WSU Extension’s longstanding community engagement in broadband and digital initiatives resulted in a large $6M (awarded 2022-2023) contract with the Washington Department of Commerce. This award was to support planning at the local level and for the expansion of local “broadband action teams” across Washington. The scope of this project required the development of a large ad-hoc team to accomplish the deliverables in a timely fashion. Ultimately, this team supported the submission of plans from all 39 Washington counties and independent plans from 14 of 29 federally recognized tribes. These plans enabled Washington to not only qualify for but to increase its eligibility for Federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment funding by an additional $400,000 – meaning more Washington households will obtain access to reliable high-speed internet service over the five-year term of BEAD funding. WSU-Whatcom County Extension Director Shawna Beese was a key member of the WSU team that executed the Washington Department of Commerce contract.
Throughout the project, team members were tasked with assisting BATs and Tribes in developing their own Broadband Local Action Plan and Digital Equity Local Action Plan. At the completion of the project, thirty-seven counties and six Tribes submitted Broadband Local Action Plans, and thirty-nine counties and fourteen Tribes submitted Digital Equity Local Action Plans, many other tribes being covered, in part, by county-level plans. This work culminated in the WSU team being awarded 1st place in the National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP). Locally, Shawna assisted the Bellingham PUD, Nooksack Tribe, Lumi Nation, and the WSU-Whatcom County Extension secure over $170,000 for local broadband action team development.
