CONNECTED NATION INC

Programs

1. Connect program - comprises community planning, technical assistance and research, mapping, and outreach.community planning, also known as the connected community engagement program or connected, is a facilitated broadband and technology planning effort. Connected engages local leaders to evaluate their community's current state of technology access, adoption, and use. The program offers communities the opportunity to measure the supply, demand, and use of technology in the community with unprecedented data gathering, analysis, and planning.connected's unique community assessment provides insight into the local technology ecosystem, identifies gaps and opportunities, and supports the development of an actionable technology plan to improve the community's standing in the digital economy. The program is serviced via a dedicated web portal as well as community meetings and helps communities frame their needs around broadband access, adoption, and use by collection of local data via a series of surveys. After assessing the results of the survey, the program matches implementable solutions with locally identified barriers to access, adoption, and use.state broadband planning, in 2009,…

   $5,871,425 spent$1,017,721 earned by the program
   61% of program spending

2. Digital literacy and learning - the organization is committed to empowering communities and their residents with the power of broadband and related technologies. Through digital skills training, career readiness, and job placement opportunities, the organization is dedicated to providing training opportunities for disadvantaged families, new technology adopters, job seekers, veterans, and military spouses to adopt and use technology effectively. Below are some related programs:digital works: a unique and sustainable digital upskilling and job readiness program that brings high-demand technology-based jobs to local communities within vulnerable demographic and geographic populations. Digital works connects twenty-first century workforce opportunities to people who are seeking employment by addressing digital skill gaps and leveraging broadband technology for customer relationship management outsourcing and advanced remote information technology positions. Using a digital learning model, the digital works program trains, places, and mentors high-quality candidates and locates co-working centers in settings where job demand is high, few employers exist, and the cost of living is low.…

   $3,212,344 spentof which $110,580 as grants
   33% of program spending

3. Internet exchange points (ixps) - in 2022, the organization formed a 50/50 joint venture (jv) with allied colo, llc and its principal, hunter newby a pioneer in network interconnection infrastructure called "connected nation internet exchange points, llc" (cnixp). The purpose of the jv is to build carrier-neutral ixp facilities in 125 regional hub cities across america focusing primarily on university campuses, at research & technology parks, and adjacent to military installations.ixps are hardened, secure, data center-like facilities in which internet networks of all types "meet, or interconnect with one another, to exchange data traffic. This is called peering. Local internet service providers (isps), middle mile networks, tier 1 carriers, mobile networks, education networks, and cloud & content companies (such as amazon and netflix) connect with one another in ixps keeping data traffic local that can stay local while making the routing of data traffic to points beyond more efficient. This reduces what is called "latency, or lag time, and significantly improves regional internet performance. Ixps also serve as regional marketplaces for wholesale and backhaul competition,…

   $306,796 spent
   3% of program spending

4. Education - the organization has led a range of k-12 education initiatives aimed at closing the digital divide in schools and homes. These efforts focus on identifying and addressing gaps in school connectivity, classroom technology, and at-home internet access - referred to as the "homework gap" - particularly among vulnerable student populations in rural or urban communities.through targeted programs and services, policy advocacy, and research, connected nation works to ensure that federal and state programs, such as e-rate, deliver maximum impact. The organization collaborates with executive agencies, lawmakers, school district leaders, and private-sector partners to promote best practices that improve school network design, increase internet speeds, and reduce overall connectivity costs, ensuring all students have access to the digital tools they need to succeed.philanthropic programs: the organization works with corporate partners to implement philanthropic programs that make connectivity solutions, such as mobile long-term evolution (lte) and 5g data services, available to students for at-home use. The organization partnered with at&t to distribute more than 40,000 mobile…

   $212,331 spent
   2% of program spending

The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $9,602,896.