Church Initiative for Private Sector Education and Economic
Development (CIPSEED™)
Objectives:
-
For The Wilkins
Group, Inc. (WGI) to partner with a broadband services provider (BSP),
e.g. local cable or telephone company, so that underserved areas in
the locations that the BSP serves may gain economic empowerment
through their local church.
-
For WGI to
equip churches with broadband Internet access and computer equipment
to promote technical awareness and education in congregations.
-
For five
companies to grow, as a result of WGI reciprocating its profits from
working with the BSP, to local area minority businesses.
Summary:
The Church Initiative for Private
Sector Education and Economic Development (CIP SEED) initiative is
consistent with the State’s digital divide program, which is to ensure
that Texas is at the forefront of the digital revolution by bridging
the gap between the haves and have nots. WGI would like to partner
with a BSP to assist with fulfilling the State’s goals.
Because the
church is the central support organization in most urban areas, we
feel that the church can play an important for providing technology to
local communities. This, too, is in line with the President Bush’s
initiative of utilizing faith-based organizations for the betterment
of society. Several faith-based organizations exist and can assist us
in selecting spirited, serious entrepreneurs to start up and/or grow
businesses in underserved areas.
WGI will grow
these five companies to initially deploy the BSP’s service offerings,
i.e. digital telephone, television and/or high-speed data services in
economically deprived areas. Therefore, this will be a cyclical
process of enabling citizens to take advantage of technology, and it
meets every American’s dream to have ownership in their very own
neighborhood. And, WGI will enable the BSP to increase its coverage
area in urban areas and have a larger footprint in communities. NOTE:
The companies will work outside of the BSP’s deployment timeframe. The
five businesses will support additional clientele eventually.
Instead of a
one-time relationship with WGI, the BSP will enable WGI to create a
potential of five millionaire business owners. Not only will one
company benefit from this initiative, five self-sustaining companies
will be created, thus giving the BSP its “stamp” on the community.
Lastly, WGI will equip a portion of
the churches with computers and high-speed Internet service to enable
a technical learning environment for congregational members. This will
assist in keeping parents up to date with what their children are
learning in schools. To minimize the digital divide between
communities and schools, where the BSP may be currently introducing
technology, we need to get our children’s parents on board. In
churches, we can encourage technology. WGI will facilitate the
continuous cycle of technical education to flow from the classroom
into our homes. Churches will be the hubs for teaching communities.
As a result of
this proposed partnership, WGI and the BSP will be supporting the
objectives of closing the digital divide and using faith-based
institutions for improving Texas and America.
Goals:
-
Trainability-educating companies with technical expertise and
exposing churches to technology
-
Sustainability-putting business back into urban communities to
promote long-term independence and ownership and increasing economic
empowerment
-
Common tech
standards, e.g. desktop software (Office suite), browser based
applications
-
Close the
digital divide
-
Multiply
generational effect
-
Utilize
faith-based organizations to identify entrepreneurs to grow
companies
-
Develop
technical storefronts in 100 churches by installing high-speed
Internet access
-
Promote remote
prayer service/worship and communicating with the sick and shut in
at churches
Approach: over
a 36 month timeframe:
Phase 1
- BSP accepts the partnership
with WGI
- BSP enters an agreement with
WGI for installation pricing and workload. WGI and BSP will
determine also mutually agreeable workdays.
- WGI will take a dedicated
portion of its revenue and reinvest it in the community.
Phase II
- Through our outreach program,
WGI to grow five companies in D/FW urban areas, with a minimum of 10
employees per company
- WGI will train and support the
five companies and provide marketing and business planning
- Initially, the work that the
companies will do will be the BSP’s services, but they will grow
above and beyond to support additional clients
- These entrepreneurs will
support sweat equity into their companies
Phase III
- WGI will acquire PCs for some
of the churches
- Either train church members to
build their own PCs or provide a simple PC device for them to
utilize, e.g. browser only unit
- WGI and the BSP will use this
same approach throughout the country for neighborhood schools,
families, etc. to form technology centers, etc.
Conclusion
Beyond being an
installation provider for the BSP, WGI strives to be an economic
development partner with the BSP. We will facilitate growth for the
BSP’s business in urban areas and sanctioning business growth in these
areas. Some people talk about creating jobs. We’re creating
entrepreneurs and encouraging them to give back to their community, so
they are not always dependent on assistance. We’re not trying to save
the world. We just want to share the knowledge and revenue that we
have earned with those who deserve it.
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