WESTBOROUGH, MA – The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Massachusetts’ State Digital Equity Plan (PDF), which was formally submitted to the federal government in December 2023. The Executive Office of Economic Development (EOED) and the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) at Mass Tech will utilize new eligible funding to continue its work with Massachusetts communities to address the digital divide. This includes addressing digital skills training, access to devices, and internet affordability, including increasing access to low-cost options.
HOLYOKE — Today, the Baker-Polito Administration celebrated the completion of Make Ready work, a four-year, coordinated effort to remove the largest obstacle to extending broadband access across 53 “Last Mile” communities in Western and Central Massachusetts. During a roundtable event hosted at the Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center (MGHPCC) in Holyoke, Governor Charlie Baker, Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, and Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba commemorated the milestone with executives from the utility companies, service providers, and construction contractors who comprised the Make Ready Working Group responsible for delivering high-speed internet access to the doorsteps of 28,000 households in these towns.
BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The FQHC (Federally Qualified Health Center) Telehealth Consortium (the “Consortium”) has received a grant from the Digital Equity Fund of the Essex County Community Foundation in partnership with the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) at the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. The $226,660 grant, funded by the Commonwealth’s “Partnerships for Recovery” initiative, will support a new Telehealth Navigator Program that will increase access to telehealth while also addressing digital equity in under-resourced communities located in Essex County, including Lynn, Salem, Peabody, and Gloucester.
WESTBOROUGH - Today, the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) at MassTech Collaborative announced the extension of several digital equity programs launched through the “Partnerships for Recovery” efforts earlier this year. Supported with $9.2 million in economic recovery funds, the MBI launched public wireless hotspots in unserved towns in western and central Massachusetts and provided digital support for job seekers provided through the Mass. Internet Connect program.
WESTBOROUGH – In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) at the MassTech Collaborative and KCST USA, the operator of the Commonwealth-owned MassBroadband 123 fiber optic network, are working with local internet service providers (ISPs) to offer new Wifi hotspots to municipalities that lack broadband access. Built off of the MassBroadband 123 network, this new service offers each unserved community a temporary 250 Megabit per second wireless hotspot, free of any monthly charge. This will allow unserved communities that do not have a completed broadband project to increase wireless broadband access for residents and students impacted by COVID-19 restrictions.
PRINCETON – Governor Charlie Baker and Lt. Governor Karyn Polito today joined executives from Charter Communications, Inc., Princeton town officials and residents, state and federal officials, and executives from the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) at MassTech Collaborative to celebrate the impact of the town’s new Charter-constructed broadband network. During a roundtable discussion with local leaders and residents, Governor Baker and Lt. Governor Polito heard about the impact that the increased internet connectivity is having on the community, including improvements for small business owners, public safety, and education.
Hundreds gathered across the state last week to participate in the first ever Massachusetts Cybersecurity Week. Speaking at the Massachusetts Cybersecurity Forum on Thursday, Governor Charlie Baker put a capstone on the week when he announced $300,000 in new funding for a program to help municipalities improve their cybersecurity resiliency. The program will be managed by the MassCyberCenter.
PELHAM –Lt. Governor Karyn Polito joined leaders from nine western and central Massachusetts communities to celebrate the completion of the Broadband Extension Program, a project funded under the Commonwealth’s Last Mile program. The celebration took place in the Pelham Library and was attended by executives from Comcast, which oversaw expansion of broadband networks in nine towns in western and central Massachusetts, leaders from the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), and community leaders from the nine communities.
