Fiber Broadband Association Opens 2025 Awards Nominations

Annual awards program recognizes contributions that strengthen and advance the fiber broadband industry at Fiber Connect 2025

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) has officially opened submissions for its annual FBA Awards program, celebrating outstanding achievements from across the fiber broadband industry. Winners will be announced and honored at the FBA Awards Luncheon at Fiber Connect 2025, held June 1-4, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn.

“FBA members are inspiring on so many levels—from contributions within their own companies and communities, to collaboration within the industry, to helping us advance our mission to expand fiber broadband and reach every American,” said Evann Freeman, Fiber Broadband Association Board Member and Conference Committee Chair, and Vice President, Government & Community Relations at EPB of Chattanooga. “Our awards recognize individuals, companies, and innovations that amplify and advance the fiber broadband industry. These accomplishments will help bring digital opportunities to more communities across North America and beyond.”

Previous award winners represent the best in the industry, displaying leadership, innovation, and impact. Notable past honorees include Mark Boxer of OFS for his dedication to workforce development, Cheri Beranek of Clearfield for her contributions to fiber innovation, and Nex-Rech for its efforts in expanding broadband access to rural communities. Their achievements highlight the importance and prestige of these awards for shaping the future of fiber broadband.

FBA members are invited to submit nominations via the online form found here. Submissions close on April 30.

• Individual Categories:
  • Advocacy Allstar: Individuals advancing the agenda of the fiber broadband industry on state and federal levels.
  • Fiber Under Forty: Individuals born in 1986 or later that are having an impact on their companies, or the industry, far beyond their years.
  • Photon Award: A Fiber Broadband Association member who, through their volunteer contribution, has demonstrated a high level of dedication to the organization and contribution to the industry.
  • Women Changing Fiber for Good: Females making changes that will impact and improve the industry for years to come.

• Company Categories:
  • Community Impact: Fiber broadband projects that are enabling communities and changing lives across North America.
  • Constellation: Celebrating the companies that came together to form a coalition that helped advance fiber broadband networks across communities, states, and regions.
  • Light It Up: Teams that are working together to support community broadband fiber network expansion, including construction, planning, integration, and deployment.
  • Product Innovation: Showcasing technology innovation and advancement that expands fiber broadband’s ability to deliver the services customers demand today and over the next decade.

• Individual or Company Categories:
  • Gene Scott Award: Person, community, or institution that has provided significant impact on the advancement of education in the fiber industry.
  • Star Award: Person, community, or company that has gone above and beyond what is expected in the advancement of fiber to the home.

Finalists will be selected for most award categories by FBA’s Board of Directors and announced on May 10--the Photon Award, Gene Scott Award, and Star Award will not have finalists. Award winners will be selected by fiber broadband experts from across the industry and announced at an awards luncheon at Fiber Connect 2025, on June 2. Tickets for the Awards Luncheon can be purchased when registering for Fiber Connect 2025.

For more details on Fiber Connect 2025 or award sponsorship, please contact Lucy Green at [e-mail].

About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policymakers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.