Rural Engagement in the Digital Economy

Expansion of data education supports the Governor's goal of giving every person the same shot at a healthy, safe and successful life.

Description

Collaborative efforts with rural development organizations are used to create virtual data courses and support broadband expansion. Community colleges can use this content to provide data literacy, visualization, modeling, and analytics courses.

Using a high-speed internet connection, a highly-motivated, moderately trained person can participate in the data workforce without having to leave their respective communities. This effort expands the local economic base with high paying jobs, providing much needed tax revenue while reducing urban migration. 

This effort will also strengthen the foundation of our economy, by making data a currency everyone can leverage in a highly-skilled digital workforce. It levels the playing field for inclusion in the digital economy.

Collaborative efforts between Secretariates and localities to administer the following:

Engage businesses

Garner support for distributed data teams

• These rural data teams can remotely support data documentation, cleansing, quality, modeling, and visualization initiatives, thus providing significant value to Virginia.

Establish data innovation incubators 

• Work with localities, municipal/county governments, and innovative technology businesses to establish data innovation incubators in their respective communities. These projects will identify local talent, provide access to training resources, promote employment opportunities, and provide a suitable work environment for program participants.

Related Initiatives

Smart Communities

Making Virginia Communities SMARTER and more efficient through collaborations with leading suppliers in intelligence. The goal is to improve sustainability and economic drive in our rural areas and urban cities.

Transportation Technology

Virginia strongly supports the development of autonomous vehicles.

Unmanned Aerial Systems

VIP is now collaborating with unmanned aerial systems providers to position Virginia as a leader within UAS initiatives.