Gov. Perdue today announced that MCNC has received $28.2 million in broadband funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to build a 480-mile fiber-optic network for the North Carolina Research and Education Network (NCREN). The design, construction and operation of the network are estimated to create more than 230 engineering and construction jobs. In addition, the network has the potential to serve more than 1,500 school and community institutions, 180,000 businesses and more than 300,000 underserved families.
“Increased broadband access for underserved areas is a critical infrastructure improvement that will help businesses of all sizes create jobs,” said Gov. Perdue. “NCREN will also play a vital role as part of my Career and College – Ready, Set, Go! Initiative—which will help ensure those businesses have access to a well-trained workforce.”
This funding will allow North Carolina to leverage the existing NCREN to create more robust access for our schools, libraries and public health facilities, while also reaching our underserved citizens
MCNC will begin immediately to undertake the work of planning and building the new middle-mile fiber. Within the next 60 days, MCNC will issue several requests for proposal (RFP) for the design, construction and operation of the network. Construction is expected to last up to three years.
The new fiber build will traverse 37 counties in North Carolina. Counties in eastern N.C. include: Beaufort, Bladen, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Edgecombe, Greene, Harnett, Johnston, Nash, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender, Pitt, Robeson, Wake, and Wilson. In the west, counties include: Alexander, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Davidson, Davie, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Iredell, Jackson, Lincoln, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Polk, Rutherford, and Transylvania.
MCNC raised $11.7 million in matching funds for its successful project application through private sources, including $4 million from the MCNC endowment, making the total project a $40 million investment in North Carolina’s broadband infrastructure.
“MCNC is doing a great public service through their efforts to help bridge the digital divide among our communities,” Rep. Price said. “MCNC’s project ensures that North Carolina’s broadband infrastructure will remain a strong foundation for the state’s 21st century economy by enhancing the state’s capacity for collaborative research, development, education, and innovation. It also provides further evidence that the Recovery Act is meeting the needs of American families.”
In addition, this project is part of a coordinated strategy to enhance feasibility of Health Internet Technology (HIT) initiatives across the state, resulting in improved access to health services. The MCNC plan has been coordinated closely with other applications for federal economic recovery funds in North Carolina, including those in the areas of health care and education.
The ARRA appropriated $7.2 billion and directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service (RUS) and the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA) to expand broadband access to unserved and underserved communities across the U.S., increase jobs, spur investments in technology and infrastructure, and provide long-term economic benefits. The result is the RUS Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP) and the NTIA Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP).
"We were very pleased to learn of the BTOP award to MCNC,” said Mike Murphy, chairman of the MCNC Board of Directors. “The 480 miles of new fiber throughout the western and southeastern part of North Carolina will ensure that our K-12 schools, universities, community colleges, university hospitals, and other community anchor institutions (libraries, public health) will have access to unlimited amounts of bandwidth now and into the future. All North Carolinians will benefit from the public/private partnership that created this application."
MCNC is an independent, non-profit organization that employs advanced networking technologies and systems to continuously improve learning and collaboration throughout North Carolina's K20 education community. MCNC provides advanced communications technologies and support services that enable access to 21st century learning applications and offers the opportunity to improve teaching, learning, research and collaboration among North Carolina’s education community. For a quarter century, the 501c3 non-profit organization, MCNC, has operated a robust, secure, exclusive communications network that has connected the institutions of the University of North Carolina System, Duke University and Wake Forest University to each other and through advanced research networks such as Internet2 and National Lambda Rail, to the world. For more information, visit www.mcnc.org.
The North Carolina Research and Education Network (NCREN) is one of the nation's first statewide education and research networks. It provides broadband communications technology services and support to K-12 school districts, higher education campuses and academic research institutions across North Carolina. MCNC offers the NCREN network, technology tools and services to guarantee equal access to 21st century learning by providing a future-proof technology network that is the foundation for change and innovation in our educational systems. It creates possibility and provides an equitable educational experience throughout the state.
