Cape Central grad Arbeiter leaves state post for private industry role

Tim Arbeiter, the founding director of Missouri's Office of Broadband Development, is leaving his state post in January after three years for an as-yet unannounced role in the private sector.

Arbeiter, a graduate of Cape Girardeau Central High School and Southeast Missouri State University, spent a decade as vice president of the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce, later becoming president of the Lee's Summit Chamber of Commerce in the Kansas City area.

Arbeiter, before his time with the Cape Girardeau chamber, served as director of Old Town Cape.

According to the Missouri Times online magazine, Arbeiter led the state through its first broadband grants and an influx of federal funds amid the COVID-19 pandemic, working with state, federal and local leaders to collect data, increase awareness, and accelerate broadband efforts across Missouri.

The Show Me State, Arbeiter told the magazine, is 34th out of the nation's 50 states in terms of broadband access, noting there are more than 147,000 unserved or underserved households in the state and more than 392,000 individuals without reliable internet access.

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