TOPEKA – The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development has announced it is investing $2.688 million to help rural residents gain access to health care and educational opportunities.
These Kansas projects will benefit more than 100,000 rural residents, including those in Clay, Cloud, Ellsworth, Jewell, Mitchell and Republic counties.
“Broadband provides rural Kansas residents with easier access to more resources,” said Dan Fischer acting state director for USDA rural development. “These investments by the Biden Administration will help Kansans living in rural places access health care and education opportunities that could change and save lives.”
The announcement is part of a larger national announcement which includes $50 million going to 105 rural distance learning and telemedicine projects in 37 states and Puerto Rico. These awards are being funded through USDA’s Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) program. This program helps fund distance learning and telemedicine services in rural areas to increase access to education, training and health care resources that are otherwise limited or unavailable.
The details of the four Kansas projects are:
●The Diocese of Dodge City will receive an $824,630 grant for three schools to deliver high-quality distant learning services. The three schools are Holy Family School, St. Joseph Catholic School, and Sacred Heart School, which together serve approximately 300 students. This project provides real-time, interactive telecommunication distance learning equipment, to deliver educational instruction and substance use prevention training to students living in Great Bend, Ellinwood and Ness City. This project will also help connect rural schools to support rural residents throughout Southwest Kansas.
●The Kansas Department of Corrections will receive an $858,650 grant to build a telemedicine and distance learning network between 19 counties. This project will expand internet connectivity for distance education programs and behavioral health services at adult correctional facilities in Winfield, Norton, Stockton, El Dorado, Oswego, Ellsworth, Larned, and Lansing. The project will provide 7,600 residents of the correctional facilities with the opportunity to access education programs, teacher resources, and secondary and post-secondary level instruction, while also expanding access to therapeutic services and support services to aide in their recovery process.
●Pawnee Mental Health Services will receive a $579,186 grant to expand user sites in Clay, Cloud, Jewell, Marshall, Mitchell, Pottawatomie, Republic and Washington counties. This project will enhance existing telehealth technology infrastructure and create new partnerships with rural hospitals, jails and the Pottawatomie Health Department, in order to improve access to mental health care for 70,000 residents.
●Morton County Health System will receive a $426,102 grant to purchase and install stationary and portable medical examination equipment to serve rural residents in Morton County, Kan. and Cimarron and Texas counties in Oklahoma. The project will provide state of the art diagnosis and care to patients, in addition to opioid and substance abuse education. The total number of rural residents who will benefit from the project is estimated to be 144,000.