Virtual Training
August 16 – August 26, 2021
Live Sessions: August 17, 19, 24, 26 from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM ET
Members: $195 | Non-members: $390
Rural areas across Appalachia face similar challenges in delivering broadband to homes and businesses: rocky and uneven terrain, profitability and sustainability concerns, and more. Local development districts are working to support broadband delivery to un- and under-served areas, but oftentimes leadership and staff need help getting up to speed in terminology, processes, and other details to get projects off the ground and running.
This training will introduce participants to fundamentals of broadband technology, institutions, infrastructure, regulatory issues, financing, and best practices. DDAA will deliver sessions virtually in a blended learning format. Attendees will receive pre-recorded webinars and resources that will be released at the beginning of the first week of training (August 16). The pre-recorded materials are available for you to review at your own pace.
In addition to the pre-recorded webinars, DDAA will sponsor four live webinars with an instructor to review the key concepts and discuss specific topics in greater depth. These live webinars also provide you with an opportunity to ask specific questions you may have about grant writing.
Meet Your Instructor
This grant writing series will be led by Andrew Cohill, President of WideOpen Networks and Design Nine; both companies have headquarters in Blacksburg, Virginia. Cohill has been helping communities develop, build, and operate modern broadband fiber and wireless networks since 1993, when Virginia Tech appointed him the first Director of the Blacksburg Electronic Village, the world’s first Internet-based community broadband project.
Cohill has worked with more than 300 communities worldwide on telecommunications planning, design, and engineering of open access broadband systems. He has provided assistance to community broadband projects throughout North America, including Canada and the Caribbean. WideOpen and Design Nine provide broadband planning, network construction services, and network operations services for public and private clients throughout the U.S.