e-Vermont Partner Services
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The Vermont Council on Rural Development is leading a team of eight other nonprofits who will work with rural communities around the state to improve the ways they use broadband, for everything from strengthening business plans to engaging more citizens in local government. The Project will select 24 communities by application and offer services of a community director to organize local efforts, free netbook computers for 4-6th grade classes (that can be taken home and used by families), very intense teacher training on using these computers in the classroom, advising on best applications of Internet tools for local small businesses, equipment and training for libraries, help to town officials improving civic engagement with technology, free online town forums, and training coordinated by the State Colleges.
The e-Vermont communities are joining a network of online neighborhood forums that blankets 40 Vermont towns, and 20,000 households subscribe already. In dozens of neighborhoods and small towns, more than 40 percent of households participate in their local forum. Messages posted total more than 100,000 over the past four years. Every town participating in the e-Vermont Community Broadband Project has their own Front Porch Forum. Simply go to the “Join” section of http://frontporchforum.com/
Digital Wish will work with selected schools to provide hardware, software, and training to modernize classrooms and prepare students and teachers for a solid future in the digital age. By supplying 1:1 netbooks with school-to-home connections, Web 2.0 applications, and technology training, Digital Wish will help students and teachers learn to create community-based projects using Flip video, podcasting, and other media-sharing devices.
The Department of Libraries has a team of four regional library consultants who will work closely with the e Vermont libraries in their assigned regions. The consultants will provide support and expertise to help library directors and library trustees create project proposals and can assist with the implementation of new services and equipment.
As part of the e-Vermont Community Broadband Project, VtSBDC is providing a full-time broadband business advisor. Patrick Ripley is dedicated solely to the e-Vermont project, with additional business assistance provided by our 13 regional advisors, statewide business programs and other VtSBDC resources. VtSBDC will work closely with the businesses in each selected town to increase their business use of the internet.
Through the e-Vermont partnership, communities will have an opportunity to tap into the diverse expertise of VSC professors, staff, and students who offer technology training and support through workshops, webinars, and one-on-one assistance—all developed in response to requests from participating e-Vermont communities.