Theron Rutyna joined the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in June 2022 as a federal program officer with NTIA’s Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth, Tribal Broadband Connectivity and National-to-Nation Coordination Division. As a federal program officer, Theron works with Tribal Nations to coordinate partnerships and outreach on NTIA high speed Internet grant programs and policy issues. In this role, he works with Tribes, Tribal Entities, and Tribal Organizations to coordinate with other NTIA departments, state broadband offices and state-level county and municipal associations to ensure comprehensive engagement for Tribes in the high-speed Internet grant process.  

Before joining the NTIA, Theron was the IT Director for the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians for seven years and has worked in the technology sector for Tribes, Tribal entities, for profit businesses, and not for profit corporations for more than 25 years. He has been extremely active in the coordination between Tribes and federal government entities in the first responder’s realm through the Department of Homeland Security SAFECOM and the FirstNet Public Safety Advisory Committee and Tribal Working Group. In the communications sphere, Theron was the Tribal co-chair for the Federal Communications Commission’s Native Nations Communication Taskforce.   

Theron holds a Bachelor of Science in Technical Communication and Chemical Engineering from Michigan Technological University with a Master of Science in Information Systems from the University of Phoenix along with multiple technology industry certifications. Theron was Dr. Jill Biden’s guest for the 2020 State of the Union address representing rural broadband. 

Carah Koch is the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Federal Program Officer for Wisconsin.  Carah has over 25 years of experience in federal, regional, and local government, serving in both professional and elected roles.  

Mark Leonard is the Broadband Planning and Policy Coordinator at the Wisconsin Broadband Office (WBO) at the Public Service Commission (PSC). Mark provides outreach and technical assistance to all Tribal, County, and Municipal Governments in Wisconsin on broadband planning, access, and affordability efforts. Along with being one of the facilitators of the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Access. Mark is the former Executive Director of Administration for the Ho-Chunk Nation where one of his main focuses was bringing broadband access to Ho-Chunk Lands and Tribal Members. Mark received his undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is a descendant of the Ho-Chunk Nation, Forest County Potawatomi, and Menominee Nation. 

Andre Boening is the US Dept of Agriculture Rural Utilities Service Telecom program General Field Representative (GFR) for Upper Peninsula Michigan and Wisconsin.  His job has included participation in the planning, financing, construction and operation of telecom networks and telemedicine/distance learning networks since 1984 in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.  He started with USDA in 1984, after being a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia.  Andre graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Agriculture Economics. 

Brittany Beyer is a Community Economic Development Specialist with UW Madison, Division of Extension. Brittany brings her decades of experience to the team, with positions that have spanned arts and culture management, economic development, rural prosperity, and community engagement. She is a member of the statewide broadband support team with a focus on Relationship Procurement. Broadband became a focus of her work as the director of Grow North Regional Economic Development Corporation (2018-2022), leading her to be named the inaugural Chair of the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband (Chair 2020-2022, continued membership) and working as a Senior Broadband Consultant for HealthTech Solutions / Solarity on multiple projects around the country. Brittany is also the recipient of the 2021 Wisconsin Idea Award. 

Gail is a Professor of Practice with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension where she serves as a Broadband Specialist. Gail has 39 years of experience in delivering community outreach programs in family and community economic development. She joined the Broadband Education Center in 2015 serving as Director for the Connected Aging Communities Initiative. Connected Aging Communities is a groundbreaking initiative that’s uses a unique “high tech, high touch” holistic, community development approach to enable aging residents to live independently at home. Gail’s current broadband efforts center heavily on community planning for broadband access. She is a member of the National Digital Extension Education Team and has played a key role in the development of broadband community planning curriculum, training Extension staff at a national level. Gail has developed training materials for the National 4-H Council’s Tech Changemakers- Digital Ambassador program on digital inclusion. Over the last two years, Gail has served as a member of the Wisconsin’s Governor’s Task Force on Broadband.  

John graduated from UW-Madison with a B.S. in Geography and a certificate from the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and started his career working on geographic information systems in the telecommunications, energy, and defense industries. After serving in the U.S. Army as a Geospatial Engineer, John used the G.I. Bill to earn a Master of Science in the Urban Agglomerations program at the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences in Germany. Since then, he has worked on policy issues in the field of community and economic development for local and state governments. Currently, John serves as the Broadband Community Planning Specialist under the Community Economic Development Program within the UW-Madison Division of Extension. John and his wife enjoy the great outdoors in Wisconsin, especially biking along the 400 and Elroy-Sparta state trails and hiking throughout the Baraboo region.