2008 Hadden Awards Luncheon
Following the forum, the Alliance for Public Technology presented the founders of The Children's Partnership and ConnectKentucky with this year's prestigious Susan G. Hadden Pioneer Award for their pioneering efforts in telecommunications access.
Wendy Lazarus and Laurie Lipper founded The Children's Partnership in 1993 to ensure that digital opportunities are extended to all young people, particularly those in underserved families and communities. The organization uses original research, community-based pilot programs, training for parents and low-income community leaders, and policy advocacy to ensure that all American children have a chance to participate in today's economy and society.
Wendy Lazarus and Laurie Lipper were among the first to recognize the enormous impact that information technology would have on America's children. From nearly the birth of the information revolution, The Children's Partnership has provided a dynamic and respected voice for children that has been turned to by parents, community leaders, policy-makers, industry, and foundations.
ConnectKentucky, a technology-based economic development organization, has garnered national, industry-wide recognition as a best-practice model for broadband expansion. The model includes extensive broadband mapping, a public-private partnership and local eCommunity Leadership Teams.
ConnectKentucky provides an incredibly successful model for stimulating broadband build out and demand that should be adopted nationally. Its comprehensive strategy of assessing broadband availability, identifying and aggregating demand through grassroots county planning teams, and bringing providers and users together through a private public partnership has resulted in an expansion of broadband availability that is both significant and measurable.
The Susan G. Hadden Award was named after the late Chair of APT's Public Policy Committee and professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas in Austin. She dedicated her career to the principle of "connecting each to all," defining not only APT, but a national vision for technology access. The Hadden Awards are given annually to those whose pioneering efforts in telecommunications access embody the words and the spirit of Dr. Hadden.
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