Cook County business owners and operators soon will receive an e-mail invitation to participate in a survey of their Internet usage. “We want to ensure that every Cook County business has the skills needed to take maximum advantage of coming improvements in Internet connectivity,” said Jim Boyd, local coordinator for a University of Minnesota Extension Internet training program. “The first step is to survey local businesses on how they now use the Internet and how they would like to use it in the future.”
The survey is a project of Cook County Higher Education, Boreal Access, Arrowhead Electric and the University of Minnesota Extension Center for Community Vitality. The first half of the survey concerns Internet skills and uses. Results will be used to develop a series of training workshops jointly offered by Cook County Higher Ed and U of M Extension. The second half of the survey collects information that Arrowhead Electric will use to ensure its coming fiber optic network offers the connectivity that businesses need.
“We need to hear from every Cook County business,” Boyd said. “That includes every home-based enterprise, from jewelry makers and potters to carpenters and brick layers. We believe we have a good e-mail list, but if any business person fails to get an invitation to take the survey, they can find it at www.surveymonkey.com/s/CookCountyMN.”
Boyd adds, “Until recently, access to true high-speed, highcapacity Internet connectivity seemed a pipe dream for Cook County. That has all changed, thanks to stimulus grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service. Now begins the exciting work of making the new Internet connectivity serve the people of Cook County, enhancing prosperity and quality of life in ways that preserve the natural and cultural values county residents hold dear. This survey and the training that will flow out of it are important pieces of that work.”
If anyone has questions about the survey, he or she can reach Jim Boyd at (218) 387- 2466 or bjboyd@aol.com.
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