[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 130 (Thursday, July 23, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H3696]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        VALLEY GROVE SCHOOL DISTRICT AND BROADBAND CONNECTIVITY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend 
Valley Grove School District of Venango County, Pennsylvania, for truly 
going above and beyond to connect with their students during the COVID-
19 pandemic.
  Due to coronavirus, we saw school doors close across the country. 
Many parents found themselves in unexpected homeschooling situations, 
and the teachers of Valley Grove School District rose to the occasion.
  In an effort to connect with students during the quarantine, teachers 
and administrators created VGTV, a YouTube channel to share video 
lessons and updates with children and families.
  Videos can range from a music class piano lesson to a banana bread 
tutorial from home economics or the early childhood education teachers 
reading storybooks.
  Teachers from all grades have gotten involved to contribute something 
to VGTV. J.G. Resig, a high school teacher, said the project ``started 
out just as a morale boost to stay in contact with our students and let 
them know that we still care about them, even though we are stuck at 
home.''
  Third grade teacher Julie Plumer has used her everyday surroundings 
to create informative videos for her students. For example, Ms. Plumer 
has created a variety of videos about baby chickens she had been 
raising to teach students about what it takes to raise and to care for 
animals.
  Content varies, but the thing that each of these videos has in common 
are the dedicated educators behind the camera.
  None of this work would be possible, however, without reliable 
broadband connectivity. As coronavirus has transitioned most classrooms 
to distance learning, the importance of broadband infrastructure has 
never been more apparent.
  Connectivity is something that many of us take for granted. While 
there is broadband available in many areas of the United States, more 
than 21 million Americans, including more than 800,000 Pennsylvanians, 
lack access. It is imperative that we do what we can to address this 
critical digital divide.
  The CARES Act provided $100 million for the ReConnect Pilot Program, 
which provides grants for the costs of broadband infrastructure 
development and improvement in rural areas. The CARES Act also provided 
$25 million for the Distance Learning, Telemedicine, and Broadband 
program.

  These funds will certainly have an impact on distance learning in the 
age of coronavirus, but broadband connectivity is crucial regardless. 
We need to continue to make rural broadband and reliable broadband 
infrastructure a priority long after coronavirus is a thing of the 
past.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the dedicated educators of Valley Grove School 
District for going the extra mile to support their students during 
these extraordinary times.
  They are hometown heroes.

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