Broadband Technology Opportunities Program
The Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) is an approximately $4 billion grant program administered by NTIA to help bridge the technological divide; create jobs; and improve education, health care, and public safety in communities across the country. Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, BTOP projects are deploying broadband Internet infrastructure, enhancing and expanding public computer centers, and encouraging the sustainable adoption of broadband service.
See also: NTIA's Recovery Act broadband programs
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Seventeenth Quarterly Status Report to Congress Regarding BTOP
Pursuant to Section 6001(d)(4) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA or Recovery Act) (Public Law No. 111-5), NTIA provides this Quarterly Report on the status of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program. This Report focuses on the Program’s activities from January 1 to March 31, 2013.
Building a Statewide Educational Network in the Keystone State
Late last month, I had the pleasure of joining representatives from the Keystone Initiative for Network Based Education and Research (KINBER) as they celebrated the completion of their statewide network linking many of the state’s colleges and universities. What had long been out of reach for Pennsylvania’s education community had finally become a reality with the help of NTIA’s broadband grant program.
Unlike most of its neighboring states, Pennsylvania did not have a statewide broadband network to serve the ever-expanding needs of educational institutions, healthcare centers, and other community institutions. That is until KINBER leveraged a $99.6 million grant from NTIA, along with $29 million in matching contributions, to build the Pennsylvania Research and Education Network (PennREN). The recently completed 1,600-mile statewide network currently provides affordable broadband service to customers, mostly colleges and universities, through 63 connection points on the network reaching 50 counties throughout Pennsylvania.
A KINBER construction crew strings fiber between telephone poles in a Pennsylvania community
(click to enlarge)
Connecting America’s Schools to Next-Generation Broadband
The White House recently set an ambitious goal to connect 99 percent of American students to ultra-fast broadband within five years. President Obama’s ConnectED initiative would bring Internet speeds of at least 100 megabits per second and high-speed wireless to K-12 schools across the nation.
At NTIA, we are already making these types of connections a reality in K-12 schools through our Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, which has invested about $4 billion in roughly 230 projects nationwide to expand broadband availability and use. Of our 116 network infrastructure projects, about 75 percent are linking or supplying additional bandwidth to schools. Overall, roughly 10,000 schools in 44 states are being connected or upgraded, and almost 70 percent are getting access to speeds of at least 100 megabits.
Thanks to our grant program, teachers, students and parents are witnessing how technology can transform education, expand student horizons and create new opportunities for those living in even the most remote corners of the country.