The fifth round of ReConnect opened up in spring 2024. A total of 148 applications were submitted, amounting to $1.97 billion in funding requests. However, only $700 million is available for awards. At the time of recording, only 10-11 awards had been determined, but more are expected to be announced in the coming months. 

James Wilson and Tyler Hayes, RUS representatives for Kentucky and Tennessee respectively, join the podcast to tell us what they are seeing across the landscape and what they are expecting to occur in the future.

Leif Oveson, vice president of government affairs at NTCA, discusses the 5th Circuit Court’s decision in regards to the constitutionality to of the Universal Service Fund and what the legal process is going forward. He also discusses the BEAD program and some of the hurdles smaller broadband providers are facing in pursuing those grant and loan dollars. 

The BEAD program has started rolling out, and each state has different requirements. It's like having 50 different trains, leaving 50 different stations, for 50 different destinations. Brooke Coleman, account manager at Nokia, joins the podcast to give us an update on the BEAD program from her perspective. What can broadband service providers expect during the next few years as grants are awarded and construction begins?

Tyler Campbell, executive director of the Kentucky Rural Broadband Association, joins the podcast to discuss the upcoming 2024 Fall Conference & Supplier Showcase scheduled for Oct. 21-23.

You can register for the event here.

The annual TNBA Convention & Showcase will be here before we know it! What changes have been made and what can attendees expect from the 2024 convention? Charlie Boring, this year’s convention committee chair, joined the show to tell us all about it. 

The convention is June 4-6. Register today at www.tennesseebroadband.com/events. 

National Engineers Week is Feb. 18-24. To celebrate, Matthew Boynton, engineer at BTC Fiber, joined the podcast to tell us about his journey to telecom engineering, and to help our listeners understand how engineering impacts every area of our daily lives.

Paige Shapiro, Tennessee’s federal program officer, gives our listeners a BEAD status update, including Tennessee’s required filings and an estimated timeline for the disbursement of the state’s $813 million allocation.

Connecting to homebuyers can be a difficult task for broadband marketers. Thankfully, it is a lot easier with Fiber Homes — an online service that real estate agents can use to inform their clients about houses that have fiber internet and point them directly to the local ISP for service. 

Kaleigh Cox, director of marketing at DxTel, tells our listeners about Fiber Homes on this podcast episode.

Students from Motlow State Community College's SkillsUSA chapter have won both national and state competitions in several categories, including telecommunications-related fields. Joe Marco, instructor at Motlow, discusses the benefits of SkillsUSA and how local broadband providers can prepare the future technical workforce of America.

Joe Marco is also a cybersecurity research engineer at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Lead for America’s mission is “to build a leadership force of moral, dynamic and locally rooted leaders committed to serving the communities they call home in every corner of this country.” Cadie Bergan, senior recruitment and selection manager, gives an overview of Lead for America, a nonprofit organization that connects volunteers in service opportunities across the country.