I have a few updates to share on the Blandin Broadband Communities this week. Today we feature Lake County. Karl Samp has been the community broadband coach in Lake County. I appreciate his notes for the update!

The steering committee met recently to discuss all the BBC projects. PCs for People, a computer donation and distribution center has set a date for distributing computers locally. (That date is Oct 16.) More than 70 parents of school-aged children have responded to a letter about the program. Kristin Lee of Lake Superior Schools (LSS) has taken a lead role and created a great informational memo about the project.

LSS has ordered their iPods for student use and community training. Community Ed has set training dates for business/org./individual training on social media and online marketing, and a parent workshop is being developed on the use of the school district’s Parent Portal and other “good-to-know” things for parents of students who go online. PCs for People recipients will be asked to attend this training. Also, six training workshops (Senior Surf Day) for Lake County seniors are set as part of this project.

The YouTube Video production project continues to progress and will help educate the community (via the Local cable access channel of Lakes Connections) on the many uses and benefits of high-speed internet.

Future projects are now taking shape as well. The Steering Committee discussed community Wi-Fi, a community portal, Workforce Development, Historical QR Codes and an educational program for seniors and long-term care, as well as a larger LS project at Lakes Connection for a tele-conferencing/commuting and training center.