EUPConnect Blog

Eastern Upper Peninsula, MI – The EUPConnect Collaborative (EUPCC), in partnership with the Eastern Upper Peninsula Intermediate School District (EUPISD), is excited to announce the award of a grant application for $857,909 from the Michigan High-Speed Internet Office (MIHI) under the Michigan Inclusive Training, Technology and Equity Network (MITTEN) program. 

The EUPCC and EUPISD are proud to be a regional hub for the MITTEN program, serving communities in the Eastern Upper Peninsula, encompassing Mackinac, Luce, and Chippewa counties. Led by the MIHI and funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Digital Equity Act, this initiative advances the Michigan Digital Equity Plan and promotes digital inclusion statewide through regional coordination, digital training and support for underserved communities. This initiative seeks to close the digital divide for the region's most vulnerable populations, focusing on Tribal Elders, Seniors and Veterans throughout the region. 

The EUPCC Digital Equity Hub (DEH) will serve as the operational center for coordinating the deployment of Digital Navigators and providing essential Digital Skills Training to these target populations and those that provide direct services to these populations. By partnering with local service organizations such as Bay Mills Community College, Elder Services of the Bay Mills Indian Community, Elder Services Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac Community Action Agency, American Legion, and the Superior District Library, EUPCC works to ensure that all community members have equitable access to digital resources. 

The Digital Equity Hub will facilitate comprehensive needs assessments, develop a regional Digital Equity Plan, foster strategic partnerships, and implement targeted digital literacy initiatives. These efforts will empower residents to navigate the digital landscape confidently and effectively, promoting more significant economic, educational, and social opportunities across the region. The Hub will also host a Digital Navigator from the American Connection Corp, a national program that provides digital inclusion support and resources to rural and underserved communities. 

"We are excited about the potential impact of this grant on our communities," said Mark Eitrem, Chairperson of the EUPCC. "By addressing the digital divide, we can enhance the quality of life for our residents and ensure that everyone has the opportunity to thrive in the digital age." For more information, visit EUPConnect Collaborative or the MIHI MITTEN page.  

About EUPConnect Collaborative 

The EUPConnect Collaborative (EUPCC) is a partnership of K-12 schools, local governments, tribes, higher education institutions, healthcare providers, and economic development organizations in Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula (EUP). Supported by the Michigan Moonshot Initiative, EUPConnect fosters public-private collaborations to improve broadband access and secure funding for infrastructure deployment. 

Formed on April 30, 2021, through resolutions and a consortium agreement, EUPConnect is committed to ensuring rural communities in the EUP have access to reliable and affordable high-speed internet. By leveraging collective investments, EUPConnect aims to connect education, healthcare, communities, and industries. 

The mission of the EUPConnect Collaborative is to eliminate the digital divide by establishing a 21st-century broadband infrastructure, providing 1 Gbps connectivity to every e911 service address within the tri-county area, including all serviced islands, by 2025. It also aims to ensure a minimum of 25/3 Mbps mobile broadband coverage across all areas by the same year. 

Key initiatives include: 

• Pooling resources from existing and emerging funding sources 

• Developing educational programs to ensure high-quality service 

• Technical assistance for local and regional planning 

The work of the EUPConnect is vital for the region's economic growth and digital equity. 

For more information, visit EUPConnect Collaborative or contact us at 906-259-8300.

It is time to build a community of partners which not only provides critical connectivity to our schools but our community anchors as well. Connectivity to the world is becoming more critical every day and the rural geography in which we live continues to fall farther behind the global economy. We need to build on the work that was done 25-30 years ago which resulted in the Eastern Upper Peninsula Telecommunications Consortium (EUPTC). The EUPTC was the farmer that planted the seeds that have grown into one of the longest running regional networks in the nation as well as sprouting all technical services operated by the EUPTC. We used to refer to this network as the Interactive Television (ITV) system which was originally used only for distance learning until data networking was added in 1997.

Schools are not the only critical anchors in the community, they are anchors for our regional network which spans Chippewa, Luce and Mackinac counties. The network capacity for education will continue to require exponential growth going into the future. Other anchors in our communities such as healthcare, libraries, counties, municipalities, cooperatives, homes, businesses, service providers and visitors will also require exponential growth in network capacity. The “last mile” is still the piece that is not keeping up and every day we fall further behind the rest of the world. We cannot expect the commercial providers to go the last mile, there simply is no profit for their business and it is a losing endeavor for them to do it on their own. They need our help!

How do we help? We start by building the community that will share the burden to get this done for our region. Not for profit organizations need to take the lead and create the right organizational structure to facilitate everyone, public and private working together to build the community network which will ultimately become the next network for our schools going forward and go the last mile. Our students need to be connected where they live so our region may prosper.

The on-going question is: “How do we pay for it?” This is where the public anchors come in. WE all have access to funding mechanisms which, when looked at individually seem like this is an impossible task but collectively is enough to create a realistic business plan that will help keep us from being left behind from the global economy. The right formula is a public-private partnership where every organization brings their expertise to the project and finally overcomes this challenge for our communities.