Empowering Rural America - A New Model Emerges                        

By Michael Sotire

10/2009

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innovation, along with its leading healthcare and education institutions and nearby large rural communities make western Pennsylvania an ideal location for this type of endeavor. The Hill Group is now in the process of assembling suitable community anchor institutions and organizations and other public and private sector participants. Discussions are underway, which include Sandie Terry of Franklin County and Jon Beard, the CEO of I-CAN Network, in order to tailor the model into the appropriate configuration and strategy for that region.

Among the insightful expressions of interest are remarks made by Simeon Ananou, the Associate Provost of Slippery Rock University, who said, "A wireless broadband initiative, such as this, will ultimately liberate people in rural areas from perceived or real situations that have so far imposed limitations on them. Wireless broadband also expands affordability and accessibility to the education and workforce sectors."

As stated by Ms. Terry, the "visionary doer" primarily responsible for the technology innovation and many other aspects of HCW, "If local governments partner with private providers, solid broadband services can become a reality for a fraction of the cost and in a much timelier manner."

Vetrepreneurship, a word coined to describe collaborative entrepreneurship among military veterans, is a major contributor to the design and development of "Helping Communities Work" through the efforts of the Internship Institute, a non-profit organization located in Philadelphia and focused on rural entrepreneurship. The Institute has begun discussions with the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative (VetFran) to introduce the WISP franchise opportunity. VetFran was created with the cooperation of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Veterans Corporation, and the U.S. Small Business Administration, and with outreach initiatives of military and veteran organizations, the program continues to expand.
The initial goal of the Sectorforce brand strategy is to promote the name, in association with the education, training, employment and small business development opportunity, to military veterans across Rural America and throughout the United States.

Michael Sotire is national director of social entrepreneurship at the Internship Institute. He can be contacted at michaelsotire@yahoo.com

Photo of the 1906 bridge over NS Railway in Franklin County, Virginia by Flickr Cmh2315fl. CC Attribution-Noncommercial 2.0 Generic

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