The Texas State Library and Archives Commission assembled nearly 200 public library leaders, community supporters, broadband providers, and local and state leaders for the Texas Opportunity Online Broadband Summit, on Thursday, October 8, 2009, in San Antonio, to discuss how to improve and sustain high quality Internet access in the Texas public libraries.
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[Our emphasis] Currently, more than 200 Texas public library systems lack Internet connections fast enough to meet the most basic needs of patrons, and many more report speeds that are inadequate to meet the true demand of their community. Ironically, some of these public libraries offer the only technology lifeline to their communities.
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This is the first of two Texas summits that is sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as part of its pilot Opportunity Online broadband grant program. Texas, along with six other states, has been invited to participate.
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The summit included a comprehensive analysis of Texas’ current broadband climate and the future of technology access in Texas public libraries. Stephen Abram, a library futurist, spoke about future library services and applications driven by technology that will influence how Americans use computers and the Internet, and why reliable, sustainable broadband connections in libraries will be essential to ensure library patrons can use these programs to improve their lives.
Keynote speaker Graham Richard, former mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana and partner of public libraries, highlighted the importance of public and private partnerships on the local and state level to prioritize funding for improved connectivity in public libraries.
Sources: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Texas State Library and Archives Commission, and Connected Nation (via PR Newswire)
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