Every year, the Blandin on Broadband blog does County Broadband Profiles (and will do again when the new maps come out) but given federal opportunities are making it possible to get funding for access and adoption, I thought I’d try to present information for counties to assess their digital equity standing (see table below) and give options for who to contact locally for more information.
Summary
Rock County ranks 21 out of 87 counties for digital equity. Rock County ranks 6 for access to broadband at speeds of 100 Mbps down and 10 up; but they rank 35 for broadband subscription rates and 34 for computer ownership. They have the infrastructure, they need to continue help people make use of it. The good news is that they have been working on digital equity, so they have the local expertise and community engagement.
Scroll down for details and suggested resources for more information.
Blandin Foundation is using the Microsoft Digital Equity Tool to determine needs by county and make high level recommendations for next steps to consider based on the data. (With special thanks to Carter Grupp, Broadband Coordinator Broadband Coordinator at American Connection Project for Otter Tail County.) Visit the tool if you want to look up more statistics on your community.
Demographic Data and Ranking (out of 87)
| Rock County | Ranking |
| Access to 100/20 | 6 |
| No bachelors | 36 |
| No HS degree | 31 |
| Below 150% poverty (last 12 months) | 28 |
| Below poverty (last 12 months) | 27 |
| Disability | 12 |
| No computer | 34 |
| No broadband access | 1 |
| No subscription | 35 |
| Overall average | 21 |
The map below shows digital inequity by census tract. The bluer the better; yellow and orange colors indicate more inequity. This map can be helpful in figuring out which parts of your county need the most help.
So where do you go to talk to people in the county about digit equity plans? Good places to start include:
Libraries
- Plum Creek Library System
507-376-5803
ask@plumcreeklibrary.net
Schools
- Hills-Beaver Creek Public School District (ISD #671)
Superintendent Todd Holthaus
holthaus@isd671.net
(507) 962-3240
http://www.hbcpatriots.com - Luverne School District (ISD #2184)
Superintendent Craig Oftedahl
oftedahl@isd2184.net
(507) 283-8088
http://www.isd2184.net/
Regional Development Commission
- Southwest Regional Development Commission
507-836-8547
srdc@swrdc.org
There’s a lot to take in but sometimes it’s also helpful to see what a community has done in the past, so we’ve gathered specific projects funded through the Blandin Foundation:
| Project Owner | Project Name | Description |
| The Rock County Community Library | Library Hotspots | Project support to provide five mobile Wi-Fi hotspots for check-out free-of-charge to library patrons. |
| HRA of Luverne | Blue Mound Towers Computer Lab | Project support to provide computer access to tenants at the Blue Mound Tower, a 70-unit income-based housing facility in Luverne. Tenants will be encouraged to attend computer training classes at the Rock County Senior Center or Community Library. |
| Hills-Beaver Creek & Luverne Schools | School Bus Wi-Fi Implementation | Project support to improve public internet access and use by installing wireless routers on one Luverne school bus and one Hills-Beaver Creek school bus, allowing student riders access to homework and projects via smart devices. |
| Alliance Communications | Educational Videos and Classroom Tech Training | Project support to improve public digital literacy and technical sophistication by creating and publishing on the internet a series of locally contextualized and informed educational videos. |
| A.C.E of Rock County, Library | Sr. Center Computer Lab | Project support to establish a six-computer lab in a newly renovated senior facility in Luverne. |
| Luverne Community Education | Ag Tech Day | Project support to design and host a day-long community workshop on various ag tech topics. |
| Luverne Community Education | Community Ed Technology Upgrade | Project support to purchase a quality laptop computer compatible with Community Ed’s wall-mounted flat screen TV, allowing instructors to demonstrate internet access, websites and other media for their students. |
| Rock County Community Library | Additional PCs for People Computers | Project support to purchase ten additional refurbished computers from PCs for People to distribute to community members in need. |
| Luverne Area Chamber/Convention Visitors Bureau | County Fair Booth | Project support to increase awareness of and engagement in Rock County’s Blandin Broadband Community projects through a booth at the Rock County Fair. |
| Luverne Area Chamber/Convention Visitors Bureau | Social Media Optimization | Project support to offer social media training and coaching to ten businesses and ten organizations in Rock County. |
| Blue Mound State Park, Alliance Communications | Blue Mound State Park Wi-Fi | Project support to improve public access to the internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at Blue Mound State Park campground. |
| City of Hardwick, Alliance Communications | Hardwick Campground Wi-Fi | Project support to improve public access to the internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at the Hardwick campground. |
| City of Hills, Alliance Communications | Hills Campground Wi-Fi | Project support to improve public access to the internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at the Hills campground. |
| City of Magnolia, Alliance Communications | Magnolia Campground Wi-Fi | Project support to improve public access to the Internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at the Magnolia campground. |
| City of Beaver Creek, Alliance Communications | Beaver Creek Baseball Field Wi-Fi | Project support to improve public access to the Internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at the Beaver Creek baseball field and park. |
| Southwestern Mental Health Center (SWMHC) | SWMHC/Avera Health Distance Learning and Telemedicine | Project support to improve access to distance learning and mental health care services through the purchase of telemedicine equipment. |
| City of Jasper, Alliance Communications | Jasper Campground Wi-Fi | Project support to improve public access to the Internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at the Jasper campground. |
| Luverne Community Education | Technology Classes | Project support to improve digital skills and literacy by offering a series of technology-focused community education classes based on community interests and needs. |
| City of Hills | Hills-Beaver Creek TV Station | Project support to improve access to school and community activities, announcements and information through the Hills-Beaver Creek television station. |
| Luverne Area Chamber and CVB | Wi-Fi at The Lake | Project support to improve public access to the internet by providing free public Wi-Fi at The Lake family park in Luverne. |
Blandin on Broadband 