Fast internet expands at schools
99 percent of students now at high speed
About 110,000 additional New Mexico students now have access to highspeed internet at their schools, it was announced Friday by Gov. Susana Martinez, during a news conference at the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce.
Currently, 99 percent of New Mexico’s public schools have access to highspeed internet — up from 89 percent in 2015 — and the partnerships leveraged through the schools initiative have reduced costs to connect students by more than 60 percent.
“Every child can learn, and it’s up to us as leaders to give our kids the tools they need,” Martinez said. “Highspeed internet is a necessity today, and progress like this will help more of our students and teachers have more of the digital tools and experience they need. I’m grateful for all our partners as we work to make the vision of high-speed internet access for all New Mexico students a reality.”
The governor began the initiative two years ago with the goal of having every school in New Mexico equipped with high-speed internet by 2018. Today, all but seven school districts in the state, mostly in rural areas, have completed an infrastructure upgrade to install fiber optic cable and associated technology, said Paul Aguilar, the Public Education Department’s deputy secretary for finance and operations.
The initiative brought together a partnership of a number of state agencies and departments, nonprofit organizations and private internet service providers, which allowed the state to leverage $49 million in state funds and additional funding from a program overseen by the Federal Communications Commission.
A request for proposals, or an RFP, will be issued later this month so that the remaining fiber optics infrastructure work can be done, Aguilar said. “This is more about getting the speed from the street, into the classrooms.”
Another benefit of fiber optics, he noted, is that the technology is “scalable,” so as faster speeds become available it can be provided via the existing fiber optics system, requiring only the negotiation of bandwidth contracts with service providers.