NASHVILLE, Tenn. – State Rep. Ron Travis, R-Dayton, announced $3.7 million in grant funding has been awarded to expand broadband infrastructure and digital program opportunities in Bledsoe, Rhea, Sequatchie and Van Buren Counties.
The counties will receive seven separate grants as part of $162.7 million in overall funding administered by the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD). The investments will provide broadband access and digital opportunity programs to more than 236,000 Tennesseans across 92 counties.
“I’m excited to see more opportunities for career advancement and education coming to Southeast Tennessee,” Travis said. “I think it is wonderful that our community will be able to sharpen their digital skills through these programs and use them to potentially receive a higher paying job.”
Local grant recipients include:
- Van Buren County: $25,938 to expand digital skills training and broadband infrastructure through the Broadband Ready Communities (BRC) program
- The Enterprise Center: $1.98 million to advance digital skills and workforce development by serving parts of Bledsoe, Rhea, Sequatchie and seven other counties through the Digital Skills, Education and Workforce (DSEW) program
- University of Tennessee: $512,916to advance digital skills and workforce development by serving parts of Rhea and 20 other counties through the DSEW program
- Bledsoe County Board of Education: $61,649to advance digital skills and workforce development by serving parts of Bledsoe County through the DSEW program
- gener8tor Management, LLC: $899,999 to advance digital skills and workforce development by serving parts of Rhea, Bledsoe, Sequatchie and seven other counties through the DSEW program
- ROANEnet: $254,079 to advance digital skills and workforce development by serving parts of Rhea and one other county through the DSEW program
- Southeast Tennessee Development District: $198,000 to advance digital skills and workforce development by serving parts of Bledsoe, Rhea, Sequatchie and seven other counties through the DSEW program
Grantees across all programs are investing approximately $48 million in matching funds and will complete their projects by Dec. 31, 2026, according to TNECD.
The TNECD created four grant programs to promote broadband opportunity and high-paying digital jobs and District 31 will receive grants from two of them: Broadband Ready Communities (BRC) and Digital Skills, Employment and Workforce Development (DSEW).
The BRC grant funds will support community-based digital skills training, public Wi-Fi projects, distribution of free or low-cost devices and marketing for low-cost internet plans.
DSEW grant funding will offer the receiving organizations a variety of training and education programs to advance digital skills and workforce development, creating a pipeline for well-paying jobs.
In total, TNECD has invested more than $715 million to expand the state’s broadband infrastructure, connecting more than 689,000 Tennesseans across 275,000 residential and business locations.
Additional information on TNECD’s broadband initiatives can be found here.
State Rep. Ron Travis represents District 31 which includes Bledsoe, Rhea, Sequatchie and Van Buren Counties.
