Connected Tennessee’s Computers 4 Kids celebrates major milestone in Perry County

Connected Tennessee’s Computers 4 Kids program recently celebrated its Perry County: One Year Later milestone event, where the spotlight was on the impressive progress Perry County has made since partnering with Connected Tennessee and AT&T one year ago to bring increased technology and opportunity to Perry County.

Last June, working with AT&T, Computers 4 Kids proudly donated 20 computers, four printers and two scanners to Perry County’s “Vision Perry” Summer Youth Employment Program.

Since the donation of the computers one year ago, the unemployment rate in Perry County has dropped from highest in the state and second highest in the nation at 27.4% down a remarkable ten percentage points to 17%.

To learn more about this program, view a press release here and read the Buffalo River Review's coverage of the event.

Nevada’s New Broadband Map Showcased in Live Demonstration

A screen shot of Connect Nevada's new online mapping app.

Reno, NV – Nevada’s new, powerful broadband map application is now available to everyone online. In an effort to bring quality, high-speed Internet to the entire state, Connect Nevada and the governor’s Broadband Task Force unveiled the cutting-edge mapping technology in a live demonstration on the University of Nevada – Reno campus.

Government and community leaders across all sectors including agriculture, IT, healthcare, and education gathered to learn about the new map and its uses for broadband planning. The live demonstration and simultaneous webinar walked participants through the many ways Nevada’s new broadband map can be fully customized to meet any viewer’s needs. Connect Nevada staff and Nevada Broadband Task Force Chairperson Daphne DeLeon walked attendees through exercises ranging from finding broadband providers at a specific address to viewing unserved Nevada neighborhoods by satellite and then printing or e-mailing maps with customized information.

“In today’s digital world, being connected to the Internet is critical to preserving and improving lifestyle,” said DeLeon. “Whether you live in a rural or urban area, high-speed Internet enables access to quality jobs, information, and vital services ranging from interactive telemedicine to higher education. Broadband gives you the opportunity to work from home, take online classes, and market your products - all of which have a positive impact on the local economy. Yet, for thousands of Nevada residents, affordable access to high-speed Internet is still not available.”

The newly unveiled map confirms that approximately 21,000 Nevada households are still without any broadband service option at all. Connect Nevada, in collaboration with the state’s broadband providers, will update the map on a routine basis to reflect “real-time” broadband availability so that policy makers, Internet providers, and the general public can use the maps to make informed decisions about broadband investment and expansion.

The map is accessible through the Connect Nevada website, www.connectnv.org.