“With Michigan’s economy being so poor, it’s important to give (people) the best opportunities to get in touch with the entire world,” she said.

About $42 million is heading to Michigan to expand broadband access and adoption, and MSU will receive $895,482, said U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.

“Broadband allows (people) to export business around the world,” she said. “We need to be developing this whole new infrastructure that will allow us to be able to connect and communicate between hospitals, between business, between schools, and be able to benefit from being able to be connected.”

The project will add about 500 workstations at public computer centers and libraries in the state and serve as many as 13,000 new users per week, said Kurt DeMaagd, an assistant professor of telecommunication, information studies and media who is leading the project at MSU.

“This is being driven by initial demand,” he said. “With the economic collapse, in order to do your job search you need to have access to the computer. So all sorts of people are going to their local libraries, and this really means there (are) not enough computers to go around.”

DeMaagd said a few MSU students will be selected to work setting up and improving broadband access in the designated counties.

“They will do training, and they will go out and set up the computer system,” he said. “I like to think of it as a hands on study abroad but in Michigan.”

About 30 students, including Potter, have expressed interest in the unpaid opportunity, DeMaagd said.

Counties with limited broadband access and high unemployment rates were chosen for the project. The 15 counties are Chippewa, Clare, Gladwin, Gogebic, Grand Traverse, Huron, Leelanau, Marquette, Menominee, Oakland, Oscoda, Otsego, Sanilac, Tuscola and Van Buren.

The project should be completed within two years, DeMaagd said.

The grant was awarded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration and is funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

MSU is one of two Michigan organizations to receive the grant. Merit Network Inc., an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit, will receive about $41 million of the grant to build a 955-mile fiber-optic network throughout 32 counties in the Lower Peninsula.

“Communities large and small must have access to broadband service to compete and thrive,” Gov. Jennifer Granholm said in a statement. “These Recovery Act dollars will transform communities all over Michigan, bringing broadband access to the state’s most underserved counties and citizens.”

Potter said she is excited for the opportunity to expand broadband coverage in underserved areas while improving her own skills and knowledge.

“Being able to access a network (and) find what components would work, in addition to what is existing or needs improvement — it’s a good skill set to know,” Potter said.