- FCC Limits Scope of E-Rate
- Maryland Connects Smith Island
- Hawaii Digital Navigator Program
- Big Apple Connect Faces Scrutiny
- El Paso, Texas, Program to Teach Digital, AI Skills
FCC LIMITS SCOPE OF E-RATE
The FCC announced a change to the E-rate program on Tuesday. The commission issued a ruling rescinding E-rate program funding coverage for Wi-Fi service on school buses or off campus through schools and libraries, also applying to funding for devices such as hot spots used to support service. The FCC expanded the program to support students learning outside of schools after the COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the impact of digital inequities for learners. The change will take place beginning in the funding year 2025.
The changes to the E-rate program do not come as a surprise to stakeholders, including school leaders, who have been preparing for the potential changes for months following FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks’ departure earlier this year. The FCC is typically split along party lines, but Olivia Trusty’s appointment established a 2-1 Republican majority within the commission.
Stakeholders have previously expressed differing opinions on the E-rate program’s expansion. Supporters argue that it is essential for closing the “homework gap,” which is the inability for some students to do schoolwork at home due to lacking Internet access. Opposers of the expansion argue that it is “unlawful” and allows unsupervised screen time.
With the E-rate program's expansion officially reversed, stakeholders’ reactions to the change are mixed.
“Today’s decision corrects course,” said FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in a statement.
Another FCC commissioner, Anna M. Gomez, touted the program’s role in addressing digital inequities, especially among students, teachers and library patrons in a statement, and criticized the change: “Let me be clear, these decisions benefit no one.”
Revati Prasad, executive director of the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society, argued in a statement that this decision will leave students and other learners “less prepared to compete and win the jobs of the future” — in spite of the presidential administration's aim to position the U.S. as a leader in emerging technologies.
MARYLAND CONNECTS SMITH ISLAND
In state news, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced the completion of a nearly $2 million infrastructure project to connect Smith Island to Internet service. The project brings Internet access to the more than 200 households and businesses on the island, which is the only inhabited Maryland island not accessible by car.
The project’s completion also marked the first time a sitting governor of the state traveled to Smith Island since 1999, per the announcement.
As Maryland officials work to connect the entire state to the Internet, the Smith Island project’s completion finished three months ahead of schedule. The state’s Office of Statewide Broadband has invested $145.8 million in infrastructure grants and $35.8 million in digital equity grants to date.
HAWAII DIGITAL NAVIGATOR PROGRAM
In other state news, a Digital Navigator program is launching at five public libraries within the Hawaii State Public Library System on Oct. 6. The program will start with those five locations and is slated to expand to all branches statewide in the coming weeks. The program is made possible by legislation signed by Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke in June.
The Digital Navigator model has gained ground nationwide since its 2020 launch.
The program will be offered at public libraries in the state through Māpunawai, a nonprofit organization focused on community-centered digital equity programs, offering one-on-one support to residents.
The program’s launch aligns with national Cybersecurity Awareness Month, offering residents a range of education including, but not limited to, how to securely access services online and identify scams.
BIG APPLE CONNECT FACES SCRUTINY
In local news, New York City's Big Apple Connect programhas come under scrutiny after the city didn't disclose surveillance expansion.
Big Apple Connect, a program intended to bring high-speed Internet and cable to those living in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) developments, was first announced in 2022. The goal upon its launch was to connect the roughly 30,000 residents in these developments to the Internet by the end of 2023; the program was expanded in August of that year and then extendedon Monday.
The NYC City Council’s committees on Technology, Public Housing, Public Safety, and Oversight and Investigations held a joint oversight hearing on Tuesday, during which it was revealed that the New York Police Department has expanded surveillance in NYCHA developments without notifying residents or disclosing it to the public. NYCHA and the Office of Technology and Innovation each claimed the other agency was responsible for notifying residents, per a news release sent to Government Technology by Councilmember and Committee on Technology Chair Jennifer Gutiérrez’s staff.
“Public housing residents were promised Internet access — not a hidden police surveillance network,” Gutiérrez said in a statement.
The police department is using at least one connection established under the Big Apple Connect Program for this surveillance, with more slated to follow. The program’s systems, including camera feeds, use city funding.
EL PASO, TEXAS, PROGRAM TO TEACH DIGITAL, AI SKILLS
The University of Texas at El Paso, the city of El Paso and El Paso Independent School District have partnered to launch the El Paso Computes program.
The program, funded by a $3 million grant from the city, will support education for children on digital skills, data literacy, cybersecurity and AI skills. Through the program, a minimum of 250 current and future teachers will receive education, which they will then be able to use to teach those digital skills to K-12 students, using an educational model similar to that of the Digital Navigator.
“This program is an investment in our teachers, our students and the future of El Paso’s economy,” said El Paso Mayor Renard U. Johnson in a statement.
El Paso Independent School District is piloting the program within its district, with a plan to eventually expand it to all districts in the region.
