University of Nevada, Reno Extension and Western Nevada College to Upgrade & Expand Broadband Service in 14 Rural Nevada Counties
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently approved $72 million in grants nationwide to help more than 12 million rural residents gain access to health care and educational opportunities through broadband networks. In Nevada, $981,909 in Distance Learning Telemedicine (DLT) grants will fund projects at University of Nevada, Reno Extension (Extension) and Western Nevada College (WNC) to expand and upgrade educational service networks across 14 rural counties.
“These investments will help education institutions reach more rural residents with essential services and opportunities, which are vital to rural prosperity” said USDA Rural Development Nevada State Director Phil Cowee. “Under the leadership of President Trump, USDA is committed to being a strong partner to rural communities because when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
Extension will receive $513,076 in DLT grants to expand and upgrade services at 18 end-user sites in 14 counties. All 18 sites will receive network equipment upgrades, and 17 will receive high-definition codecs that will allow video, audio and interactive content collaboration. The expanded services will provide rural residents with additional educational opportunities through training, classes, and workshops. Extension’s distance learning education provides families and businesses with information they need to succeed in school, grow their businesses and raise healthy families. The 14 counties with end-user sites are Elko, Eureka, Nye, Pershing, Carson City, Humboldt, White Pine, Lincoln, Lander, Churchill, Lyon, Mineral, Clark and Douglas.
WNC was approved for $468,833 for its Rural Remote Learning Project, which provides educational services across an 18,000-square-mile area including end-user sites in Douglas, Churchill and Lyon counties. WNC seeks to update outdated video conferencing equipment that will expand distance learning capabilities and offerings in order to better serve the rural communities in its service area. This will connect more Nevada students to higher education and provide more access to courses particularly in nursing education and emergency medical services programs.
For more information on the USDA’s DLT program visit https://www.rd.usda.gov/programs-services/distance-learning-telemedicine-grants