Press Release

From Governor Mark Parkinson's Office:

Task force to support Connect Kansas broadband initiative

To provide faster and more reliable Internet services to rural Kansans, Governor Mark Parkinson has established the Kansas Broadband Advisory Task Force. The 24-member advisory group will help implement the state’s Connect Kansas broadband Internet initiative.

“Access to broadband services is essential in supporting our communities and furthering economic development,” said Parkinson. “Whether you’re searching for a job, looking to enhance your education or accessing healthcare technologies, broadband is becoming the standard of Internet communications nationwide. I am pleased to form this task force that will help bring broadband access to all corners of Kansas and enhance economic opportunities for our state.”

The Kansas Broadband Advisory Task Force will develop recommendations to support statewide availability and adoption of broadband services consistent with the 2010 National Broadband Plan. The task force will coordinate input from key stakeholders in the public and private sectors to ensure Kansas has a competitive advantage through a robust and growing digital economy.

The administration has been committed to expanding broadband access across Kansas prior to the formation of the task force, which is the latest development for the Connect Kansas initiative. Connect Kansas is funded primarily by the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which has invested $7.2 billion to help states expand broadband access to underserved communities. Thus far, the Recovery Act has awarded approximately $174 million in grants and loans to expand broadband Internet infrastructure in Kansas.

Connect Kansas is mapping the state’s existing high-speed Internet availability and creating a strategy for broadband infrastructure improvements. The broadband initiative is also helping Kansas organizations apply for federal awards to undertake broadband expansion and adoption projects. The Kansas mapping tool, Broadband Stat, is near completion and will be launched in next few weeks.

The governor will appoint the Kansas Broadband Advisory Task Force chairperson and vice chairperson for the first year. Subsequently, task force members will elect their own chairperson and vice chairperson.

Members of the task force are as follows:

• Dan Yunk, a representative for agriculture and rural development;
• Randall Allen, a representative for Kansas counties;
• J.D. Lester, a representative for small cities;
• Jessica Frye, a representative for public safety;
• Steve Davis, a representative for rural telecommunications consortia;
• Two representatives for different broadband technology platforms: Jay Allbaugh and Cindy Swoboda;
• Two representatives for economic development: Gabe Schlickau and Stan Ahlerich;
• Brad Williams, a representative for education;
• Jennifer Findley, a representative for health care;
• Joe Hennes, a representative for government public interface;
• Joanne Budler, a representative for libraries and public access;
• Guy McDonald, a representative for regulatory affairs;
• David Rosenthal, a representative for digital accessibility; and
• Bill Roth, a representative for inter-agency technology integration.

Dan Yunk, Manhattan, is the chief executive officer for the Kansas Farm Bureau and a past superintendent of Manhattan-Ogden USD 383. Yunk received his bachelor’s and master’s in secondary education, as well as his doctorate in educational administration from Kansas State University.

Randall Allen, Topeka, is the executive director for the Kansas Association of Counties. As executive director, Allen helps to uphold the association’s mission of advancing public interest by providing representation, education and leadership to Kansas counties. Beyond his administrative duties, Allen works as an advocate and representative for the interests of counties located both within and outside the state.

J.D. Lester, Chanute, is the city manager for Chanute, Kansas. Lester formally worked as a city administrator for Hermann, Missouri and with a statewide Missouri organization representing member utilities for legislative and regulatory issues. He has also previously worked as the marketing and public relations director for a local utility company in Crawfordville, Indiana.

Jessica Frye, Topeka, serves as the geographic information system (GIS) coordinator for the Kansas Adjutant General’s Office. Frye also serves on the North Central Region Homeland Security Support Team.

Steve Davis, Topeka, is the president of SC Telcom in Kansas. He also serves as the chair of the State Independent Telephone Association (SITA) which establishes partnerships between rural telephone companies and ensures quality telephone service throughout the State of Kansas.

Jay Allbaugh, Wichita, is the vice president of governmental affairs at Cox Communications, the third-largest cable entertainment and broadband services provider in the country.

Cindy Swoboda, Topeka, is the manager of regulatory relations at AT&T, the largest communications holding company by revenue in the United States and worldwide.

Gabe Schlickau, Wichita, is currently an economic development manager at Black Hills Energy. Schlickau serves on the board of directors of the Kansas Economic Development Alliance and was a past president of the Western Kansas Rural Economic Development Alliance. He attained his bachelor’s in animal science and industry from Kansas State University.

Stan Ahlerich, Topeka, is the president of Kansas, Inc., a public-private partnership that conducts evaluation reviews and provides oversight of economic development programs to benchmark economic development efforts in the State of Kansas. Ahlerich is also a past president of the Kansas Farm Bureau.

Brad Williams, Topeka, helps facilitate statewide technology solutions for higher education institutions, hospitals, and K-12 schools as the executive director for Kan-ed. In addition, Williams is the chief information officer for the Kansas Board of Regents. He received his bachelor’s and master’s in psychology from Pittsburg State University.

Jennifer Findley, Topeka, is the director of education at the Kansas Hospital Association. She is also a liaison to the Kansas Healthcare Education Council and the Kansas Association of Medical Staff Services. Additionally, Findley is a member of the Kan-ed User Advisory Council and the Kansas Digital Learning Advisory Board. She attained her bachelor’s in political science and speech communication from Wichita State University and earned a training and development certificate from the College of Business Administration at Southwest Missouri State University.

Joe Hennes, Topeka, currently serves as chief information technology officer (CITO) for the Executive Branch of Kansas state government. In 2009, Hennes was named as director of the Division of Information Systems and Communications. He is also a member of the Kansas Partnership for Accessible Technology.

Joanne Budler, Topeka, has been the Kansas State Librarian since January 2010. Previously, Budler was the Ohio State Librarian. She holds a master’s in library science and a master’s of fine arts in Writers’ Workshop, both from the University of Iowa.

Guy McDonald, Topeka, works as a senior telecommunications analyst for the Kansas Corporation Commission.

David Rosenthal, Topeka, currently serves as president of the Kansas Telecommunications Industry Association (KTIA), an organization aimed to represent and advocate for the interests of telecommunication companies and the public they serve. Prior to his employment with KTIA, Rosenthal worked for Southwestern Bell for 17 years.

Bill Roth, Topeka, is the chief information technology architect for the State of Kansas and the secretary to the Information Technology Executive Council. Roth also serves as a member of the Kansas Partnership for Accessible Technologies where he helps to address web and information technology accessibility issues and provides related policy, standards, guidelines and procedural recommendations.

Also appointed to the Kansas Broadband Advisory Task Force are Secretary of Agriculture Josh Svaty and Secretary of Commerce Bill Thornton as ex-officio, non-voting members. Four members of the legislature will be appointed ex-officio, non-voting members as well, one appointed by the Speaker of the House, one appointed by the President of the Senate, one appointed by the Minority Leader of the House, and one appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate.

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Governor Parkinson created the Kansas Broadband Advisory Task Force through Executive Order 10-08. To view the full executive order, please visit: http://governor.ks.gov/issues-a-initiatives/executive-orders.

For more information on Connect Kansas, please visit http://www.connectkansas.org/.