Wabash District #348 officials are hoping to upgrade bandwidth at the district’s three school buildings with help from the state. Legislation has been introduced in Springfield to help bring high speed internet to more students in rural areas like Mt. Carmel. Senator Andy Manar says nearly 90,000 students at about 100 rural schools don’t have access to high speed internet…
Manar says his bills calls for broadband infrastructure to be put in at these schools. The project would be a one-time expense and paid for with $16 million in state funds and by leveraging federal matching dollars.
At Monday’s school board meeting, technology director Kevin Smith said increasing bandwidth to handle the addition of Chromebooks and other devices is a big goal. But, Superintendent Tim Buss said increasing bandwidth is a costly project, probably outside the district’s present financial situation.
