2019 Technology FINAL

Broadband and Barbecue:
Connecting Rural Communities,
Remote Work Panel Discussion
The Center for Rural Development recently brought together community leaders from Southern and Eastern Kentucky for an
informative broadband workshop in Hazard, KY. The event, dubbed “Broadband and Barbecue: Connecting Rural Communities,”
served as a platform for discussion about the future of broadband in the state.
Conversations centered on how to improve access to high-speed affordable broadband and how to leverage that connectivity to
grow local economies. In order to address numerous aspects of the topic of broadband, the event was divided into several sessions.
The day kicked off with a Remote Work Panel that provided employer, local government, and remote workers perspectives.
Human Resource Business Partner Manager for General Dynamics IT, Cheryl Ellis explained that her company uses Teleworks USA
hub site facilities in Hazard and Cumberland to provide training to employees and then deploys them to work from home. “We are
planning to hire more people,” said Ellis. “This particular program that we work for will be hiring probably anywhere from 100 to 300
more people,” she added. “You know Hal Rogers said we were gonna have Silicon Holler. Well we’ve got a good start,” said Ellis.
Michael Cornett, EKCEP Director of Agency Expansion and Teleworks USA, and panel moderator, added, “When people say: ‘There
aren’t any jobs in Eastern Kentucky,’ that’s not true. That is absolutely not true. It’s a matter of connecting to them.”
Lee County Judge-Executive, Chuck Caudill spoke of the transformation he has already begun to see in his community. “In Wolfe
County and Lee County, we’re seeing an influx in the number of people coming to the area because internet access is making it
possible for them to live the lifestyle they want to live, in a more rural environment, and still be able to work for large companies, and
still have opportunities for a future.” Caudill also discussed the impact that improved connectivity is having for rural youth. “We’re
seeing young people who have had to leave and they don’t have to leave anymore. Those who want to still have the opportunity, but
now if they want to work for a company where they have a future, they can start and not leave Eastern Kentucky.”
This sentiment echoes the words of U.S. Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers, for whom The Center for Rural Development’s Rogers
Scholars program is named. Rogers has often shared his beliefs that “we must stop exporting our young talent,” and “no young
person should have to leave home to find his or her future.”
Jeremiah Ford, a remote worker for Support.com, shared his perspective during the panel as well. “We live in an area that’s been so
dependent on coal mining. You know, most towns have the same three gas stations, the same three restaurants, and all the same
stop lights. So, $7.25 an hour compared to $11.50, $10.00, $13.00, whatever your contract is, makes a huge difference at the end
of the day, about how thick that wallet gets, you know, and how easy it is to pay your bills,” Ford said. “We’re going to have to move
forward with how we look at things, and I know that change is scary. But you either move with it or you get stuck in the past,” he
added.
Technology Edition 7