Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives
Office of MinorityBroadband Initiatives
Overview
NTIA launched the Minority Broadband Initiatives (MBI) in 2018 in partnership with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to work on solving broadband deployment challenges in vulnerable communities. In August 2021, NTIA established the Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives to codify NTIA’s work on the MBI. The OMBI, established within the Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth, fulfills requirements of the Connecting Minority Communities provisions enacted into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.
The OMBI will continue NTIA’s efforts to collaborate with federal agencies; state, local and tribal governments; Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities and Minority-Serving Institutions; and any interested stakeholders to promote initiatives related to expanding connectivity and digital opportunities for anchor communities.
Director: Dr. Dominique Harrison
Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives 2022 Report
The Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives 2022 Report details the work of NTIA Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives (OMBI) in expanding access and identifying barriers to high-speed internet service for students, faculty, and staff at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HCBU), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU), and Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) and within anchor communities.
Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives FY2023 Annual Report
The Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives FY2023 Annual Report provides context to OMBI’s mission to expand high-speed Internet access for anchor institutions and their underserved, minority communities. It also spotlights OMBI's pivotal role in advocating for and monitoring progress towards this objective.
Related content
Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives FY2023 Annual Report
OMBI Identifies Barriers, Helps Close the Digital Divide
Marking one year of expanding high-speed Internet access in minority communities, NTIA’s Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives (OMBI) today released its inaugural Annual Report. This report, required by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA), details OMBI’s accomplishments over the office’s first year, identifies barriers to high-speed Internet access in minority communities, and outlines the office’s role in achieving digital equity across the United States.
Established in August 2021 within NTIA’s Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth (OICG), OMBI is the Department of Commerce’s leader in promoting equitable broadband access and adoption at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), and their surrounding anchor communities. Given their decades of investment in minority students and their communities, these institutions are effective catalysts for the expansion of high-speed Internet service.
“The first OMBI Annual Report marks a milestone in our mission to address high-speed Internet deployment challenges in vulnerable communities,” said NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson. “The newly created Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives will lead the way to ensure that these critical anchor institutions and the communities they serve have access to high-speed, affordable Internet service.”
NTIA Establishes Two Broadband-Focused Offices
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced the establishment of the Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth (OICG) and the Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives (OMBI).