$3.7 million awarded to Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas to improve internet connectivity

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – About $3.7 million has been given to the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas to improve broadband and internet connectivity.

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly said on Thursday, Oct. 20, the Kickapoo Tribe of Kansas received a grant of more than $3.7 million to connect more than 350 Native American homes and businesses to broadband.

“By connecting more than 350 Kickapoo homes and businesses to high-speed internet, we continue to achieve our bold and ambitious goal of making Kansas one of the top 10 states for broadband access by 2030,” said Governor Kelly. “This funding will help ensure that people in every corner of our state can connect to the world.”

Kelly noted that the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas was one of 23 tribal communities nationwide to receive an “Internet for All” grant to expand high-speed Internet access. She said the funds advance the goal of improving internet connectivity in the Sunflower State.

“The ability to build strong connections with each other, with our families and with the world at large is central to our community values and is an important key to our future,” said Lester Randall, president of Kickapoo Tribal. . “The funds from this grant will provide our community with accessible high-speed Internet access, enhancing opportunities for economic development and educational success while improving access to essential health and safety resources. We look forward to bringing broadband infrastructure and services to our Kickapoo community very soon.

In 2020, Kelly reported that the Kansas Office of Broadband Development was created to connect Kansans in underserved and unserved communities to high-speed internet. That year, she said the state’s only broadband investment program — the Broadband Acceleration Grant Program — was also created, which has since brought in more than $70 million. dollars of investment in broadband infrastructure in the Sunflower State.

For more information on the communities impacted by these investments, click HERE.