Category Archives: Opportunities

OPPORTUNITY: Open seat on Minnesota Assistive Technology Advisory Council

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The Minnesota Assistive Technology Advisory Council is looking for a new member. Here’s a little information…

The advisory council shall be comprised of: ( I ) Individuals with disabilities that use assistive technology or the family members or guardians of the individuals; ( II ) a representative of the designated state agency, as defined in section 7 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705) and the state agency for individuals who are blind (within the meaning of section 101 of that Act (29 U.S.C. 721)), if such agency is separate; (Interpreted as the State Services for the Blind.; ( III ) a representative of a state center for independent living described in part C of title VII of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et seq.); (IV) a representative of the state workforce investment board established under section 111 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2821); (Interpreted to mean the Governor’s Workforce Development Council; ( V ) a representative of the state educational agency, as defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C> 7801) (interpreted to mean the Minnesota Department of Education; and ( VI ) representatives of other state agencies, public agencies, or public organizations, as determined by the state (ii) Majority. ( I ) In general. A majority is not less than 51 percent of the members of the advisory council, shall be members appointed under clause (ii)(I). ( II ) Representatives of agencies. Members appointed under subclauses ( II ) through ( VI ) of clause (i) shall not count toward the majority membership requirement established in subclause ( I ). (iii) Representation. The advisory council shall be geographically representative of the state and reflect the diversity of the state with respect to race, ethnicity, types of disabilities across the age span, and users of types of services that an individual with a disability may receive.

OPPORTUNITY: Submit Your Nomination for the 2025 Intelligent Community Awards

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An opportunity for communities from the Intelligent Community Forum…

The Intelligent Community Awards Program® honors the achievements of Intelligent Communities in creating dynamic, prosperous and inclusive economies that strengthen social connections and support rich and meaningful cultures. These are the things that make a community of any size a great place to live, work, start a business, build a career, raise a family and prepare a way for the next generation.

How to Nominate Your Community

You are welcome to submit a nomination at any time. See the Smart21 Events page for the next closing date. Start your nomination →

The Value of the Awards

The annual Award program focuses local, regional and international attention on achievements and progress that too often goes unnoticed in communities, especially in small-to-midsize ones that are seldom in the news. For residents and employers, it shows the community in a new light on a global stage, and motivates greater participation in programs.

The Awards Process

At each stage, ICF uses a standard, documented, transparent process to gather information on communities, analyze it, score it and report the results, described below.

ICF maintains data on hundreds of communities around the world, drawn from Assessment Questionnaires submitted by them, updates they provide and publicly available information. The questionnaires are based on standards developed for ICF’s Intelligent Community Certification program, consistent with the six Factors of the Community Accelerator Strategy.  ICF periodically reviews and updates the questions based on current best practices in development. Entered into ICF’s analytic model, the data produces a score for each Factor and a score for the community based on an equally-weighted average of the Factors.

Several Minnesota communities have participated in the past and several have done well. But as I recall, they learned a lot just from the process of self-assessing their communities.

OPPORTUNITY: Open seat on Launch Minnesota Advisory Board

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The Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State reports…

The Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State (OSS) is providing notice that various state boards, councils, and committees are now accepting applications for open seats.

The newest vacancies are listed below. The complete list of 720 seats can be found on the OSS Open Positions webpage. Click on the hyperlinks to learn more about the respective boards and their positions. Or use the search fields to search for a specific board or position.

There is at least one position that might of interest to readers…

Launch Minnesota Advisory Board
Vacancies: 1 Seat – Private Business Representative (entrepreneurs, large businesses, industry organizations, investors, and private small business assistance providers, Greater Minnesota or Metro Area)

OPPORTUNITY: Minnesota Cybersecurity Task Force 2024 seat open

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An opportunity from the Secretary of State several seats open on the Cybersecurity Task Force …

Membership

The Task Force membership shall meet, at minimum, the requirements of cybersecurity planning committee as defined in Public Law 117-58, Sec. 70612.

Membership requirements are based on and conform to Public Law 117-58. In summary, membership shall consist of the following:

  • The Chief Information Officer (CIO), the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), or equivalent official of the eligible entity;
  • If the eligible entity is a state (including territories), then representatives from counties, cities, and towns within the jurisdiction of the eligible entity;
  • Institutions of public education and health within the jurisdiction of the eligible entity; and
  • As appropriate, representatives of rural, suburban, and high-population jurisdictions.

At least one half of the representatives of the Cybersecurity Planning Committee must have professional experience relating to cybersecurity or information technology.

 

OPPORTUNITY: Arvig essay contest where winner earns a trip to Washington DC to learn about rural broadband

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D-L Online reports…

A winning essay will earn one area high school student an expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., June 2-6, 2025, to visit the capital and learn about the rural broadband industry as part of the Foundation for Rural Service Youth Tour.

Students in the Arvig service area are invited to submit an essay that answers the question, “How is Arvig-Connected Technology useful to you?” To be eligible, students must be between the ages of 15 and 17 at the time of the youth tour. The student must also be receiving Arvig internet, telephone and/or television services at their residence.

Essays can be up to 900 words in length and will be accepted through Tuesday, April 1, 2025. Essays can be submitted to Josie.Winkels@arvig.com.

I love everything about this!

OPPORTUNITY: MN Grant Opportunity for Multi-Purpose Community Facility Projects – including broadband

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From the Minnesota Department of Education…

November 25, 2024

Grant Opportunity for Multi-Purpose Community Facility Projects

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) is now accepting applications for the Minnesota Multi-Purpose Community Facility Projects Grant to Support Community Revitalization, Connectedness and Equity by Promoting Education, Work and Health.

An estimated $47.5 million is available on a one-time basis in maximum grant amounts of $500,000. Funding is available to family resource centers, full-service community schools, libraries, childcare and early learning facilities, and community centers.

Application, instructions, timeline, and further information can be found on MDE’s Competitive Grant Opportunities site. Completed applications are due January 3, 2025.

The federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 appropriated $10 billion to the U.S. Department of Treasury to provide payments to states, territories, freely associated states, and Tribal Governments to carry out critical capital projects directly enabling work, education, and healthcare monitoring in response to the Coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic public health emergency.

This established the Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund (“CPF”) program, which aims to:

  • Directly support recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency by strengthening and improving the infrastructure necessary for participation in work, education, and healthcare monitoring that will last beyond the pandemic;
  • Enable investments in capital assets designed to address inequities in access to critical services; and
  • Provide the modern infrastructure necessary to access critical services, including a high-quality and affordable broadband internet connection.

Minnesota was awarded $47.5 million from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Coronavirus Capitol Projects Fund.

Grants will be used to fund Multi-Purpose Community Facility Projects in areas that will benefit the most from support to address challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic through supports for education, work, and health focused on advancing family economic stability, connections and educational opportunity for our state’s children and youth.

OPPORTUNITY: Please take the MN County Broadband Survey

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It’s that time of year, when I start preparing for the MN Broadband County Profiles. I wanted to get some feedback from local government folks. I’ve created a survey that is intended to gauge how local governments in Minnesota feel about their chances of getting adequate broadband to all households and businesses in their community. (Remember MN broadband speed goal is 100 Mbps down and 20 Mbps up by 2026.) I am looking for representatives of local governments to answer a few questions about local plans, investment and confidence in broadband access. Results will be shared on the Blandin on Broadband blog and help inform the 2024 MN County Broadband Profiles.

Survey takes about three minutes and I’d really appreciate your help. The deadline is December 6.

OPPORTUNITY: Digital Inclusion Coalitions invited to take survey

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The National Digital Inclusion Alliance is inviting Digital Inclusion Coalitions to take a survey. The NDIA do a lot of great work. This could help them help you…

This fall we opened a survey and have been gathering information about Digital Inclusion Coalitions across the country to learn about where they are, various types of organizational structures, and most important, the work.

Make sure you’re counted! If you are a member of a Coalition we ask that you share this link with your fellow members and ask for one person to complete this short survey. If you know of a Coalition locally, then please spread awareness of this survey.

We’re looking forward to sharing a summary of our findings this winter on our Coalitions webpage along with several tools for folks to find Coalitions and learn more about their work. Look out for an interactive map and a searchable inventory to be hosted on that page as well.

But first, please complete this survey and spread awareness! The survey will close next Friday November 15.

https://ndia.jotform.com/242615310210034

Thanks for the work that you do.

OPPORTUNITY: Minnesota Cybersecurity Task Force 2024 open seats

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From the Minnesota Secretary of State…

The Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State (OSS) is providing notice of vacancies for various state boards, councils, and committees that are accepting applications. Minnesotans are encouraged to apply and serve in demonstration of public service. The newest vacancies are listed below. The complete list of 570 vacancies / 374 positions can be found on the Boards and Commissions Open Positions website.

Applications may be submitted online. Applicants who submit an application within 21 days of the “Publish Date” listed on our Open Positions page are assured full consideration by the appointing authority. Appointing authorities may choose to review applications received by the Secretary of State after the 21-day application period. You can still apply after the 21-day period though each appointing agency sets their own internal review dates for applications. If you have questions about specific board timelines, contact the board’s contact person listed on the OSS website by searching the board’s name.

See instructions for HOW TO APPLY at the end of this message.

Seats that I thought might interest readers…

Minnesota Cybersecurity Task Force 2024

Vacancies: 6 Seats — County, City, Town, or Tribal Government Member

Vacancies: 2 Seats — Critical Infrastructure Representatives

Vacancies: 1 Seat — Minnesota National Guard Representative

Vacancies: 2 Seats — Private Sector IT Representatives

Vacancies: 1 Seat — Public Education Representative

Vacancies: 1 Seat — Public Health Representative

Vacancies: 2 Seats — State Planning Representatives

How to apply…

– Visit the Boards & Commissions page
– Scroll down or use the search fields to look up the specific board you are interested in.
– To apply for a seat, click the green APPLY button in the “Open Positions” dropdown table near the top of the board webpage.
– The website will walk you through creating an application profile if you haven’t set up one up already.

-You will need an OSS account. Email official.documents@state.mn.us if you have trouble setting up your profile.
– You can submit additional supporting materials with your application (e.g. cover letter or resume).

– Hit “SUBMIT” when done.

How to find other opportunities…

– Visit the Open Positions page
– Scroll down the page to find the boards or seats you may be interested in. To learn more about the respective positions, click on the hyperlinks.
– To apply for a seat, click the green APPLY button on either the main Open Positions table or from the board’s webpage.
– The website will walk you through creating an application profile if you haven’t already.

– You will need an OSS account. Email official.documents@state.mn.us if you have trouble setting up your profile.
– You can submit additional supporting materials with your application (e.g. cover letter or resume).

– Hit “SUBMIT” when done.

OPPORTUNITY: Library-School Partnership RFP from Libraries without Border (deadline Oct 31, 2024)

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An opportunity from Libraries without Borders…

LWB US is seeking to partner with public libraries across the United States to enhance access and usage for underserved youth and families through the creation of library access points within local schools.

Five selected partners will receive technical assistance spanning data collection and analysis, strategy and partnership development, project implementation and sustainability as well as supplies and materials up to $5,000 to support the direct costs of establishing and enhancing outreach and access within their local school system.

Application Process

Applications will be accepted through October 31, 2024.

 See Library-School Partnership RFP for more details and submission instructions.

OPPORTUNITY: Digital Inclusion Trailblazers 2024 Application (deadline Nov 1, 2024)

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An invitation from the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA)…

Digital Inclusion Trailblazers are municipal, county, or regional governments that are paving the way and providing excellent models for digitally inclusive communities. They are intentional. They are invested. They are committed to advancing digital equity. The Trailblazers recognition isn’t just an award — it’s also a collection of valuable resources. The places selected as Trailblazers provide models to aspire to, demonstrating how local governments can support their own digital inclusion ecosystems.

VA offers veterans nationwide access to emergency telehealth care

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Next Gov reports…

The Department of Veterans Affairs announced on Thursday that veterans across the country who are enrolled in VA care can now receive virtual emergency assessments to determine the severity of medical afflictions.

The new tele-emergency care — or tele-EC — service is designed to connect retired servicemembers with clinical triage nurses, who can then evaluate their symptoms and determine if they require in-person aid.

“Veterans can get immediate, virtual triage with a VA medical provider who has direct access to their medical records,” VA Under Secretary for Health Shereef Elnahal said about the new service. “This avoids having to potentially drive to the nearest emergency department and wait to be evaluated, if appropriate.”

Veterans can access the tele-EC service by contacting VA Health Connect — which provides veterans 24/7 access to medical personnel for a variety of healthcare needs — or through the department’s VA Health Chat app.

OPPORTUNITY: Beginning Farmer Equipment and Infrastructure Grant Program Deadline Nov 21

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KFGO Radio reports…

 Senator Rob Kupec (DFL-Moorhead) is inviting new farmers to take advantage of the Beginning Farmer Equipment and Infrastructure Grant Program, a program that will provide up to $20,000 in reimbursement for Minnesotans who are just starting out in the agriculture industry.

“Agriculture is the industry that drives Minnesota’s economy and the economy of communities in every corner of our state, but it can be an expensive endeavor for those just starting out,” said Sen. Kupec, who serves as Vice-Chair of the Senate Agriculture, Broadband, and Rural Development Committee. “This program is a great way for people to get a new farm off the ground by helping reimburse them for some of those big ticket items and upgrades to get started. I encourage anyone interested in farming to apply.”

The Beginning Farmer Equipment and Infrastructure Grant program offers up to $20,000 for beginning farmers in Minnesota to make investments in their farm’s equipment and infrastructure. The intent of this grant program is to support new farmers in Minnesota to access equipment and develop infrastructure that will be crucial to the future of their farm business.

Through this grant, beginning farmers will be able to pay for:

  • Farm equipment
  • Farm infrastructure development such as investments in water access, irrigation, fencing, electricity, walk-in coolers, production-related structures such as livestock buildings and greenhouses, and other farm infrastructure.

Applicants may request funds at two levels:

  • up to $5,000 for a mini-grant or
  • up to $20,000 for a full grant.

The minimum request allowed is $1,000.

Applications for this new program opened on Tuesday, September 24 and will be open until Thursday, November 21.

More information about the program, including eligibility requirements, and details about how to apply are available here:  https://www.mda.state.mn.us/beginning-farmer-grant

OPPORTUNITY: FCC Opens Cybersecurity Pilot Program for Schools and Libraries Application Window

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The FCC reports…

The Federal Communications Commission today announced the opening of the application window for the Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program.  During the 45-day application filing window, which will run from September 17, 2024 to November 1, 2024, eligible schools and libraries can apply to participate in the three-year, $200 million pilot program.  Participants selected for the pilot program will receive support to defray the costs of eligible cybersecurity services and equipment, while providing the Commission with data to better understand whether and how universal service funds could be used to improve school and library defenses against increasing cyberattacks.

“School districts and libraries across the country have proven to be prime targets for cyber criminals.  The vulnerabilities in the networks are real—and growing,” said Chairwoman Rosenworcel.  “Through this pilot program, we’ll have a chance to better understand what equipment, services, and tools will help protect school and library broadband networks from cyberthreats.”

Modeled after the FCC’s successful Connected Care Pilot, the Cybersecurity Pilot Program will allow the FCC to collect data and evaluate the effectiveness of using universal service funds for cybersecurity services and equipment to protect school and library broadband networks and data.  The $200 million budget will use general universal service funds to ensure that gains in enhanced cybersecurity do not come at the cost of undermining E-Rate success in promoting digital equity and basic connectivity.  The pilot program will also allow the FCC to share actionable data with federal, state, and local government partners to jointly address this growing problem.

Interested schools and libraries can apply for the pilot program by providing basic information about their cybersecurity needs, experience, and plans to use the funding if selected in Part 1 of the application.  Then, selected pilot program participants will be required to provide more detailed information in Part 2 of the application to help the Commission determine whether and how to best use limited universal service funds to support the long-term cybersecurity needs of schools and libraries.

The pilot program is part of Chairwoman Rosenworcel’s Learn Without Limits initiative to address the Homework Gap by ensuring connectivity to and within schools and libraries.  This initiative includes Wi-Fi on school buses, the Wi-Fi hotspot lending program, and E-Rate support for libraries in Tribal communities.

OPPORTUNITY: FCC starts Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program

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Broadband Breakfast reports…

The Federal Communications Commission announced Wednesday its $200 million Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program is just days away from being operational. Eligible K-12 schools and libraries can apply for funding starting September 17, with the window closing on November 1, according to the agency’s public notice.

Adopted by a 3-2 FCC vote in June, the three-year pilot program will bolster cybersecurity protections for educational institutions, which have become frequent targets of ransomware attacks and data breaches due to the large amounts of personal data they manage, including addresses, social security numbers, and medical information.