In just a few weeks, BroadbandUSA will host a half-day workshop on the Community Connectivity Initiative, designed to enable local leaders to better assess their community connectivity and strengthen efforts to align broadband technology with local policies and priorities. The March 22^nd workshop, to be held in Seattle, will engage stakeholders in developing meaningful measures for community broadband access, adoption, policy and use. Specifically, participants will have the opportunity to share insights and suggestions on the design of the program. Several weeks later, on March 24 and April 12, BroadbandUSA will host two follow-up webinars.

The Report recommended that NTIA, with support from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and National Economic Council (NEC):

"convene a series of stakeholder forums to develop an index program that encourages advancements and investments in community connectivity. Stakeholders will include private, public, philanthropic and nonprofit groups with interests in leveraging broadband to support innovation, economic growth and digital inclusion. The index program will identify indicators of community connectivity in a range of categories related to broadband deployment, competition, and adoption, such as average broadband speed and adoption rates, local/regional policies that support broadband, digital inclusion policies, public access points and online applications such as telehealth, digital learning or e-government."

Companies, non-profits and other entities with an interest in public-private partnerships that focus on bringing broadband to communities across the country, whether urban, rural or Tribal, as well as those seeking to use broadband as a means to improve outcomes in health, education, public safety, civic engagement and economic development should consider attending either the in-person workshop or one of the webinars to share expertise and determine whether to participate in the Community Connectivity Intuitive.

The Workshop will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon PST in the Chief Seattle Conference Room of the Federal Office Building (FOB), 909 1st Avenue, Seattle, WA 98174. NTIA will also host a first webinar on March 24, 2016, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST and a second webinar on April 12, 2016, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST. To attend either the in-person workshop or the webinars, participants must register in advance.

With the Council agencies implementing the recommendations from the Report, we expect to see more activity from the BroadbandUSA team and the Council member agencies in the coming months ahead and will continue to monitor its progress.

Choice Neighborhoods is HUD's signature place-based initiative designed to address struggling neighborhoods with distressed public housing and/or HUD-assisted housing through a comprehensive approach to neighborhood transformation. Community leaders, residents and stakeholders—including public housing authorities, cities, schools, police, business owners, nonprofits and private developers—work together to create a plan to transform distressed HUD housing while addressing the challenges in the surrounding neighborhood. Broadband is a key element in rebuilding communities, expanding learning opportunities, creating opportunities for jobs, and providing access to healthcare.

The four three-year Planning and Action Grants, available for $2 million each, demonstrate a commitment to "doing while planning." Under the Choice Neighborhoods grant, the planning process activities occur under the first 24 months, which identifies Action Activities that will be carried out during the last 12 months. Action Activities are physical improvement, community development and economic development projects that enhance and accelerate neighborhood transformations. Neighborhood broadband and W-Fi are specifically named as Action Activities. The four applicants that score highest will each receive a $2 million grant, while the next highest scoring applicants will receive one of four $500,000 Planning Grants.

Choice Neighborhoods requires applicant to develop and implement a neighborhood revitalization strategy that seeks to replace distressed public and assisted housing with high-quality mixed income housing, improve educational outcomes and intergenerational mobility for youth, and create the conditions necessary for public and private reinvestment in distressed neighborhoods. Applicants must focus on the revitalization of at least one severely distressed public and/or HUD-assisted housing project.

While private sector entities are not eligible to apply, Public Housing Authorities, local governments, tribal entities and non-profit organization are eligible. For companies interested in taking advantage of this program, we encourage you to partner with one or more of the eligible entities to provide community Wi-Fi and take advantage of this opportunity.

Applications are due February 9.

For more information on Choice Neighborhoods, ConnectHome, or the Broadband Opportunities Council, please contact Jennifer Holtz at [email protected]