MADISON, Wis. -- A plan to investment $28.7 million to expand high-speed Internet access through Wisconsin was announced on Thursday.

Gov. Jim Doyle and U.S. Deputy Commerce Secretary Dennis Hightower unveiled the plan in Green Bay on Thursday. The lion's share of the funds for the effort to extend broadband access -- about $22.9 million -- is coming from the federal economic stimulus plan, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

According to a news release, the funds will be targeted to 467 sites in more than 380 communities throughout the state.

Doyle said the effort will create jobs in the installation of fiber cable beyond extending the benefits of faster Internet access.

“High-speed Internet access is critical to the success of our state’s entrepreneurs, businesses, students and families,” Doyle said in the news release.

Officials said that schools in particular will be the focus of the effort. The project is expected to expand broadband Internet access to 74 schools, eight post-secondary schools and 385 libraries. They said that 84 percent of the targeted school districts and colleges are in rural areas.

A coordinator said the project could enable services like videoconferencing without bringing down a school's network.

Schools could also see a tenfold speed increase. Libraries in rural areas are also look to meet a growing demand.

"From hearing a lot of patrons that come into the library that live out in the country that have a difficult time getting Internet, and they may have to rely on dialup. A lot of those folks come here because it's more dependable," said Denise Wright, director of the New Glarus Public Library.

Officials said that more than 200 miles of fiber optic cable will be installed and more than $10 million will be spent on American-made telecommunications equipment and materials as part of the project.

While the federal money will pay for most of the effort, state officials will chip in $5.7 million in matching funds from the Technology for Education Achievement (TEACH) program, according to the news release.

Stay tuned to WISC-TV and Channel 3000 for continuing coverage.