Travis Teetor to serve as co-principal investigator of $3 million technology grant

Travis Teetor to serve as co-principal investigator of $3 million technology grant

Feb. 10, 2023
Image

The University of Arizona received a $3 million grant to connect distance students and underserved communities across Southern Arizona with enhanced broadband access and technology, and to educational and workforce development programs. Read the press release.

Travis Teetor, Manager of AIS Technology & Operations for the Rhonda G. Tubbs Tech Toolshed, is a co-principal investigator for the grant project, along with faculty member and director of the Center for Digital Humanities, Bryan Carter, who is the principal investigator.

As part of a strategic action, AIS is working to “increase the lending program through campus partnerships to better meet student needs, particularly for underrepresented and first-generation students.” This grant further assists with our work.

The project, Connect Arizona Now: Digital Inclusion for Underserved Students and Communities of Southern Arizona, (Project CAN) is funded by a two-year, $3 million grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, under the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program. Primary goals include, supporting underrepresented and first-gen UA students in greatest financial need through the use of technology and to provide digital literacy and workforce development through community organizations.

AIS will coordinate $796,000 of the grant to expand the existing tech lending program. This will include shipping technology to students across the state of Arizona, including students in the AZ Near You Network. The grant includes funding to purchase additional technology and Wi-Fi, as well as temporary staffing to support AIS and TeSS. 

As stated by Dean Shan Sutton in UANews, "The Connect Arizona Now grant is a critical investment in expanding the reach of this service to help ensure every University of Arizona student has the technology they need to learn and succeed."

Congratulations, Travis!