Dakota Central Newsletter Spring 2021

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A Letter From The General Manager It appears that our initial spring weather is better for plowing cable than farming. The dry spell for our area continues as we get ready to begin our seasonal construction season.

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Business Spotlight

Golfers at CrossRoads Golf Club got a little tease when the season started early in mid- march.

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RDFC Awards

Rural Development Finance Corporation Awards Grants in Dakota Central’s Service Area

Spring 2021

Photo by Bill Burgess

A letter from our

General Manager It appears that our initial spring weather is better for plowing cable than farming. The dry spell for our area continues as we get ready to begin our seasonal construction season.

Before freeze-up last fall, our contractors were able to complete better than 243 miles of buried fiber to connect 232 new locations in Stutsman County, in addition to plowing 67 miles of new transport fiber between Jamestown and Carrington. With the early spring weather we had, the contractors were already able to return and finish any necessary clean-up during the beginning of April. North Plains Utility Contracting is now working on construction for new facilities to locations that were requested over the winter.

As Internet usage continues to increase, we are committed to making sure our network is operating efficiently and able support our customers’ needs. Early in the year we signed contracts for the upgrade of our transport electronics and routers. The new equipment will increase the capacity of our network from one 10 Gigabit system to two 100 Gigabit systems. We are investing

roughly $2,000,000 in the new electronics which should provide for the expected growth in data transmission that we anticipate over the next 8 to 10 years.

It seems the government continues to mandate more and more reporting requirements on companies providing Internet service. The most recent is a performance testing requirement to verify and report to the FCC that subscribers are receiving the amount of bandwidth that we agreed to provide in order to retain USF support for our network. Starting this year, we are required to pre-test at 33 random locations, with actual testing taking place every quarter in 2022. Next year, it will be necessary to extend our pre-testing and testing to 133 subscribers. The Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) randomly selects new subscribers for the testing and will continue to do so every year thereafter.

The 2021 Appropriations Act allocated $3.2 billion in funding to the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program (EBBP) for reducing the cost of broadband service to subscribers meeting certain income levels.

It is expected qualified subscribers can receive up to $50 off their broadband cost for possibly 4-5 months, or when the money runs out. We have opted into participating

in the program while it is available. In order to apply for the EBB, Program households will need to establish their eligibility with the National Verifier System. More information will be available soon on the EBB Program.

With the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine widely available for those 16 and over, we are hopeful that we all are progressing to what we once knew as normal. Take care and have a great summer! As always, we appreciate your continued business and support!

- Keith Larson CEO/GM

Business Spotlight:

CrossRoads Golf Club Golfers at CrossRoads Golf Club got a little tease when the season started early in mid- march, but mother nature wasn’t quite done with winter yet. However, that hasn’t stopped the die-hards from still getting their rounds in.

General manager Wendy Schmid said the high school golf teams have been practicing in the snow and golfers have been hitting the course, happy the course is open.

We have been gearing up for a packed schedule of events this summer, including weddings, tournaments and other happenings,” Wendy explained. The course hosts Ladies Night on Wednesdays and Mens Night on Thursdays, in which they offer a prepared meal after golf. Wendy also mentioned that for the 2021 season tee times will not be required but are appreciated as a courtesy to other golfers. To schedule your tee time, visit crossroadsgolf.com or call 652-2601.

In order to keep things running smoothly and efficiently throughout the season, CrossRoads has a full suite of services from Dakota Central, which includes data, video, voice and security camera services. Along with their data service,

CrossRoads subscribes to Small Business Managed Wi-Fi, which allows them to have a dedicated guest network. This is useful for events and business meetings, where visitors can connect to Wi-Fi without compromising the main network.

Last year CrossRoads implemented an online booking system, which gives golfers the option to reserve tee-times online. The club also started using an electronic Point-of-Sale system that allows members to create and charge to an account. Some may say that convenience could be a good or bad thing!

Speaking of bad things, CrossRoads found out the hard way that having a Security Camera system is important. In 2019 they had four golf carts stolen off the property and had no way of tracking down the culprits. After that incident, they knew they knew a security system was necessary in case something like that would happen again in the future. Dakota Central installed seven cameras throughout the property to protect the course and equipment. In their case, peace of mind is worth every penny!

Besides an award winning golf course, the CrossRoads golf area also features a scenic 5-mile recreational trail for walking, jogging, bike riding and cross country skiing which connects into the city all the way up to the Carrington Area Park. Now that the weather is starting to shape up, it’s the perfect time to get out and enjoy some outdoor activities!

Wendy Schmid

General Manger

Company

News

2021 Service Award Winners A big THANK YOU to our amazing employees and directors for their dedication and hard work throughout the years. We wouldn’t be here without you!

We would like to recognize the following employees for their years of service and commitment to Dakota Central. Thank you for all that you do!

EMPLOYEES

New

Deb Clifton

Faces

20 years of service

Darrin Hertel 20 years of service

Dakota Central is excited to announce two new additions to the team in Jamestown.

We haven’t formally introduced Matt Meza, after joining the team in October, 2020 as a Network Technician! Matt has experience in the telecommunications industry, with a specific background in security camera installation. Matt is based out of the Jamestown location, and is a welcomed addition to the team!

Most recently, Ben Steinolfson joined us in April as a Customer Service Rep in Jamestown. Ben is a University of Jamestown alumni, so he is familiar with the community. He is eager to learn about the telecommunications industry, and we are happy to have Ben on the team!

Cody Stangeland 25 years of service

Julie Thompson 25 years of service

Sharon Prosser 25 years of service

Larry Gilge

25 years of service

Marty Bauer

30 years of service

DIRECTORS Luke Kutz

10 years of service

Craig Headland 30 years of service

Matt Meza

Network Technician

Ben Steinolfson Customer Service Rep

Scholarship

Winners 2021

Dillon Shaffer

Jerry Eissinger Memorial Scholarship Jamestown

Dakota Central Awards $5,500 in Scholarships

Terry & Jill Shaffer

Dakota Central is proud to announce the 2021 Dakota Central Scholarship winners!

Five $1,000 scholarships have been awarded to outstanding graduating seniors whose parents or guardians are customers of Dakota Central. The Jerry Eissinger Memorial Scholarship of $500 has been awarded to the top scoring applicant, in addition to the $1,000 Dakota Central Scholarship.

a career in the telecommunications or technology industry, as well as those looking to return to a rural area after college.

Applicants were judged on community activities, school activities, financial need, grades and achievement. Consideration was also given to those looking to pursue

Hats off to this year’s Dakota Central Scholarship winners and to the entire class of 2021!

This marks the 21st year of the scholarship program having awarded over $100,000 to date. Dakota Central is proud to offer the scholarship program to show its commitment to area youth.

Madison Jones Bowdon

Troy & Erica Jones

Elizabeth Lee

Kelly Zimmerman

Brittney Reister

Brent & Joanna Lee

Reed & Kathleen Zimmerman

Craig & Michal Reister

Carrington

Napoleon

Medina

Straight from the Helpdesk:

What is Whole Home Wi-Fi? We’ve all been there—one minute you’re at home FaceTiming your best friend across the country, listening to your favorite podcast, or playing a game online, and suddenly everything stops. You’ve stepped into a WiFi dead zone, where the signal is slow, or worse, non-existent. Every other room in the house gets a full signal, but for some reason, the WiFi doesn’t want to reach the one you’re in.

In the past, the main answer to the problem of dead spots has been Wi-Fi range extenders, which plug into your wall and bounce your Wi-Fi signal only slightly farther than your router can. But now, there’s a new kid in town: Whole Home Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi dead spots can be created by a number of obstacles in your home, like distance from your router and thick walls or doors. A Whole Home Wi-Fi system works with the design of your home, rather than

against it, in order to bring you lightningfast internet in every room.

Whole Home Wi-Fi, or “Mesh Wi-Fi,” consists of a series of access points often called nodes. These nodes are strategically placed around your house to create a single, uninterrupted Wi-Fi network that covers your entire home.

With our Premium Managed Wi-Fi service, you will get edge-to-edge Wi-Fi signal throughout your home. Our technicians will choose where to place each node, based on where the signal drops off. If your home is small enough, you may not need additional access points. After your system is installed, you can download the CommandIQ™ app on your mobile device, which comes with built-in features to help you manage your Wi-Fi, like parental controls, guest access, and more. Read more about CommandIQ™ on the next page!

Not all Whole Home Wi-Fi systems are created equal. Give us a call today to find out if our Premium Managed Wi-Fi service is right for your home, and never step into a dead zone again.

What can you do with

CommandIQ™?

We’ve been talking about the mobile app CommandIQ™ for a while now but you might be asking yourself, “Why would I need an app for my Wi-Fi anyway?” That’s why we’re here! Here are a few of our favorite ways to get the most out of the CommandIQ™ app!

Easily Manage Devices

No more worrying about neighbors stealing your Wi-Fi! You can see all the devices currently and previously connected to your network and get alerts anytime a new device is connected. Manage devices by categorizing them or even disconnecting or re-booting them. You can also view network usage and the amount of data that is used by each device.

Create a Guest Network

Great for house guests, visitors, babysitters, house sitters or pet sitters! Create a temporary or shareable guest network without sharing your main network name and password. You can also text the guest network login information directly from the app!

Parental Controls

Do your children stay up too late looking at their screens? With parental controls, you can turn off Wi-Fi for specific devices or set scheduled downtime for bedtime or limited access to gaming devices during school time. Advanced parental controls (ExperienceIQ™)* provide you with the tools needed to enforce the Internet rules you’ve established. Set up profiles for your children or devices, block content, websites, and applications, and set appropriate time limits.

Protect Your Network

Have you ever wondered what is really happening on your network?

ProtectIQ™* proactively monitors your home’s incoming traffic and automatically blocks anything suspicious on the devices connected to your Wi-Fi. It will notify you whenever a security issue is triggered, with details about the device that was attached, where the attack came from, and when the attack occurred.

ExperienceIQ™ and ProtectIQ™ not included. Subscribe to both services for an additional $5 total.

Dakota Central

Lifeline Program What is Lifeline?

Lifeline is a government supported benefit for qualifying low-income consumers. The Lifeline Assistance Program provides discounts on basic monthly service for qualified telephone and broadband internet customers. Lifeline assistance lowers the cost of basic monthly local telephone service or eligible broadband internet service.

Eligible consumers will receive a $5.25 per month credit on telephone service or a $9.25 per month credit on eligible broadband service.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is now using a National Lifeline Eligibility Verifier to review an applicant’s Lifeline eligibility. You can apply for Lifeline by visiting www.CheckLifeline. org by selecting your state in the drop down menu on that site.

Once the National Verifier approves your application, contact Dakota Central to activate your Lifeline benefits.

Who is eligible for Lifeline?

You or someone in your household participates in one of the following federal assistance programs: • Medicaid • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) • Supplemental Security Income (SSI) • Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA) or Section 8 • Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefit Program • Your household income is at or below 135 percent of the federal poverty guidelines

Broadband provided as part of Lifeline program: Dakota Central’s Broadband Lifeline Program includes at least 1024GB per month at a minimum of 20/3 download/upload speeds.

Lifeline Program Certification: Eligible customers must apply for Lifeline with the National Verifier by visiting www.CheckLifeline.org and selecting your state in the drop down menu on that site. You may apply to the National Verifier via mail by printing and completing the Lifeline Program Application Form and returning it to USAC, Lifeline Support Center, PO Box 7081, London, KY 40742. Once the National Verifier approves your application, contact Dakota Central to activate your Lifeline benefits.

Lifeline Program Recertification: Dakota Central’s Lifeline Program recertification will be done on a rolling recertification basis by USAC and the National Verifier or Dakota Central. Subscribers must recertify yearly.

Change to: “Learn more about the Lifeline Program at:”

www.lifelinesupport.org or www.checklifeline.org

In the last year we’ve all had to find new ways to connect, whether that be for work, school, or staying in touch with family. No matter how or why, staying connected is essential.

So, what connects you? Is it video chatting with family and friends from hundreds of miles away? Or being able to work remotely from home? Have you been able to pursue your dream of creating products and selling them online, or maybe pursuing your dream of buying products online? Are you able to keep a watchful eye on your livestock from the warmth and comfort of your home? Or keep an eye on your home from the warmth and comfort of a more southern destination? Do you connect with other strangers virtually through online gaming? Or maybe you connect with others virtually in online classes, whether it be educational or fitness? We want to hear-what connects you?

Submit your story at dakotacentral.com/giveaway for a chance to win an iPad Pro!*

*Deadline to enter is June 20, 2021. Winner will be drawn at random.

RDFC

Awards

Dakota Central employees with Jamestown Gymnastics Club coaches and gymnasts. Back row (L to R): Andrea Bitz, Breanna Carlson, Ryan Fisher, Holly Utke, and Lori Solberg.

Rural Development Finance Corporation Awards Grants in Dakota Central’s Service Area RDFC has recently awarded a $1,000 grant to the Jamestown Parks & Recreation Department. The grant will be used to assist Two Rivers Activity Center (Jamestown Parks & Rec) with funding for the Meidinger Splash Park, which is scheduled to open June 5, 2021. The new Splash Park will include fun Splash Pad features like slides, waterfalls and fountains, as well as sand volleyball and basketball courts, shade shelters and green space.

RDFC has also awarded a $1,000 grant to the Jamestown Gymnastics Club for their “Raise the Roof” project. These funds will be used to help with the remodel of the gymnastics facility to accommodate new equipment. The Raise the Roof project has been completed and the Gymnastics Club is enjoying their new and improved facility!

2021 RDFC Grant Program Information The Rural Development Finance Corporation (RDFC) is pleased to announce it has approved a 2021 grant allotment of $2,000 per member-cooperative to be used to support community owned entities, non-profits and community-based projects.

Eligible projects include community owned businesses (café, grocery store, motel, other); community facilities (such as ambulance services, fire districts, recreation, hospital/clinic, community center, etc.); or community-based projects (such as school/youth projects, other) that benefit rural areas.

The grant application deadline is December 31, 2021. For grant guidelines and the application form, contact Brianne at 701-652-3184.

L to R: Amy Walters (TRAC Facility Manager), Marilyn Smith (Campaign Co-Chair), Rachel Liechty (Campaign Co-Chair), Holly Utke and Brianne Partlow

Smart Hub TRY IT TODAY! With SmartHub you have account access at your fingertips and two-way communication with Dakota Central online or via your mobile device. How convenient! Just go to www.dakotacentral.com and click “Pay My Bill” in the top right-hand corner. You can manage payments, notify our Support Team of service issues, and receive important notifications and messages all with one easy app. SmartHub is available on Android and iOS devices as well as on the Web. To register go to www.daktel.smarthub.coop, then click on “New user” on the SmartHub log-in page.

Some key features of SmartHub: • • • • •

Bill reminders Fast and easy bill payment Customer service contact Safe and Secure Access Free to use

You can also pay your bill by calling the 24/7 secure payment line:

1-844-262-2425.

Sign up for Auto Pay by bank or credit card, and your Dakota Central bill will be paid automatically each month. No more wondering whether you paid your bill or not! You will then automatically receive an e-bill, unless you choose to continue to receive a paper bill statement. It’s a no-brainer! Call us today to sign up!

BONUS!

Sign up for Auto-Pay and E-Bill and receive a $15 bill credit.

Scan this with your phone’s camera for more details

604 18th St SW, Jamestown, ND 58401

SAY

“DO-NOT-CALL”

TO UNWANTED TELEMARKETERS The National Do Not Call Registry has been established to address unwelcome telemarketing calls. The registry applies to all telemarketers, with the exception of businesses with whom you have an existing relationship and certain non-profit and political organizations. You can register your telephone numbers (both landline and cell phones) online at WWW.DONOTCALL.GOV or call toll-free, 1-888-382-1222 (TTY 1-866-290-4236), from the number you wish to register. Registration is free.

Win a $25 credit on your next Dakota Central bill! Just return this coupon by July 31st, 2021 to be eligible for the drawing.

Congratulations to last issue’s winner:

Carol Mehring Pingree

NAME

PHONE NUMBER

CARRINGTON OFFICE 630 5th St. N Carrington, ND 58421 p: 701.652.3184 f: 701.674.8121

OFFICE HOURS 8am-4:30pm M-F To report trouble call your local office and follow prompts

JAMESTOWN OFFICE 604 18th St. SW Jamestown, ND 58401 p: 701.952.1000 f: 701.952.1001

INTERNET HELP DESK HOURS 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

DAKOTACENTRAL.COM l 652.3184 OR 952.1000

this institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer.