UH Vice President and Chief Information Officer David Lassner joins board of FirstMile.US

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Larry Wiss, (808) 956-9393
Communications Officer
Posted: Apr 24, 2009


HONOLULU — University of Hawaiʻi Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer David Lassner has been elected to the board of FirstMile.US, a 501(c)3 nonprofit focused on promoting high-speed broadband.

As a board member, Lassner will assist FirstMile.US in realizing its stated vision that "every member of the American public has access to big broadband, the 21st century pathway to a better overall quality of life."

"As an island state, Hawaiʻi faces unique internal and external connectivity challenges," Lassner commented. "The opportunity to work with FirstMile.US will allow me to contribute to a new national imperative while bringing home lessons that we can apply in Hawaiʻi to advance our broadband capabilities to improve health care, education, public safety, civic engagement and economic development for all."

Lassner joins luminaries on the FirstMile.US board including Google's Vint Cerf, the Internet Society's Lynn St. Amour, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, White House and FCC staffer Mike Nelson, wireless visionary and entrepreneur Dewayne Hendricks, Internet pioneer Susan Estrada, who serves as FirstMile.US president, and board chair Steven Corbató of the University of Utah.

In addition to his work with the University of Hawaiʻi System Lassner has long been active in a variety of local, national and international activities related to development of broadband and information technologies. Lassner serves as chair of the Hawaiʻi Broadband Task Force, has served on the Board and in other leadership roles for Internet2, and is the immediate past-Chair of the Board of the Pacific Telecommunications Council, the leading non-profit organization and conference serving the telecommunications community in the Asia-Pacific region for over 30 years.