FBA Names Claudia Tarbell One of Its Top Young Broadband Industry Leaders

Throughout her career, my colleague, Claudia Tarbell, has been committed to helping tribal communities overcome decades of digital inequity. Before joining Calix as Senior Engagement Manager for Tribal and Indigenous Communities, Claudia spent six years helping to build the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribally-owned enterprise, Mohawk Networks, LLC, that provides broadband services to the community of Akwesasne. We are thrilled to see her efforts recognized by the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) in its recent “Fiber Under 40” list of emerging broadband industry leaders.

The industry body selected Claudia for her deep understanding of the unique broadband challenges facing tribal communities, what it takes to be successful, and the positive impact broadband has on quality of life. This incredible achievement reflects Claudia’s unwavering passion for broadband as a catalyst for socio-economic development, and our team at Calix is so proud of her and humbled to have her working alongside us.

Claudia shared: “Being featured as one of the Fiber Broadband Association’s emerging leaders means so much. I took a lot of pride in my work at Mohawk Networks, inspired by my late grandfather who taught me to get an education, come back, and use it to make our community better. He loved hearing about my job and the impact of broadband on our community. I’d tell him stories of entrepreneurs building online businesses selling traditional artistry like hand-woven baskets and preserving our culture in the process—all because of new, improved connectivity. I will always carry his spirit with me in my new journey at Calix as we work to bridge the digital divide on tribal lands.”

World-Class Broadband Brings Vitality and Prosperity to Tribal Communities

In our most recent edition of the Calix Beacon newsletter, Claudia outlined how Mohawk Networks has developed a broadband network that will keep their community thriving. Here are three best practices she outlined that other tribal communities can draw from:

• Build a network for the future. Mohawk Networks deployed an end-to-end Calix network to ensure they can accommodate subscriber needs for generations to come. Subscribers now have the bandwidth and reliability they need to grow their online businesses, while embracing other exciting services in the future.
• Increase efficiency and satisfaction with robust subscriber management. With Calix Support Cloud, the Mohawk Networks support team has the insights they need to diagnose and resolve 80 percent of support calls remotely. The CommandIQ® mobile app gives subscribers self-service capabilities to handle basic tasks like changing their password or running a speed test. This adds up to higher efficiency and happier subscribers.
• Leverage marketing resources to boost community engagement. Through the Calix Market Activation program, Mohawk Networks’ one-person marketing team has increased their community outreach with educational initiatives to bring elders online and promote internet safety for children.

With billions of dollars in government funding earmarked to extend broadband to indigenous communities, tribes can finally narrow the digital divide. And they can reap the significant socio-economic benefits of connectivity, just as Mohawk Networks has.

Learn how to bring broadband to your tribal community. Register for Calix Broadband Academy.