Arkansas Names Glen Howie as New State Broadband Director

Arkansas Secretary of Commerce Mike Preston announced that Glen Howie has been named the state’s new Director of Broadband. Howie comes to the Commerce Department from Louisiana’s Office of Broadband Development and Connectivity. As broadband director, Howie will advise the governor and the secretary of commerce on key issues related to the deployment of broadband throughout Arkansas. He will lead the agency’s efforts for broadband and oversee a three-year plan to provide broadband access to 110,000 underserved households throughout all areas of the state. As senior policy analyst for the Louisiana Office of Broadband Development and Connectivity, Howie worked under Executive Director Veneeth Iyengar to form and implement Louisiana’s broadband policy in regard to access, affordability, digital literacy, and inclusion, as well as the development of regulatory rules regarding Louisiana’s first $177 million broadband infrastructure grant program. As a result, Louisiana was one of the first four states in the country to have its fund plans approved by the US Treasury Department. The state also ranked first in the country in enrollment in the federal Affordable Connectivity Program, relative to eligible households, and was recognized for its groundbreaking stakeholder engagement efforts by the National Digital Inclusion Alliance.