Commissioner Geoffrey Starks is convening his second HBCU President's Roundtable Feb. 18, this one a virtual event via Webex.
The goal is to make sure that the students, faculty and staff of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, as well as the communities they serve, have access to affordable high-speed broadband during the pandemic.
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The current COVID-19 relief bill being hammered out in Congress includes more than $7 billion in funds for broadband access and devices, including connecting for HBCU's and their "anchor communities," defined as within a 15-mile radius.
It also creates an Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives within the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the White House's chief telecom policy arm, the mission of which is to "develop recommendations to promote the rapid, expanded deployment of broadband internet access
service to unserved historically Black colleges or universities, Tribal Colleges or Universities, Minority-serving institutions, and anchor communities," and their "students, faculty, and staff."
Also Read: COVID-19 Aid Bill Includes Billions for Broadband
Starks' roundtable will feature representatives of Delaware State University, Howard University, Morehouse College, and Tennessee State University and will be moderated by Dr. Dominique Harrison, director of technology policy at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.
