What is the Rural Summit?

The 2023 Rural Summit will bring together community leaders, policymakers, and rural advocates from across the state and nation to engage in a thoughtful, intentional dialogue about the actions we can take today to advance policy and systems change across a broad spectrum of rural development issues.

What session will are we most interested in?

Closing the Digital Divide in 2023 and Beyond

Access to high-speed internet for rural, urban, and suburban communities is paramount to sustaining a well-equipped workforce, advancing a thriving small business sector, and ensuring a level playing field for all students. This session will provide best practices on building collaborations to address digital equity issues for our most unserved and underserved communities. Participants will hear from community stakeholders, state agency leaders, and philanthropic partners on their efforts to close the digital divide. Panelists will provide insight into their efforts for gathering and sharing data, leveraging funding streams, identifying gaps and addressing unmet needs in the community, and tackling issues at a multi-systems level.

Speakers:

· Samantha Graham, Institute for Emerging Issues at NC State

· Dawn Charaba, Reidsville Area Foundation

· Derek Southern, Rockingham County Government

· Annette Taylor, NC Office of Digital Equity & Literacy

Session Objectives:

· Understand best practices on addressing digital equity issues for underserved communities

· Learn how technology collaborations can help create a level playing field for rural, urban and suburban communities

· Identify opportunities for technological advancement in rural areas

all details pulled directly from Summit outreach