In  November 2017 we reported that Mount Washington, a town of roughly 200 people in southwestern Massachusetts, had deployed its own infrastructure for broadband service. More than two years after the initial setup, a recent article in Government Technology on municipal broadband in Massachusetts takes us back to the tiny town. We learn how fast affordable, reliable publicly owned Internet infrastructure has brought positive transformation to the citizens of Mount Washington, located in the Taconic Mountains.

You Could Barely Use It

The article covers several layers of how high-speed Internet access has provided a jumpstart for the local economy. The small town with its remote landscape and inherent challenges had only two options before broadband: dial-up or a long-distance Wi-Fi service, which provided download speeds of less than 1 Mbps. 

“You could barely use Wi-Fi calling, and it was impossible to stream anything,” said Brian Tobin, Mount Washington select board member. “You could send emails, and you could do Internet searches that just took a long time.”

In spite of the fact that they're the third smallest town in the state, the Mount Washington Broadband Network now offers fiber optic infrastructure and contracts with an Internet access provider to offer speeds which surpasses those in some of the state's much larger communities. Funding for the network is part of a larger state plan to bring broadband to rural towns in need of Internet service. The Government Technology article notes that: 

“Mount Washington benefited from the Last Mile Program, which provided more than $35 million in grants for rural broadband. The program is run by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), which is part of the state agency Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech).”

In  November 2017 we reported that Mount Washington, a town of roughly 200 people in southwestern Massachusetts, had deployed its own infrastructure for broadband service. More than two years after the initial setup, a recent article in Government Technology on municipal broadband in Massachusetts takes us back to the tiny town. We learn how fast affordable, reliable publicly owned Internet infrastructure has brought positive transformation to the citizens of Mount Washington, located in the Taconic Mountains.

You Could Barely Use It

The article covers several layers of how high-speed Internet access has provided a jumpstart for the local economy. The small town with its remote landscape and inherent challenges had only two options before broadband: dial-up or a long-distance Wi-Fi service, which provided download speeds of less than 1 Mbps. 

“You could barely use Wi-Fi calling, and it was impossible to stream anything,” said Brian Tobin, Mount Washington select board member. “You could send emails, and you could do Internet searches that just took a long time.”

In spite of the fact that they're the third smallest town in the state, the Mount Washington Broadband Network now offers fiber optic infrastructure and contracts with an Internet access provider to offer speeds which surpasses those in some of the state's much larger communities. Funding for the network is part of a larger state plan to bring broadband to rural towns in need of Internet service. The Government Technology article notes that: 

“Mount Washington benefited from the Last Mile Program, which provided more than $35 million in grants for rural broadband. The program is run by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), which is part of the state agency Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech).”

In  November 2017 we reported that Mount Washington, a town of roughly 200 people in southwestern Massachusetts, had deployed its own infrastructure for broadband service. More than two years after the initial setup, a recent article in Government Technology on municipal broadband in Massachusetts takes us back to the tiny town. We learn how fast affordable, reliable publicly owned Internet infrastructure has brought positive transformation to the citizens of Mount Washington, located in the Taconic Mountains.

You Could Barely Use It

The article covers several layers of how high-speed Internet access has provided a jumpstart for the local economy. The small town with its remote landscape and inherent challenges had only two options before broadband: dial-up or a long-distance Wi-Fi service, which provided download speeds of less than 1 Mbps. 

“You could barely use Wi-Fi calling, and it was impossible to stream anything,” said Brian Tobin, Mount Washington select board member. “You could send emails, and you could do Internet searches that just took a long time.”

In spite of the fact that they're the third smallest town in the state, the Mount Washington Broadband Network now offers fiber optic infrastructure and contracts with an Internet access provider to offer speeds which surpasses those in some of the state's much larger communities. Funding for the network is part of a larger state plan to bring broadband to rural towns in need of Internet service. The Government Technology article notes that: 

“Mount Washington benefited from the Last Mile Program, which provided more than $35 million in grants for rural broadband. The program is run by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), which is part of the state agency Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech).”

In  November 2017 we reported that Mount Washington, a town of roughly 200 people in southwestern Massachusetts, had deployed its own infrastructure for broadband service. More than two years after the initial setup, a recent article in Government Technology on municipal broadband in Massachusetts takes us back to the tiny town. We learn how fast affordable, reliable publicly owned Internet infrastructure has brought positive transformation to the citizens of Mount Washington, located in the Taconic Mountains.

You Could Barely Use It

The article covers several layers of how high-speed Internet access has provided a jumpstart for the local economy. The small town with its remote landscape and inherent challenges had only two options before broadband: dial-up or a long-distance Wi-Fi service, which provided download speeds of less than 1 Mbps. 

“You could barely use Wi-Fi calling, and it was impossible to stream anything,” said Brian Tobin, Mount Washington select board member. “You could send emails, and you could do Internet searches that just took a long time.”

In spite of the fact that they're the third smallest town in the state, the Mount Washington Broadband Network now offers fiber optic infrastructure and contracts with an Internet access provider to offer speeds which surpasses those in some of the state's much larger communities. Funding for the network is part of a larger state plan to bring broadband to rural towns in need of Internet service. The Government Technology article notes that: 

“Mount Washington benefited from the Last Mile Program, which provided more than $35 million in grants for rural broadband. The program is run by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), which is part of the state agency Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech).”

In  November 2017 we reported that Mount Washington, a town of roughly 200 people in southwestern Massachusetts, had deployed its own infrastructure for broadband service. More than two years after the initial setup, a recent article in Government Technology on municipal broadband in Massachusetts takes us back to the tiny town. We learn how fast affordable, reliable publicly owned Internet infrastructure has brought positive transformation to the citizens of Mount Washington, located in the Taconic Mountains.

You Could Barely Use It

The article covers several layers of how high-speed Internet access has provided a jumpstart for the local economy. The small town with its remote landscape and inherent challenges had only two options before broadband: dial-up or a long-distance Wi-Fi service, which provided download speeds of less than 1 Mbps. 

“You could barely use Wi-Fi calling, and it was impossible to stream anything,” said Brian Tobin, Mount Washington select board member. “You could send emails, and you could do Internet searches that just took a long time.”

In spite of the fact that they're the third smallest town in the state, the Mount Washington Broadband Network now offers fiber optic infrastructure and contracts with an Internet access provider to offer speeds which surpasses those in some of the state's much larger communities. Funding for the network is part of a larger state plan to bring broadband to rural towns in need of Internet service. The Government Technology article notes that: 

“Mount Washington benefited from the Last Mile Program, which provided more than $35 million in grants for rural broadband. The program is run by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), which is part of the state agency Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech).”

In  November 2017 we reported that Mount Washington, a town of roughly 200 people in southwestern Massachusetts, had deployed its own infrastructure for broadband service. More than two years after the initial setup, a recent article in Government Technology on municipal broadband in Massachusetts takes us back to the tiny town. We learn how fast affordable, reliable publicly owned Internet infrastructure has brought positive transformation to the citizens of Mount Washington, located in the Taconic Mountains.

You Could Barely Use It

The article covers several layers of how high-speed Internet access has provided a jumpstart for the local economy. The small town with its remote landscape and inherent challenges had only two options before broadband: dial-up or a long-distance Wi-Fi service, which provided download speeds of less than 1 Mbps. 

“You could barely use Wi-Fi calling, and it was impossible to stream anything,” said Brian Tobin, Mount Washington select board member. “You could send emails, and you could do Internet searches that just took a long time.”

In spite of the fact that they're the third smallest town in the state, the Mount Washington Broadband Network now offers fiber optic infrastructure and contracts with an Internet access provider to offer speeds which surpasses those in some of the state's much larger communities. Funding for the network is part of a larger state plan to bring broadband to rural towns in need of Internet service. The Government Technology article notes that: 

“Mount Washington benefited from the Last Mile Program, which provided more than $35 million in grants for rural broadband. The program is run by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), which is part of the state agency Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech).”

Last year, in celebration of the life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we posted a few resources reflecting on the “I Have A Dream Speech.” This year, as the nation considers how Dr. King dedicated his life to raise awareness, we want to introduce readers to a resource that, thanks to technology, provides access to more documentation of the work of the man who led American toward a positive trajectory. 

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute is a treasure trove of recordings, documents, and other resources working with The King Center in Atlanta. Coretta Scott King initiated the collaboration in 1985 through an invitation to Stanford University historian Clayborne Carson to become the project director. 

The Institute has digitized some of most influential documents in our modern history, including:

• The Arrest Record for Rosa Parks
• Letter From a Birmingham Jail
• Resolution from the Montgomery Improvement Association, which calles on a boycott of local bus service

Teachers and parents will especially appreciate the Liberation Curriculum section of the resource. Lesson plans are searchable by learning level and subject and there are suggestions for creating unique classroom activities along with curated resources.

The Recommended Reading list appeals to folks interested in history, civil rights, and social justice; the Institute continues to add new material to the site. Most recently, curators added a series of sermons King delivered at the Riverside Church in New York City. The most famous of these sermons was titled “Beyond Vietnam,” which condemned the war and suggested policies to end it. This version has been remastered for clarity:

Last year, in celebration of the life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we posted a few resources reflecting on the “I Have A Dream Speech.” This year, as the nation considers how Dr. King dedicated his life to raise awareness, we want to introduce readers to a resource that, thanks to technology, provides access to more documentation of the work of the man who led American toward a positive trajectory. 

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute is a treasure trove of recordings, documents, and other resources working with The King Center in Atlanta. Coretta Scott King initiated the collaboration in 1985 through an invitation to Stanford University historian Clayborne Carson to become the project director. 

The Institute has digitized some of most influential documents in our modern history, including:

• The Arrest Record for Rosa Parks
• Letter From a Birmingham Jail
• Resolution from the Montgomery Improvement Association, which calles on a boycott of local bus service

Teachers and parents will especially appreciate the Liberation Curriculum section of the resource. Lesson plans are searchable by learning level and subject and there are suggestions for creating unique classroom activities along with curated resources.

The Recommended Reading list appeals to folks interested in history, civil rights, and social justice; the Institute continues to add new material to the site. Most recently, curators added a series of sermons King delivered at the Riverside Church in New York City. The most famous of these sermons was titled “Beyond Vietnam,” which condemned the war and suggested policies to end it. This version has been remastered for clarity:

Last year, in celebration of the life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we posted a few resources reflecting on the “I Have A Dream Speech.” This year, as the nation considers how Dr. King dedicated his life to raise awareness, we want to introduce readers to a resource that, thanks to technology, provides access to more documentation of the work of the man who led American toward a positive trajectory. 

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute is a treasure trove of recordings, documents, and other resources working with The King Center in Atlanta. Coretta Scott King initiated the collaboration in 1985 through an invitation to Stanford University historian Clayborne Carson to become the project director. 

The Institute has digitized some of most influential documents in our modern history, including:

• The Arrest Record for Rosa Parks
• Letter From a Birmingham Jail
• Resolution from the Montgomery Improvement Association, which calles on a boycott of local bus service

Teachers and parents will especially appreciate the Liberation Curriculum section of the resource. Lesson plans are searchable by learning level and subject and there are suggestions for creating unique classroom activities along with curated resources.

The Recommended Reading list appeals to folks interested in history, civil rights, and social justice; the Institute continues to add new material to the site. Most recently, curators added a series of sermons King delivered at the Riverside Church in New York City. The most famous of these sermons was titled “Beyond Vietnam,” which condemned the war and suggested policies to end it. This version has been remastered for clarity:

Last year, in celebration of the life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we posted a few resources reflecting on the “I Have A Dream Speech.” This year, as the nation considers how Dr. King dedicated his life to raise awareness, we want to introduce readers to a resource that, thanks to technology, provides access to more documentation of the work of the man who led American toward a positive trajectory. 

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute is a treasure trove of recordings, documents, and other resources working with The King Center in Atlanta. Coretta Scott King initiated the collaboration in 1985 through an invitation to Stanford University historian Clayborne Carson to become the project director. 

The Institute has digitized some of most influential documents in our modern history, including:

• The Arrest Record for Rosa Parks
• Letter From a Birmingham Jail
• Resolution from the Montgomery Improvement Association, which calles on a boycott of local bus service

Teachers and parents will especially appreciate the Liberation Curriculum section of the resource. Lesson plans are searchable by learning level and subject and there are suggestions for creating unique classroom activities along with curated resources.

The Recommended Reading list appeals to folks interested in history, civil rights, and social justice; the Institute continues to add new material to the site. Most recently, curators added a series of sermons King delivered at the Riverside Church in New York City. The most famous of these sermons was titled “Beyond Vietnam,” which condemned the war and suggested policies to end it. This version has been remastered for clarity: