Program Directory

Columbus Metropolitan Club - 1-13-2021 - Bridging the Digital Divide

In the early 1930s, only about 10% of rural citizens had electricity, about 90% of urban citizens already had it. By 1939, 417 cooperatives helped bring electricity to 25% of rural households. By 1945, nine out of 10 farms had electricity. The problem of rural electricity has often been compared to the problem of rural broadband of today. The question of rural broadband, experts say, is an economic one. Building infrastructure costs money. Providing service to lower-population areas is another financial challenge
- This according to a Farm and Dairy article from April 2020. Our panel will discuss what is being done today to speed the connection of rural communities to internet access, which is so important for today's students and their families working from home.

Featuring Jon Husted, Lt. Governor, State of Ohio, Doug Miller, Vice President, Statewide Services, Ohio Electric Cooperatives, Robin Burrow, Principal, Eastern Elementary in Meigs County, with host Ceili Doyle, journalist, The Columbus Dispatch.

January 13, 2021