The following is the second of two articles highlighting some of the top news stories from 2021. This article highlights events from July to December. The first installment appeared in the Dec. 29 issue.
By Staff
Networkmaine, a technology arm of the University of Maine System, on Wednesday announced a partnership with the Maine Department of Education to upgrade internet connections in the state s classrooms from pre-K to grade 12.
The Maine School and Library Network initiative, called the MSLN Gigabit Upgrade, responds to a growing need, exposed by the pandemic, to improve broadband connectivity for remote learning, according to a news release.
“COVID’s effects on our education systems in Maine and throughout the country are well-documented,” said Jeff Letourneau, executive director of Networkmaine. “Many schools in our state have been connected at 100 Mbps [megabits per second] or lower as their previous use of the internet didn t demand any more than that amount.”