New Mexico Broadband Program Office
Raja Sambandam, Acting Cabinet Secretary
Rand Tilton, Program Manager Gar Clarke, Project Manager |
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New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion
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Kelly Schlegel, Director
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Friday named Kelly Schlegel as the director of the state Office of Broadband Access and Expansion. Schlegel will oversee the office, including broadband advisor Matt Schmit, to execute the state’s multi-billion-dollar strategic and operational plan to significantly expand New Mexico’s broadband capabilities. “We are on the cusp of realizing the incredible opportunity we have to expand reliable broadband access to virtually every New Mexico community. Education, healthcare and industry all stand to reap meaningful benefits from better broadband,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham. “Kelly is the right person to build out the state’s plan on the ground.” “I am ready to hit the ground running to make generational change in the lives of New Mexicans,” said Schlegel. “I am grateful to the governor for this opportunity.” Schlegel has worked in the software engineering, aerospace and technology fields for more than 40 years, including over three decades with The Boeing Company. She is a graduate of the University of New Mexico and University of Redlands in Redlands, California. Press Release - Office of Broadband Access and Expansion |
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Matt Schmit , Advisor
Schmit has served as director of the Illinois Office of Broadband since 2019. His responsibilities there have included the administration of $400 million in grant funding, community broadband planning and capacity programming and the state’s digital equity and inclusion program. Prior to that, Schmit worked as an independent technology and economic development consultant and in various leadership and research roles at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis from 2005 through 2018. From 2013 through 2016 he was a member of the Minnesota state senate, representing a district in the southeastern part of the state, where he led a 20-city statewide outreach and engagement tour focused on soliciting public input on broadband internet access and availability, leading to creation of a state broadband office. He graduated from St. John’s University in Minnesota with an undergraduate degree in political science and earned a master’s in public policy from the University of Minnesota.
“Recent federal investment in broadband gives states, local communities, and internet service providers an unprecedented opportunity to close the digital divide through universal access, adoption assistance, and skills building,” Schmit said. “No state stands to benefit more from this investment than New Mexico, and I am eager to see this promise become reality.” Press Release - Office of Broadband Access and Expansion |
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Connect New Mexico Council
The members of the Connect New Mexico Council:
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Interim Chair - Kimball Sekaquaptewa
Interim Vice Chair - Luis Reyes
Interim Vice Chair - Luis Reyes
