policy makers including:

  • Government Officials in the City, County, Region, or State
  • Community Leaders in Education, Economic Development, Healthcare Professionals
  • Business Leaders

All policy makers need to effectively create plans. The acceptance of a plan is based on the feasibility including the financial and legal considerations.

What are the broadband issues that should be on a policy-maker’s radar?

Top 5 WNC Broadband Issues

The WNC Broadband Project Leadership team has summarized the top five WNC broadband issues.

Learn more at our 2021 Broadband Policy site.