Funding Announcement is Part of Broadband Infrastructure Announcement
GENESEO, Ill., Oct. 22, 2021 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a significant expansion of access to high-speed internet, health care and educational services for millions of rural Americans nationwide. Today’s announcement continues to move forward President Biden’s Build Back Better Agenda by prioritizing economic growth in rural America and investing in the backbone of our country – the middle class.
“For too long, the ‘digital divide’ has left too many people living in rural communities behind: unable to compete in the global economy and unable to access the services and resources that all Americans need,” Vilsack said. “As we build back better than we were before, the actions I am announcing today will go a long way toward ensuring that people who live or work in rural areas are able to tap into the benefits of broadband, including access to specialized health care, educational opportunities and the global marketplace. Rural people, businesses and communities must have affordable, reliable, high-speed internet so they can fully participate in modern society and the modern economy.”
USDA Rural Development West Virginia Acting State Director Alan L. Harris said, “This investment will help provide increased access to services for 11,000 rural West Virginians. Through state-of-the-art technology, rural students will be able to access advanced education, medical and mental health services, substance abuse services and more.”
In West Virginia, four organizations will receive Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grants totaling $1,740,612:
- Clay County School District will receive a Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant in the amount of $464,614. This Rural Development investment will be used to provide distance learning technology and telemedicine stations for each of Clay County's six schools. Distance learning technology will be utilized to provide virtual learning experiences for students across all grade levels, as well as expand opportunities for students to participate in advanced and college level courses not available at their home schools. Telemedicine stations will permit students and their families to confer with medical and mental health professionals at each school-based wellness center. This project will benefit approximately 2,000 residents in Clay County, West Virginia.
- Pocahontas County Board of Education will receive a Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant in the amount of $434,779. This Rural Development investment will be used to purchase distance learning supplies that will connect students K-7 grade and teachers, K-12 grade with Microsoft Surface Go 2 and Microsoft Surface Pro 7 devices. Pocahontas County Board of Education will facilitate remote and blended learning, expand capacity of educators with technology to support their ability to teach across campuses and inter-classroom co-teaching efforts, provide remote options for professional development and training for educators, and expand student focused mental health telemedicine capabilities in partnership with Youth Health Services, Inc. The project will benefit approximately 3,000 residents in rural West Virginia.
- Shepherd University will receive a Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant in the amount of $96,891. This Rural Development investment will be used to fund the "Bridges to Degrees" project that creates pathways to postsecondary education for rural high school students by providing high-quality distance learning through live-streamed, synchronous dual enrollment courses offered at Shepherd University, located in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Funding will outfit Jefferson High School in Shenandoah Junction, West Virginia and Martinsburg High School in Martinsburg, West Virginia with the technology needed to engage in these distance learning courses and equips the university campus with the hardware necessary to deliver these interactive courses. The university proposes to provide distance learning through synchronous live-streamed dual enrollment courses to over 400 eligible high school students per calendar year.
- West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission will receive a Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant in the amount of $744,328. This Rural Development investment will be used to purchase distance learning equipment that will develop a state-wide network to provide an interactive telecommunications link between hub and end users. The project will increase the availability of opioid and substance abuse prevention programs, establish the base of a statewide synchronous interactive distance learning network, expand the availability of college courses to rural communities, improve retention and graduation rates of college students, expand educational opportunities for high schools, improve academic achievement and college readiness for high schools, and increase community resources. The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission will serve as the hub of the project and will serve approximately 5,600 residents in rural West Virginia.
Background: Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grants
Vilsack also announced today a $50 million investment in 105 rural distance learning and telemedicine projects in 37 states and Puerto Rico. These awards are being funded through USDA’s Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) program. This program helps fund distance learning and telemedicine services in rural areas to increase access to education, training and health care resources that are otherwise limited or unavailable.
USDA’s distance learning and telemedicine investment includes a $387,000 grant to OSF Healthcare System to help establish a telehealth network for 107,000 rural residents in central Illinois. Additionally, UHS of Texoma, Inc. is receiving a $199,015 grant to implement a distance learning system to improve mental health services for 8,000 people in the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nation in Oklahoma.
For additional information on the upcoming ReConnect Program funding opportunity, see the Oct. 22, 2021, Federal Register. Once the application window opens, applications must be submitted through USDA Rural Development’s online application system on the ReConnect webpage. All required materials for completing an application are included in the online system. To learn more about ReConnect Program eligibility, technical assistance and recent announcements, visit www.usda.gov/reconnect.
Background: ReConnect Program
Secretary Vilsack spoke about USDA’s commitment to helping rural Americans get improved access to broadband and health care during a visit to the newly renovated emergency department at Hammond Henry Hospital. The project was financed in part by a USDA loan.
He announced that on November 24 USDA will begin accepting applications for up to $1.15 billion in loans and grants to expand the availability of broadband in rural areas. USDA is making the funding available through the ReConnect Program.
To be eligible for ReConnect Program funding, an applicant must serve an area without broadband service at speeds of 100 megabits per second (Mbps) (download) and 20 Mbps (upload), and commit to building facilities capable of providing broadband service at speeds of 100 Mbps (download and upload) to every location in its proposed service area. In making funding decisions, USDA will prioritize projects that will serve low-density rural areas with locations lacking internet access services at speeds of at least 25 Mbps (download) and 3 Mbps (upload). In making funding decisions, the USDA will also consider, among other things, the economic needs of the community to be served; the extent to which a provider will offer affordable service options; a project’s commitment to strong labor standards; and whether a project is serving tribal lands or is submitted by a local government, Tribal Government, non-profit or cooperative.
USDA has simplified the application process and has expanded the program significantly. For example, ReConnect will now offer 100 percent grants for certain projects on tribal lands and in socially vulnerable communities.
The Department plans to make available up to $200 million in ReConnect Program loans, up to $250 million in loan/grant combinations, up to $350 million in grants with a 25 percent matching requirement, and up to $350 million in grants with no matching requirement for projects in tribal and socially vulnerable communities.
Under the Biden-Harris Administration, Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.usda.gov.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America.
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