The Highlander - Spring, 2011

The HTC

Highlander Vol. 1, No. 1 | Summer 2011

published for the members of Highland Telephone Cooperative

HTC's

Fiber

network Construction has begun

what to expect as HTC builds its fiber network

education Fiber creates opportunities

HTC

Manager's Comments

We’re building a fiber network to serve you well into the future

T

hese are exciting times in the Highland Telephone Cooperative service area.

As you’ll read in the following pages, construction has begun on our fiber project.

This means within three years every home and business on our system will be connected to an advanced broadband network.

I would like to take a few minutes to answer some questions you may have about the project. First, why have we tackled a job this big? Completing such a large build in such a short time is a huge undertaking. But the answer is simple: we are doing it for you, our members. You may not live in the big city, but you still deserve access to a broadband network that allows you to access all the services you demand today — as well as those services being developed for the future.

Why did we go after a loan/grant from the USDA to complete our entire system in three years? Without these funds, building fiber to everyone would have taken 10 years or more.

And we honestly cannot wait that long. Why? Because the telecommunications industry is changing very rapidly, and those companies who do not adapt will not survive. Your cooperative intends to survive.

Look at the charts to the right. They clearly show what is happening to the number of traditional phone lines at HTC. They are dropping fast. At the same time, our number of DSL subscribers grows every year. We are transitioning from a telephone company to a technology company.

And the same thing is happening all across America. Citizens, businesses, industry and our entire economy will continue to demand more broadband access — and this fiber project will ensure we can meet that demand.

2 | The HTC Highlander • Spring 2011

We are committed to our members. We are committed to maintaining our existing network and offering quality service even as we build the new system. We are committed to keeping you informed as the process unfolds.

And we are committed to being here for the long haul, meeting your telecommunications needs for decades to come.

is a member-owned corporation dedicated to providing communications technology to the people of Tennessee. The company has over 20,000 access lines, making it the state’s largest telecommunications cooperative.

Board of Directors James E. Terry, 569/286 exchange President JoAn Haynes, 324 exchange Vice-President Clara Terry, 569/286 exchange Secretary/Treasurer Mickey Bingham, 369 exchange Jan Byrd, 663 exchange Loma Denney, 376 exchange David Freytag, 628/965 exchange

NUMBER OF TELEPHONE LINES 27,623

27,389

Shelva Jo Jones, 376 exchange Sam Strunk, 354 exchange

26,815 26,031

John Tate, 627 exchange

24,937 23,766

Jerry Williams, 346 exchange 22,336 20,834

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

NUMBER OF DSL LINES 7,004

7,243

5,596

4,606

3,349 2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

The HTC

Highlander is a quarterly newsletter published by Highland Telephone Cooperative, © 2011. It is distributed without charge to all member/owners of the Cooperative.

Send address corrections to: Highland Telephone Cooperative P.O. Box 119 7840 Morgan Co. Hwy. Sunbright, Tennessee 37872-0119 Telephone: 423-628-2121 www.highlandtel.net Produced for HTC by: WordSouth Public Relations, Inc. www.wordsouth.com On the Cover:

Fred Terry General Manager

Dan Boillat, inspector and Scott Grimes, resident engineer for HTC's fiber project, look over plans in the field. In the background, crews work to attach cable to a pole.

P R O T E C T Y O U R T E L E C O M M U N I C AT I O N S S Y S T E M

Step outside and look up. You will see a valuable system of poles and wires — a system that delivers important telecommunications services to you and your neighbors. Phone. Internet. Digital TV. In the months ahead, as Highland Telephone Cooperative builds a state-of-the-art fiber network, that system will become even more valuable. When you look up, you will see fiber cables as well. Damage to this fiber can interrupt service to dozens or even hundreds of Highland members, and repairing or replacing it can be expensive.

We are asking for your help in protecting this valuable investment.

Please “Look Up!” before doing any of the following:

Plant

For a distance of 15 feet in any direction of utility wires, only plant shrubs or trees with a mature height of less than 20 feet. Taller trees can grow into lines, which can create service problems, or their limbs could fall across lines during storms.

Burn

When burning brush, make sure you pile it far away from utility lines. The temperature of burning wood can easily reach over 1,000º F — and that is hot enough to melt telecommunications equipment.

Shoot

When you lift that gun, make sure utility lines are not in your line of sight.

When a fiber cable is broken, each strand has to be spliced back together — a time-consuming and expensive task.

Spread the word. Look up.

Protect your valuable telecommunications system.

Spring 2011 • The HTC Highlander | 3

Construction Begins Highland’s fiber-to-the-home project officially underway

M

embers of Highland Telephone Cooperative (HTC) are one step closer to a high-speed fiber optic network that will connect the entire region.

Work has begun on the cooperative’s three-year plan to build an advanced broadband network throughout its service area. HTC serves Morgan and Scott counties in Tennessee, and McCreary County in Kentucky.

“We’ve been working toward this moment for more than two years,” says Fred Terry, general manager of HTC. “After months of applications, studies, reviews and contracts, we are proud to reach this major step in our goal to deliver fiber technology to our members.”

When complete, the project will connect some 18,000 homes and 1,800 businesses to an optical fiber network. This fiber network will provide members access to crystal-clear phone service, high-speed Internet and the most reliable digital television service available today.

The rapid deployment of a fiber-to-the-

home system is being made possible by a loan/grant awarded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development program. The award comes as a grant totaling $49,866,871, and a low-interest infrastructure loan of $16,622,291.

Bobby Goode is the Tennessee director for USDA Rural Development. “Broadband access is no longer optional,” says Goode.

“Education, healthcare and every kind of business depends on the Internet. Whether it’s receiving orders or specifications, searching for the best price for parts, or working from home, it takes more speed to handle the work load.”

Fred Terry agrees. “The people of this region shouldn’t be left behind just because they choose to live in rural America,” he says.

“By building such an advanced network, this cooperative is providing more than technology to the people of Morgan, Scott and McCreary counties — we’re providing opportunities.”

What is fiber? › Fiber is made of pure glass strands as thin as a human hair. › Digital information travels across these strands as pulses of light. › Unlike copper, fiber can carry information at amazing speeds across great distances with no signal degradation. › Fiber has incredible capacity — the information from an entire set of encyclopedias could be sent three times per second over just one strand of fiber.

See “What To Expect” on Page 6 to learn more about the construction process.

1 2 3

The three main phases of the fiber project: Engineering:

surveying and staking to create the necessary plans and records

4 | The HTC Highlander • Spring 2011

Construction:

hanging fiber and placing equipment throughout the system; also, running drops and attaching equipment to homes and businesses

Installation:

scheduling a time to make the connections to install service at your home or business

The Power of Fiber

Fiber puts education within reach (Editor’s Note: This article is the first in a series that explores the impact fiber technology can have on various sectors.)

F

iber connections are already available in some portions of Highland Telephone Cooperative’s service area, including downtown Wartburg. Here, the Morgan County campus of Roane State Community College uses the advanced broadband connection to bring new educational opportunities to area students.

“Most of our classes are offered via distance learning from another campus,” says Michelle Adkisson, campus director. “It has brought education right to the citizens of Morgan County.”

Megan Farmer is proof that fiber technology can change lives. “I’ve always loved school and I’ve always been good at it,” she says. “But because I can’t drive due to my vision, and because I’m a single mother, I never thought I would be able to go to college like I had always wanted.”

Technology has placed education within Farmer’s reach. “If it wasn’t for Roane State’s online classes and the new Morgan County campus,” she says, “I literally would not be in college right now. So it has completely changed my life — and especially my daughter’s life because I will be able to provide better for her.”

Adkisson believes HTC’s fiber-to-thehome project will improve the quality of life in a region with one of the lowest college graduation percentages in Tennessee.

“Some students have to take a lot of online classes because of their location or lack of transportation,” she says. “Having fiber at their home will make a big difference in their Web classes, because many of those require students to watch videos and take timed tests.”

“It’s almost impossible to get that kind of education at home without fiber optics,” says Dwight Murphy. As director of the Tennessee Technology Center in Huntsville, Murphy sees distance learning becoming a standard component of education

TOP: CIT instructor Rodney Stephens shows Director Dwight Murphy an advanced networking lab his students are completing at the Tennessee Technology Center in Huntsville.

BOTTOM: Megan Farmer attends a distance learning class at the Morgan County campus of Roane State Community College.

in the future.

Murphy envisions students earning technology degrees from his school, bachelors and masters degrees from Roane State, and even advanced degrees from Tennessee Board of Regents institutions — thanks to the fiber network being built by HTC. The cooperative’s fiber project “will single-handedly do more to upgrade the economy in this area than almost anything

you could have done,” says Murphy.

“I see this as Highland really stepping out and doing something positive,” he adds.

“The grant they pursued was very bold, and the folks who worked on it deserve an awful lot of credit.”

In the next issue of The Highlander, we will look at how fiber technology impacts job growth and economic development.

Spring 2011 • The HTC Highlander | 5

The Next Three Years:

What to expect

O

ver the next three years, there will be a great deal of activity in the region as Highland Telephone Cooperative builds its fiber network. Following are answers to some of the questions our members may have:

What can I expect to see?

• Service trucks and buckets trucks • Engineers measuring and inspecting poles and spans • Workers in hard hats and reflective vests • Flagmen and traffic cones • Crews climbing poles, installing guy wires and hanging cable

How will I know these crews are working on HTC’s fiber project?

Crew vehicles should be marked as a contractor for Highland Telephone Cooperative.

Crew leaders and engineers will also carry photo identification designating them as HTC vendors. If you have a question about the identification or activities of a crew, please call HTC at 423-628-2121.

When will crews be working in my neighborhood?

HTC is committed to keeping members informed throughout the three-year project.

You will be notified through our member newsletter, website, direct mail and local media outlets.

When will I get fiber to my home or business?

Every member of HTC will have a fiber connection to their premises by the end of this three-year cycle.

6 | The HTC Highlander • Spring 2011

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Highland Telephone Cooperative awards scholarships

Ten recent high school graduates have earned scholarships of $1,000 each from their telecommunications provider.

Highland Telephone Cooperative hosted a reception for winners of its scholarship program on April 25, 2011, at its Sunbright, Tenn., headquarters. The students were chosen from a wide field of applicants who wrote essays on the subject ‘Technology for Telecommunications.’ The essays were judged by an impartial panel of local teachers.

“This is our 11th year to award scholarships to area students,” says Diann Stephens, human resources manager for Highland Telephone Cooperative. “It allows Highland to invest in our communities by supporting education, and that is why our directors created and continue to support this great program.”

To receive their scholarships, recipients must present proof of enrollment and incurred fees at any post-secondary institution of their choice. They must use the money within one year of the award.

Each year, one scholarship is awarded per director in his or her district (one exchange had no entries for 2011).

As part of the program, the cooperative also awarded checks for $500 each to the respective schools of the judges. “These donations express our appreciation for the time and effort our judges volunteered toward the program,” says Stephens. “The money may be used as their schools deem appropriate.”

The judges for 2011 were: Mary Ann Brewster, Oneida High School; Kathalene Favella, McCreary Central High School; and Stephanie Korte, Coalfield High School.

The 2011 Highland Telephone Cooperative scholarship winners are: MORGAN, ANDERSON AND CAMPBELL COUNTIES: William Wilson, Wartburg Central High School, 346 Exchange – Jerry Williams, Director Justin Henry, Wartburg Central High School, 965/628 exchange – David Freytag, Director David M. Currier, Jr., Oakdale High School, 369 Exchange – Mickey Bingham, Director SCOTT COUNTY: Marcus Burchfield, Oneida High School, 569/286 Exchange – James E. Terry, President; Clara Terry, Sec./Treas.

Jacob Markiewicz, Oneida High School, 569/286 Exchange – James E. Terry, President; Clara Terry, Sec./Treas.

Lexi Jeffers, Scott High School, 663 Exchange –Jan Byrd, Director Chad Hughett, Scott High School, 627 Exchange – John Tate, Director McCREARY COUNTY: Lori Duncan, McCreary Central High School, 376 Exchange – Shelva Jo Jones, Mrs. Loma Denney, Directors Kaitlin Miller, McCreary Central High School, 376 Exchange – Shelva Jo Jones, Mrs. Loma Denney, Directors Ashley Bryant, McCreary Central High School, 354 Exchange – Sam Strunk, Director

Need help paying for Telephone Service?

Do you or someone in your household participate in any of these programs?

• Medicaid • Food Stamps • Supplemental Security Income (SSI) • Section 8 Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA) • Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

If so, you may qualify for these two special programs:

››› LINK UP This program provides a discount on the cost of installing telephone service.

››› LifeLine This program provides a discount on the monthly cost of telephone service.

To find out if you qualify for these programs, call HTC at 423-628-2121.

For a complete set of terms for the Link-Up and Lifeline programs, call or visit Highland Telephone Cooperative.

Link-Up and Lifeline are part of the Federal Universal Service Fund program. The Federal Communications Commission introduced this program, and the Universal Service Administrative Company oversees it. The goal of Universal Service is to make sure consumers throughout the United States have essential telecommunications service.

Spring 2011 • The HTC Highlander | 7

P.O. Box 119 Sunbright, Tennessee 37872-0119

g n i t c e n on r ld

C

o w r you

›› High Speed Internet ›› Long Distance Service Get Connected today!

423-346-4050

PAL

Highland Communications is proud to offer

Personal Alert Link

In partnership with VRI Medical Alert Systems

Safety • Independence • Peace of Mind VRI’s medical alert systems enable seniors and at-risk persons to remain in their homes longer. With just a touch of their personal help button, clients can contact a Care Center Representative 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year to get the help they need.

Call 423-346-4050 and get your PAL today!