NEWS
RELEASE
United States Department
of Agriculture Rural Development
3001 Coolidge Rd. 2nd Floor North Suite 200 East Lansing, MI 48823
Phone: (517) 324-5204 Fax: (517) 324-5225
alec.lloyd@mi.usda.gov
Contact: Alec Lloyd (517) 324-5204
F.C.C. COMMISSIONER MICHAEL J. COPPS TO SPEAK AT MICHIGAN BROADBAND SUMMIT
EAST LANSING, Sept. 17, 2007 USDA Rural Development Director for Michigan Gene DeRossett today announced F.C.C. Commissioner Michael J. Copps will speak at the Northern Michigan Broadband Summit on October 1, from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Grayling Ramada Inn, 2650 S. I-75 Business Loop in Grayling.
This is an outstanding opportunity for people to learn about broadband technology and how it can help foster growth in rural Michigan, said DeRossett. There will be something for everyone, from local government officials to educators to entrepreneurs.
The conference will focus on how communities can achieve broadband access and will feature presentations by Congressman Bart Stupak, USDA Rural Development officials, and leading educators, health care organizations and economic development experts.
The conference is sponsored by the Northwest Michigan Council of Governments, Northeast Michigan Council of Governments, Northern Economic Network, Northern Lakes Economic Alliance and Crawford County Economic Development Partnership.
For more information, contact USDA Rural Development at (517) 324-5204 or the Northwest Michigan Council of Governments at (989) 732-3551 ext. 11.
USDA Rural Development's mission is to deliver programs in a way that will support increasing economic opportunity and improve the quality of life of rural residents. As a venture capital entity, Rural Development provides equity, liquidity, and technical assistance to finance and foster growth in homeownership, business development, and critical community and technology infrastructure. Further information on rural programs is available at a local USDA Rural Development office or by visiting USDA's web site at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/
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