Academic Broadband

Bringing broadband to Colorado schools

September 22, 2010 | Recent News

On Monday, September 13, the Denver Business Journal announced that Colorado had been awarded 100.6 million in federal stimulus grant money for schools. The money will go towards remedying the lack of Internet service in rural Colorado schools.Traditionally, Colorado’s geography has made it difficult for traditional broadband networks to reach outlying areas. The new project will use fiber-optic lines (almost 5,000 miles worth) to reach these areas, including schools, libraries, and community centers. Fiber-optic lines have a lower loss along their length than traditional cable, which makes it easier for them to reach longer distances.Non-profit organization Eagle-Net is figuring out the logistics behind the spending of the stimulus money. Currently, the schools in Colorado average 3.5 kilobits-per-second of broadband Internet access for every student. The national average stands at 6.4 kilobits-per-second. With the new access being installed, these students will now have the opportunity to expand their education and interact with the global society via the Internet.