Wednesday, April 26, 2000

When it comes to the digital divide, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington has been helping North Carolina's Columbus County and Southeastern Community College bridge the electronic canyon since 1991.

"In many ways, UNCW laid the groundwork for the progress being showcased today during President Clinton's visit to Whiteville and Columbus County," said Chancellor James R. Leutze. "The Rural Electrification Administration grant awarded to UNCW brought broadband fiber optic technology to Columbus County in 1993. Remote Data Systems, Inc., the company President Clinton visited today, is a direct beneficiary of the groundwork UNCW pioneered in the early 90s."

A hallmark of Dr. Leutze's tenure as chancellor has been a commitment to regional progress, with emphasis on making information technology applications available to counties in the university's service region.

"UNCW has taken to heart the mission of the Rural Utilities Service to make sure rural citizens can participate fully in the global economy," Dr. Leutze said. "We've done this by providing leadership and technical assistance to encourage education and economic development."

Below are some of the initiatives implemented as part of UNC Wilmington's outreach to Southeastern North Carolina:

1991

The Southeastern Network for Economic Development (SENED) was formed in 1991 as a regional initiative of UNCW to improve economic development and intergovernmental relations in its 16-county service area. The 16 counties include: Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Duplin, Jones, Lenoir, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender, Robeson, Sampson, Scotland and Wayne. SENED was successfully concluded in 1994 with a strategic planning document, titled A Regional Strategy for Southeastern North Carolina, that outlined a number of goals and development themes to promote ongoing regional growth.

One of the goals was to focus on the use of information technology in job preparation to solve the regionís educational problems. Another was to enhance regional competitiveness by seeking links to the North Carolina Information highway and other emerging information technology concepts designed to improve the performance of businesses and public organizations.

1993-94

UNC Wilmington was awarded a Rural Electrification Administration grant on Oct. 1, 1993, for $484,452 for the expansion of the former Cape Fear Educational Partnership Network fiber optic distance learning network into rural southeastern North Carolina. Funding partners included South-eastern Community College, Brunswick Community College, Cape Fear Community College-Pender Campus, Pender and Topsail High Schools and West Brunswick High School. In several cases, broadband fiber optic technologies were deployed into these counties to support this grant initiative.

1994

The North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center and UNC Wilmingtonís Division for Public Service and Extended Education produced the Rural Tele-Forum to showcase technological developments in North Carolina on Jan. 5, 1994. Chancellor Leutze and UNC President Emeritus Bill Friday, among others, moderated sessions on distance learning, tele-medicine, business opportunities and the North Carolina Information Highway initiative. Boone, Charlotte, Greenville, Raleigh and Wilmington were linked interactively during the daylong conference. Vice President Al Gore and Governor James B. Hunt also spoke to the conference highlighting North Carolina's technological growth and commending UNC Wilmington on its leadership role in Southeastern North Carolina.

1994-2000

In August, 1994, the Cape Fear Educational Partnership evolved into the Cape Fear Regional Partnership Network (CFRPN). The CFRPN is a collaborative partnership established to develop and promote educational, business, governmental, community and health care delivery services through broadband, fiber-based interactive technologies. The membership includes Bladen County Schools, Bladen Community College, Brunswick County Schools, Brunswick Community College, Cape Fear Academy, Coastal Carolina Community College, James Sprunt Community College, New Hanover County Schools, New Hanover Regional Medical Center-Coastal AHEC, North Carolina Justice Academy, Pender County Schools, Pender Correctional Institution, Robeson Community College, Sampson Community College, Southeastern Community College, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and Whiteville City Schools.

Today the CFRPN continues to serve as an open forum for information exchange, issues review and applications development. As the first and largest regional partnership network, the CFRPN is unique because of the diversity of our membership. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development recognized the CFRPN and UNC Wilmington as a model university-community partnership.

1996

On Oct. 26, 1996, UNC Wilmington volunteers mobilized to support Net Day by sending volunteer wiring and support crews into the following nine school systems: Whiteville City Schools, Columbus County Schools, Brunswick County Schools, Duplin County Schools, Pender County Schools, Bladen County Schools, Sampson County Schools, Clinton City Schools, and New Hanover County Schools. The Division for Public Service and Extended Education coordinated the efforts of more than 60 university faculty, staff and students during this event.

1996-2000

The Southeast Public Interest Network of North Carolina, Inc.(SpinNC), an affiliate of the UNC Wilmington, was launched by a consortium of university, business and community leaders to address the growing digital divide in southeastern North Carolina. SpinNC .Org is a community-based network established through a public/private partnership to help people gather and share information in a nine-county area. SpinNC.Org is striving to accomplish the following goals in New Hanover, Pender, Brunswick, Onslow, Cumberland, Bladen, Duplin, Sampson and Columbus counties: provide a well-organized, easy to use, computer-based network connecting citizens in Southeastern North Carolina to information and community resources; provide broad public access, to include persons who would have difficulty obtaining these information resources; offer the means for citizens to interact with each other electronically and obtain desired resources; encourage and empower citizens to participate more fully in their community; stimulate and foster the development of partnerships and collaborations; encourage community wellness through sharing and dissemination of electronic information resources; and provide reliable access through technologies that are redundant and dynamic.

1997-99

UNC Wilmington was awarded a Rural Utilities Services grant for $261,000 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to connect James Sprunt Community College, Bladen Community College, Brunswick Community College-Leland Industrial Park and Bladen County Schools to the North Carolina Information Highway. This builds on the continuing technological developmental efforts of the southeast region.

1999-2000

In April 1999 the Columbus County Partnership for Children launched the Family Support Network on SpinNC.Org in collaboration with UNCWís Division for Public Service and Extended Education. The website http://www.spinnc.org/columbusnetwork links citizens with agencies, resources and services. The Family Support Network is one of several websites hosted by SpinNC.Org that address the region's information needs. SpinNC.Org is an affiliate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

For additional information on any of these initiatives, contact Hunter Thompson, director of community outreach services for UNCWís Division for Public Service and Extended Education 910/962-3138 or e-mail thompsonh@uncwil.edu.