Shentel Offers High-Speed Internet to Franklin and Cumberland County Schools
Posted 1 September 2011 12:00 AM by Shentel
For the first time, students can access high-speed Internet, provided by Shentel
via the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative’s new fiber optic network
Edinburg, Va. – Sept. 1, 2011– Shenandoah Telecommunications Company (Shentel) (NASDAQ: SHEN), an established provider broadband services for Internet, home phone and television, announces it is providing high-speed Internet service to schools in Franklin and Cumberland Counties in Virginia via a fiber-optic network provided by the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative (MBC) .
Upon receiving a $16 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Technologies and Opportunities Program (BTOP), and a $4 million grant from the Virginia Tobacco Commission, MBC is constructing over 400 miles of fiber-optic infrastructure, connecting 117 K-12 schools and support buildings in Southern Virginia. For the first time, students in the Franklin County and Cumberland County school districts have access to high-speed Internet with speeds up to 100 Mbps. The network will allow 100 Mbps for all K-12 schools, ensuring faster upload and download speeds.
Tad Deriso, MBC president and CEO, said, “I am excited that MBC was able to partner with Shentel to expand its network reach and provide a cost-effective solution for broadband connectivity within the Franklin and Cumberland County school systems. We are proud that the MBC open-access network is being used to improve the delivery of advanced services in Southern Virginia.”
Matt Krueger, Marketing Manager, Shentel, said, “Shentel has long been dedicated to bringing high-speed Internet service to rural areas, like Franklin and Cumberland counties. MBC has made it possible for us to extend our services into these school districts, allowing students to utilize broadband Internet to facilitate their studies.”
For more information about Shentel, please visit www.shentel.com, or call 1-877-743-8538.
About MBC
The Mid‐Atlantic Broadband Cooperative (MBC) owns and operates an advanced open‐access fiber optic backbone network that provides wholesale optical transport services, collocation, dark fiber, and tower construction/leasing. MBC currently has over 60 private sector telecom provider members. They use MBC’s open access network to expand their network reach, reduce their transport costs, enable new services and applications, and drive advanced broadband services in Southern Virginia. MBC’s mission is economic development, job creation, and private sector investment in Southern Virginia. For more information about MBC, visit www.mbc-va.com.
About Shentel
Shenandoah Telecommunications Company (www.shentel.com) is a holding company that provides a broad range of telecommunications services through its operating subsidiaries. The Company is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "SHEN." The Company's operating subsidiaries provide local and long distance telephone, Internet and data services, cable television, wireless voice and data services, alarm monitoring, and telecommunications equipment, along with many other associated solutions in the Mid-Atlantic United States.
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