$99.6M Awarded In Stimulus Grant To Benefit Pennsylvania

March 16, 2010 :: Shriley Ross, Information Systemes and Computing

ISC’s MAGPI (Mid-Atlantic Gigapop for Internet2) was instrumental in the award of a $99.6M grant to the Keystone Initiative for Network-Based Education & Research (KINBER), a coalition of colleges and universities, research, healthcare and economic development organizations, of which MAGPI is a founding member. The grant is part of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act. The coalition submitted a joint application for the construction and management of a robust, statewide broadband network called the Pennsylvania Research & Education Network, or PennREN, which when completed will extend nearly 1700 miles through 39 counties, including 22 that are currently either unserved or underserved based on their access to affordable broadband services. The proposed fiber optic cable network will reach every region, providing access and services to anchor institutions that will have the potential to serve more than 5 million individuals in more than 2 million households and 200,000 businesses. Pennsylvania is one of a handful of states without a high-speed optical network serving its higher-education and health-care institutions. While MAGPI does not benefit directly from the grant, it has been a long-time advocate for this needed end-to-end network. For more information, please contact Greg Palmer at gpalmer@isc.upenn.edu.