The Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District (CGRESD) is excited to announce that fast-fiber, high-speed internet is coming to three schools and several communities served by the District through a cooperative effort between CGRESD and Point Broadband, a fiber internet company with an expanding network in the state.
This project is a win-win, not only for the schools which will be served by the CGRESD project, but also because the project will bring long-awaited, reliable internet service to hundreds of homes in the surrounding areas. The 40-mile fiber network built by Point Broadband will connect Harrison Middle School, Farwell High School, and Timberland Alternative High School. This fiber link will benefit all school buildings within each school district and provide world-class fiber internet to almost 600 homes in the surrounding communities.
Ninety percent of this project is being funded through E-Rate – a program administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) under the direction of the direction of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). None of this would have been possible without the extraordinary teamwork and collaboration among administrations and school boards within the CGRESD and the leadership at Point Broadband, according to Steve Scoville, Farwell Area School Superintendent.
“CGRESD, Farwell and Harrison School Districts, along with Point Broadband, worked hard to find a low-cost solution that only has upsides from any angle,” Scoville said. “Everyone involved in making this happen is to be credited for their strong decisions and vision that will improve the CGRESD network and bring high-speed internet to our surrounding communities.”
Construction on the fiber network is scheduled to begin this fall and be ready for next school year. During this time, residents may see Point Broadband crews digging in these areas, but every effort will be made to minimize any ground damage or inconvenience to residents.
Ken Chinavare, CTO for CGRESD, was instrumental in getting this project off the ground. He recognized early on the benefits of having fiber internet in rural Michigan. With the Merit Reach3 project over 10 years ago, he was involved in building a fiber connection between Clare and Beaverton School Districts, giving Gladwin County School Districts better reliability and higher speed internet bandwidth.
“What began as a dream more than 20 years ago will become a reality very soon,” he said. “The positive and awesome impact this project will have on our rural communities now and into the future is beyond exciting! Having a robust fiber network connection to the internet brings all the possibilities and opportunities the world has to offer back home for our students and communities. This project would not be possible without many people working tirelessly with a passion to help our community connect to the information superhighway for the betterment of everyone.”
About Clare-Gladwin RESD
The Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District, Clare, Michigan, is an administrative organization that provides essential educational services and support to enhance the quality of education for our local school districts in Beaverton, Clare, Farwell, Gladwin, and Harrison. The CGRESD offers career and technical education, special education, early childhood, finance, professional development, pupil accounting, extended day programs, and technology services.
About Point Broadband
Point Broadband, headquartered in Opelika, AL, was founded in 2017 with the mission of delivering a superior broadband solution to consumers and businesses in small-town USA and rural America. Focused on the communities it serves and providing best-in-class customer care, Point Broadband currently operates in 10 states across the U.S. and continues to expand its network with a vision of improving lives through fiber technology. For additional information: point-broadband.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.