Helping students by helping schools reach 25 Mbps

The Alaska School Broadband Assistance Grant (BAG) program was created to assist schools to increase internet download speeds. Originally established in 2014 by the Alaska State Legislature, this grant originally allowed schools to reach download speeds of 10 Mbps. In 2020, the State Legislature revised the statute to help schools reach 25 Mbps download speeds.  

• 
  $6.2 M awarded in 2020-21
• 
  28 districts received awards
• 
  152 schools reached 25 Mbps

Access to the additional bandwidth provided by the School BAG Grant has allowed our staff and students to engage in online educational opportunities in a way that was not previously possible. Additionally, without the bandwidth provided by the School BAG grant, online student testing, including PEAKS, would probably not be feasible.

Les Parks, Southwest Region School District

The School Broadband Assistance Grant, together with the Online with Libraries and E-Rate subsidy, has enabled our school district/public library consortium to maintain a 20 Mbps/7 Mbps shared connection. Without the BAG, our students' access to the learning opportunities delivered via broadband internet would be severely limited.

John Conwell, Unalaska City School District

I would like to express my appreciation for the support YKSD has received through the Broadband Assistance Grant Program. YKSD has improved its broadband capacity considerably, all schools to 10 megabits has enabled our district to provide meaningful professional development and additional educational opportunities through the increased access connectivity. Leveraging BAG with the E-rate program has been one of the most valuable programs for YKSD. Thank you.

Jenny Martens, YKSD

• AS 14.03.127 Funding for Internet Services
• 4 AAC 33.6 Funding for the Improvement of Internet Speeds at Public Schools

• Alaska Department of Education and Early Development
• Division of Libraries, Archives, & Museums