Digital Equity

K-12 schools and universities in several states are using gamification to teach science through virtual experiments, simulators and LMS integrations like those offered by the global ed-tech company Labster.

A laptop-building seminar for younger Florida students is a highlight of Remake Learning Days, an initiative to bring computer literacy and other learning opportunities in STEM subjects to low-income communities.

High school and college students will be part of Massachusetts' Digital Equity Partnerships Program, a grant funding initiative to train seniors in technology skills and how to use devices.

Plus, Oklahoma is the latest state to launch a broadband listening tour, FEMA is teaming with the New Orleans Library for a digital literacy workshop, and more.

Butler Tech and Butler County Educational Services Center are coordinating with telecommunications providers, as well as federal and state school funding through Broadband Ohio, to expand broadband access.

A $10 million project to bring broadband to rural areas of Lancaster County is underway, thanks to federal stimulus dollars earmarked by Lancaster County commissioners for the project.

Crawford County commissioners are expected to ratify a contract to expand broadband service to 2,000 homes in the next three years. The county has committed $3 million of its American Rescue Plan Act funds to the project.

The Placer County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved $31 million in funding to bring broadband infrastructure to Sheridan, Newcastle, Loomis, North and South Auburn, Meadow Vista and a neighborhood in Granite Bay.

Plus, philanthropists have launched a new effort to support women in the digital economy, New York City has announced a new Gigabit Center on Staten Island, and more.

Eden Town Supervisor Melissa Hartman, who ran against Republican-endorsed incumbent Michael Kearns for the county clerk's seat last year and lost, has been hired as executive director of Erie County's ErieNet Corp.

With a historic amount of funding coming from the federal government, state governments are increasingly starting to hire full-time staff to focus on digital equity work.

Plus, more states announce new broadband deployment funding, the White House launches a $1.5 billion innovation fund related to the telecommunications supply chain, and more.

Officials revamped workforce efforts by implementing new virtual training models, creating digital literacy programs and designing a data-centered platform to connect users with job opportunities based on work history and skill sets.

County commissioners have approved a $2.5 million grant application to the Appalachian Regional Commission to help incentivize the buildout of broadband infrastructure in the region.

According to The Center for Digital Equity at Queens University of Charlotte, more than 14 percent of homes in Mecklenburg County, almost 56,000 households, do not have Internet access.

Plus, the New York Public Library has won an innovation award for tackling the digital divide, Nevada is the latest state to launch a high-speed Internet outreach tour, and more.

Over the past few months, the city of Birmingham has helped enroll hundreds of residents in the Affordable Connectivity Program, while increasing digital skills expertise and expanding tech device accessibility through its CONNECT99 campaign.

For some Wyandotte County residents, the area’s online auctions of property with delinquent taxes, otherwise known as virtual tax sales, have become an unwelcome tradition.