At the 2025 NTCA Fall Conference, NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield announced the winners of the 2025 Smart Rural Community Showcase Awards, presented annually to rural broadband providers who not only provide high-quality, reliable connectivity, but who also have led the way on collaborative and innovative projects that advance the communities they serve.
The Smart Rural Community program is a network of more than 290 communities across a wide swath of rural America supported by NTCA member providers who are committed to driving growth through robust broadband service. The Showcase Awards are presented to providers in recognition of their extraordinary achievements in promoting rural broadband networks and innovative applications that create opportunities for the educators, health care providers, farmers, small business owners, public safety professionals and others who help their communities thrive.
Lynxx Networks from Camp Douglas, Wisconsin, was one of eight 2025 Showcase winners. Lynxx Networks partnered with the Tomah Area School District to connect 13 schools and district facilities spread over more than 400 square miles with a 100% fiber 10-Gig network.
But Lynxx Network’s dedication to its local schools goes beyond just providing broadband. For the past 15 years, the company has organized a Giving Tree program, which has provided gifts to over 1,000 local children.
For Lynxx, being a Smart Rural Community goes beyond just providing high-speed broadband to helping ensure that students’ needs are met so they can grow and thrive.
Click here for the full list of 2025 recipients.