Latina Leader Reflects on the Privilege to Serve

During National Women’s History Month, I am inspired to reflect on the way President Obama has empowered women by appointing them to serve at all levels in his Administration. As Deputy Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), one of the most rewarding parts of my job is seeing how NTIA’s efforts to increase broadband Internet access and adoption are transforming lives across America. Closing America’s digital divide, a priority for the Obama Administration, is vital to our global competitiveness. NTIA’s research shows that 68 percent of U.S. households subscribe to broadband, meaning that nearly one-third homes are cut off from many economic and educational opportunities. This is even greater in the Latino community, where only 57 percent of households have broadband. By comparison, other research finds that the household broadband adoption rate in South Korea tops 90 percent.  For America to thrive in the 21st century economy, our people must be skilled in the tools of the information age.

Thanks to the Recovery Act, NTIA is overseeing approximately 230 projects that are building broadband infrastructure, expanding public computer centers, and training Americans in the skills needed for today’s jobs. I’ve visited many of these projects, meeting adults who are re-entering the workforce after taking computer classes, students who are benefitting from distance learning, and small business owners who are eager to use new broadband connectivity or training to reach more customers.

In San Francisco, for example, I have visited the Latino Tech-Net Initiative, supported by a grant NTIA awarded to the Mission Economic Development Agency. This initiative is providing computer centers in 11 cities with equipment, software, and training -- such as programs on e-commerce and online marketing -- to help Latino entrepreneurs and small businesses take advantage of technology to compete better in the global economy. 

In Puerto Rico, I have met with business leaders from two of our grant projects that are bringing much-needed broadband infrastructure to the area. These projects expect to bring new or improved high-speed Internet service to nearly 2,000 community anchor institutions, including more than 1,500 schools, and will lay the groundwork for long-term economic growth. 

Broadband also is key to addressing other pressing challenges, such as improving communications for America’s first responders. Just last month, President Obama signed legislation to create a nationwide interoperable broadband network that will help police, firefighters, and other public safety workers to stay safe and protect our communities. The law entrusts NTIA with some of the implementation responsibilities, and we are both humbled and privileged to support this important initiative.

Missions like these make public service fulfilling.  As the Internet and technology grow in importance to society, so does the need for forward-looking approaches to bring these benefits to more Americans, keep our country competitive, and preserve an open, interconnected global Internet that fuels continued innovation and economic growth. NTIA, which advises the President on telecommunications and Internet policy, is at the forefront of addressing these challenges. As a Latina leader, I feel privileged to serve the American people.

Anna M. Gomez is the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information and Deputy Administrator for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

Inspiring Hope: One Story Makes All the Difference

I am a single mother from Reno, Nevada. I began volunteering with the alliance in 2009. In late 2009, I began organizing “house parties,” or gatherings, at local venues. The purpose of these gatherings was to bring together community members to discuss social justice issues. Over time, it was clear that the majority of the participants at my house parties were single moms. Many of these women began sharing the challenges that they and their children encountered in our health care system, and the conversation often turned to the Affordable Care Act and the relief that it would bring to them and their loved ones.

News of the house parties traveled fast, and it wasn’t long before I was surrounded by a core group of single moms who were eager to advocate for their families. To date, my team and I have organized several of these events, which often feature a guest speaker. Ana Ayala spoke in the first birthday party of ACA. Jazmin Ayala, daughter of Ana Ayala, had pneumonia and died on February 1, 2011; she was 12 years old. She did not have health insurance and died between hospitals. Her mom was not informed of the fact that she can get insurance with the health reform. That incident gives me more courage to reach out the community and educate about the benefits of ACA. In September, I organized an event with 12 women Latina leaders to bike downtown to promote health literacy and to brainstorm ideas for how we could engage the Latino community in health awareness campaigns, and to learn how to advocate for others.

Fruitful Under the Sun

Doctors, teachers, lawyers, priests, like many other professionals, set about on course of academic preparation for their lifetime careers. For me as a wife and mother, I worked to help put my husband through college, with second consideration for my academic course of study in accounting. It was through my fortuitous meeting with the then President of the Board of Directors of Tierra del Sol Housing Corporation who encouraged me to come to work at Tierra del Sol that I started on my profession as Executive Director of a then local nonprofit organization, which provided housing opportunities on an otherwise disenfranchised and yet critically important sector to our local agricultural community, the farmworkers and the working poor.

There was no real academic course of study to prepare me for the many challenges and problems that I would encounter during the past 31 years. It was in the trenches that I learned the lessons of community work and with it gained the tenacity and passion for my work.  Decades later, in reflecting my experiences, I chuckle when I think about coming from an office setting to trudging through the desert sands of construction sites in my Italian shoes. I was a female working in a male dominated construction field and I too had the additional challenge of proving myself in that environment. It’s been a good race and it is an honor to be recognized as a “Champion of Change” by the White House. I am truly honored and humbled by this award.  It has been my privilege to have found my passion and to serve the people of New Mexico. I have also been blessed to have the support of so many dedicated leaders from our local communities who recognize the economic and social needs of people in rural areas of our states along the international border corridor between the United States and Mexico. My success is beholding to the people who have come to belief that collectively, we can effect change and can bring significant improvements to the lives of our clients.