Community support vital to Henry County ECO success

The Every Citizen Online program at Liberty Center Public Library in Henry County was made possible by strong community support and the passion of its Friends of the Library organization. Friends of the Library appreciated the importance of the ECO program and how it could positively affect their community.

ECO training participants Patsy Leatherman & Dan Chambers

The small, all-volunteer organization of seven provided Liberty Center Public Library with the up-front financial investment needed for the library to receive 10 new computers to enable its offering of the ECO program.

“We’re a small group, but we try to do what we can,” said Sue Garrettson, Friends of the Library president. “Our largest fundraising event is an annual lasagna dinner before a high school football game. We’ve held chicken dinners, tea events, and scrapbooking gatherings, too.”

“Without the Every Citizen Online program and Friends of the Library, we would have never been able to afford 10 new computers,” said Brian Eckel-Hare, library director.

Not only are the new computers used for ECO training classes, but are open to public use at the library, as well. Eckel-Hare says many patrons take advantage of the opportunity for Internet access at the library, especially if they do not have it at home.

ECO Instructor Rick Roell with participant Julie Engler

The community continues its support of the ECO program, spreading awareness through word of mouth. Staff, friends, and program graduates are passing on class information to others. The result has been full classes.

The library offers the ECO training series of three, 2-hour classes once a month with a capacity of 10 people per class. Thus far, about 30 adults in Henry County have taken advantage of the free training since its start in January.

“Many of our participants have a computer at home that they never use or they just want to know what a computer and the Internet is all about,” said Eckel-Hare. “The class feedback has been positive. They’ve enjoyed the training and say they’ve learned a lot.”

Connect Ohio Assists Jackson County With RFP Release

The Jackson County Economic Development Board (JCEDB), with help from Connect Ohio's technical outreach team, recently released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the construction of a wireless broadband network throughout the county.

The RFP was a result of months of planning between JCEDB, Connect Ohio, Jackson County officials, municipalities and villages throughout the county, as well as the Jackson County Water Company. Connect Ohio was able to provide data collection, cost estimates, and propagation studies in order to create a customized business model for broadband expansion in the county, which is included in the RFP.


“The citizens of Jackson County have been well served by the level of effort and dedication of resources that went into this project,” said Bart Winegar, Connect Ohio technical outreach manager. “We are hopeful that the broadband provider community will recognize the full and unified support of the county to help them succeed.”


“Connect Ohio has been an invaluable partner in the RFP process,” said Sam Brady, Jackson County economic development specialist. “Their expertise has been a huge asset to Jackson County and its project partners.”

“This has been an ideal public/private partnership at all levels with JCEDB, Connect Ohio, and our local government partners,” said Jennifer Jacobs, Jackson County Economic Development Board executive director. “This project has displayed the very best of the cooperative spirit among our local leaders to move Jackson County ahead.”

JCEDB released the proposal in an effort to expand the access and availability of broadband Internet services to commercial, residential, and publicly owned locations in Jackson County. The Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP)-friendly RFP is an invitation to providers to bring broadband to the unserved and underserved residents and businesses of not only Jackson County, but neighboring counties, as well.

According to a statement from JCEDB, the top five most compelling reasons providers should consider responding to the RFP include:
• Single point of contact and low cost access to county-wide towers and water tanks
• Local marketing assistance and community cooperation
• Wireless propagation analysis
• Business case study
• Limited financial assistance to contribute to the project

The RFP is available for view by broadband providers at http://www.jcedb.com.


According to Connect Ohio’s 2008 Consumer Technology Assessment for Jackson County, 27% of households received broadband service to the home, significantly less than the state average at the time, which was 55%.* Additional Jackson County technology statistics can be found on Connect Ohio’s website or by visiting the following link: http://www.connectohio.org/mapping_and_research/county_profiles/jackson/.

*A 2011 Residential Technology Assessment for each county will be available later this year.

ECO Location Receives Help From Area Students

When the Kate Love Simpson-Morgan County library received 20 large boxes, each holding a new computer to enable their Every Citizen Online (ECO) training, library director Blythe Schubert knew just where to turn for help to get the computers from boxes to public use.

John Robbins, teacher of electronics and networking at Morgan High School in McConnelsville, had a class full of juniors and seniors eager to learn. The students build computers daily in class. They even repair computers for those in the community at no cost.

The students jumped at the chance to utilize their technology skills to help set-up the new laptop and desktop computers for their local library. They also connected the devices to the library’s network.

“They build old computers over and over in a lab,” said Robbins. “Rarely do they get to build new computers.”

Robbins, accompanied by 22 students, visited Schubert at the library and had the task completed quickly.

“It was an immense help,” said Schubert. “Each student unpacked a computer. They were unpacked and ready within about an hour! It saved us about 22 hours of work.”

Schubert says the students plan to help with the library’s future IT needs. Robbins continues to keep the new laptop computers current with the library’s network.
The students have plans to reformat about a dozen older computers no longer being used by the library, in order for them to be recycled to others in the community.

“It’s an opportunity to show the students the world is a little bigger than just themselves,” said Robbins.

Kate Love Simpson-Morgan County Library received 10 new laptop and 10 new desktop units as a sub-recipient of the ECO program. The laptops enable the organization to provide a mobile computer lab, which it utilizes to offer ECO training at its branch in Chesterhill. It plans to utilize the mobile lab further, with hopes of visiting county senior centers and fire stations, making the Internet available to those who cannot conveniently travel to the library locations in Chesterhill and McConnelsville. When the laptops are not being used for ECO training, they are open to public use at the main library branch.

The library can train 8-10 participants per ECO class and have been steadily full since the launch of the program. Adults from neighboring counties are even driving to McConnelsville for the training. By the end of March, nearly 50 adults have completed the free computer and Internet training offered by Kate Love Simpson-Morgan County Library.

To view additional photos of the students' help at the library, visit our Facebook page by clicking here.