Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens has announced a plan to equip every school in the state with broadband internet connections.
Greitens has proposed using $6 million in state funding and combining that with $39 million in federal subsidies through the Federal Communications Commission’s E-Rate program to help bring broadband to rural districts now lacking high-speed internet access.
"With this partnership, Missouri's students will finally have access to the same learning opportunities that kids around the country have," Greitens says.
More than 100 Missouri school districts lack access to quality internet, the governor's office says in a news release.
"For too long, Missouri's rural communities have been forgotten," Greitens says. "We were sent here to fight for all Missouri families, and that's what we're doing. During the transition, we got to work and developed a long-term plan to bring quality Internet access to Missouri's small towns."
Missouri is partnering with two non-profit organizations, EducationSuperHighway and MOREnet (The Missouri Research and Education Network) to carry out the broadband initiative.
