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Conference Speakers
Michael Brown, formerly the Program Grant Manager and Services Integration Administrator with the Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Board, has worked diligently to assist Texas communities in their endeavors to deploy advanced telecommunications services at the local level. While with TIF, Michael developed many of the policies and procedures associated with Community Networking grant initiatives. Committed to quality projects, Michael will bring community networking and TIF experience to each client for the development of a sustainable and effective implementation plan. Prior to joining TIF, Michael worked with the law firm of Vinson & Elkins as project and research assistant exploring telecommunications and electric industry issues. Michael is a 1994 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Government.
Patti Clifford Conference Coordinator of the 2002 TeleCommunity Bandwidth Conference is the Associate Director of the TeleCommunity Resource Center. Clifford is also Director of the famed "Internet Roadshow" community technology educational programs. A twenty-year technology industry professional, she was a senior administrator with Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corporation (MCC), worked five years with the Texas legislature and remains an active college technology teacher. She serves as coordinator of the 2001 TeleCommunity Bandwidth Conference, 2001 National Community Network Conference, and Texas coordinator of the 2002 Community Technology Center Conference.
Gene Crick is Executive Director of the TeleCommunity Resource Center (TCRC) a 501c3 nonprofit organization working to develop community Internet tools and networks, especially in underserved areas. TCRC brought free public Internet access to twenty-five Texas towns and cities. TCRC's national program includes resources and outreach to support local CN builders, plus working to bring online network resources to communities throughout Texas. Described as one of the country's leading experts in community uses of Internet technology, he is advisor to the state's strategic plan for information technology, as well as an architect of Texas Community Network grant programs. Gene is also Executive Director of the Texas Internet Service Providers Association, the country's largest regional ISP association, as well as Metropolitan Austin Interactive Network (MAIN), one of the country's oldest and most successful online community networks. Gene works with, and serves on several federal and international boards and commissions, and has won numerous awards for leadership in community networks, including a Presidential Medal in 2001 for Service in the Field of Telecommunications, the Susan B. Hadden Award for Public Service in Telecom (1998), and was named by Texas Monthly as one of Texas's 25 most influential technology leaders.
Stephen Snow is founder and president of Community Consulting, a community-oriented Internet and technology consulting firm based in Charlotte, NC, and Senior Consultant with Texas Telecom, Inc. He was founder and executive director of Charlotte's Web, a national award-winning regional Community Network based in Charlotte. In 1996-97, Charlotte's Web was named the best Community Network in the United States. Mr. Snow background in communication and information technology includes 25 years as a magazine editor and journalist. He has worked as a writer, columnist and editor for The St. Petersburg (Fla.) Independent, Clearwater (Fla.) Sun, St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times, The Charlotte (N.C.) News and The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer. In 1993, he founded Charlotte's Web and in 1995 left The Observer to run Charlotte's Web full time. He is a regular speaker for and promoter of Community Networking nationally and internationally and is a founder, board member and past president of the U.S. Association For Community Networking. In 1998, The Los Angeles Times listed Snow among "unsung heroes of the Digital Age." In July 1999, he left Charlotte's Web to start Community Consulting, providing community visioning, technology consulting, organizational and community networking development. He has worked with local governments in Charlotte, NC, Columbus, NE, Salt Lake City, Harrisburg, PA; the National Recreation and Parks Association, the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, the Benton Foundation, the Bertlesmann Foundation, the Morino Institute, US Commerce Department, the Sonoco (Packaging) Corp., Community Commerce Network (CCNAmerica Inc.), Commercial Insurance Partners of North Carolina and many other communities, corporations, governments and nonprofit organizations. He has a bachelor's degree in Interdisciplinary Social Sciences from the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla., and is working toward a master's degree in counseling at UNC Charlotte.