AVERY COUNTY â SkyLine Membership Corporation has been awarded a $97,000 partner grant through the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) and the Avery Chamber of Commerce to extend broadband connectivity to identified unserved and underserved areas of Avery County.
The grant, which requires a $100,000 match from SkyLine, mandated that the Chamber seek a qualified partner to provide the technical expertise and capacity to use the ARC funds awarded to the Chamber to make available high-speed internet services to as much of the identified areas as possible. The grant opportunity stemmed from a 2015 survey from Avery residents who reported inadequate broadband access in areas of southern Avery County. The projectâs goal is to provide affordable, adequate internet access to as many unserved and underserved residents and businesses as possible.
HIGH COUNTRY â Area high school seniors whose parents are telecommunications customers of SkyLine Membership Corporation and SkyBest Communications may apply for national scholarships available through Foundation for Rural Service (FRS).
In 2021, the FRS will award one-year scholarships in each geographic region of the NTCAâThe Rural Broadband Association membership (including the service area of SkyLine/SkyBest) to graduating high school seniors whose families are served by NTCA member organizations. This year, 30 one-time, $2,500 FRS scholarships will be awarded with FRS funding $2,000 of each scholarship, with the sponsoring local cooperative of each winning student providing a $500 match.
Additional scholarships ranging from $500 to $5,000 in value to be awarded through this program include the following: