Rural Internet Program Pairs Oklahomans With Cellular Hotspots

Lending program locations
Lending program locations
(OSU)

This article was written by Nate Birt, Vice President of Trust In Food, a Farm Journal initiative. Learn more at www.trustinfood.com

Oklahoma State University Extension has accepted the challenge of tackling a pervasive lack of rural internet connectivity. It has partnered with 19 rural libraries to loan patrons internet hotspot devices for up to two weeks at a time.

Rural Oklahomans have embraced the program rapidly, with each library averaging 150 loans of the devices annually and patrons reporting a 95% satisfaction rate with the program.   

“We have built relationships with these borrowers, we have heard about their trials and triumphs and their need for Internet access,” explains Alison Bloyd, director of the Thomas-Wilhite Memorial Library in Perkins, Okla., noting the facility’s six hotspots have been checked out more than 600 times. “I recently had a woman stop by the library to thank us specifically for the hotspot program. Her adult daughter lost her job during the [COVID] shutdown, but using only a library hotspot, she searched, applied and interviewed for jobs and was recently offered a full-time position.”

The Extension program received recognition as the November 2020 winner of Farm Journal’s Monthly Story Lead Contest, a partnership between Extension Foundation and Trust In Food, a Farm Journal initiative. The contest focused on surfacing stories of Cooperative Extension helping rural residents get online in the U.S., where one-third of rural Americans lack broadband access.

In 2019, the program won a National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP) creativity award.

The service proved especially important during the lockdowns of the coronavirus pandemic, says Brian Whitacre, a professor in the ag economics department at Oklahoma State and one of the nation’s top experts on rural broadband access.

“The latest data from the Federal Communications Commission shows that while 98.8% of the U.S. urban population has wired broadband available to them, only 82.7% of rural Americans do,” Whitacre says. “In Oklahoma, our rural availability is only 71.8% - and we have 12 counties where that percentage is 50% or lower.  A growing body of evidence has shown that rural broadband matters for economic factors like new firm locations, entrepreneurship, and jobs and income. It’s also vital for civic engagement, distance learning, and working-from-home opportunities – as the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted.”

Patrons report using the devices for a wide range of activities, including helping children with homework, searching for jobs, finding health information online and connecting with family and friends.  

“The hotspots have made a significant difference in our patrons’ lives, especially during the pandemic, where many needed internet access for schoolwork or attending meetings,” notes Jonathan Edwards, manager of the Davis Library branch of the Southern Oklahoma Library System. “Several patrons have told me the only way their children were able to complete their schoolwork was because of the hotspots at the library.”

Because of the Extension program’s success in Davis, the library system’s eight branches have purchased additional hotspots for their patrons. “We also now have a bookmobile vehicle that visits our smaller communities, which provides Wi-Fi access and other library materials and services,” Edwards says.  

Extension provides the devices along with unlimited data in the first year of the program, spreads the word locally and works to find sponsors to continue the program in later years, Whitacre explains.

Whitacre says the most rewarding part of the program has been reading comments from library patrons who have benefited.

“Hearing about how it allowed a single parent to help her child with schoolwork; helped people search for jobs or learn new skills; or allowed families to connect with each other always puts a smile on my face,” Whitacre says. “My hope is to continue adding four to five rural libraries across the state each year until all small libraries that want to participate are included. That may take a while – but we have some great partners and outstanding success stories, so we’ll keep working on it.”

To learn more about the program, visit the Extension hotspot website: http://agecon.okstate.edu/hotspot

Clinton Griffiths: The Rural Broadband Struggle is Real

John Phipps: From Broadband to the Economy, What I'm Watching in 2021

House Ag Chair Scott: Rural Infrastructure Plan to Start with Broadband

 

Latest News

The Scoop Podcast: How To Gear Up For Carbon And Sustainability Programs
The Scoop Podcast: How To Gear Up For Carbon And Sustainability Programs

Tim Hushon, sustainability and technology director at The Mill, details how sustainability factors into their ag retail business and how to partner with farmers on the technology adoption required.

Two Crop Protection Partners Divest Postharvest Solutions Company
Two Crop Protection Partners Divest Postharvest Solutions Company

Sumitomo Chemical and Valent BioSciences have announced Pace International will become part of AgroFresh Solutions.

The Untold Farmer Stories Of Ukraine: Q&A With Howard Buffett
The Untold Farmer Stories Of Ukraine: Q&A With Howard Buffett

Farmer and philanthropist Howard Buffett held a fireside chat during the 2024 Top Producer Summit to share his experiences visiting the front line of Ukraine over the past two years.

Get the Facts Straight on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
Get the Facts Straight on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza

Now that the mystery illness impacting some dairy herds has been revealed as the same strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza that has been impacting the U.S. poultry flock, pork producers are asking questions.

From Farm to Fire: First Soybased Fire Suppressant Hits the Market
From Farm to Fire: First Soybased Fire Suppressant Hits the Market

Since the 1950s, fire departments across the country have used products containing dangerous PFAS to put out fires. But the United Soybean Board has announced a greener alternative made from soybean meal.

Smartwyre Launches New Data Insight Tool
Smartwyre Launches New Data Insight Tool

Grower Compass is a web interface that uses past data to help retailers better understand their customers and business opportunities.