Digital Equity

County officials want to know which pockets of Seminole lack connectivity or high-speed access to the Internet, with the ultimate goal of improving broadband services to those areas that need better service.

The group, which was formed as a volunteer response to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, is celebrating its second anniversary today, as it continues to expand the scope and focus of its work.

Comcast has announced free and discounted Internet options for Tupelo residents through the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program and the company’s own broadband adoption program, Internet Essentials.

Money from the FCC’s Emergency Connectivity Fund will go toward laptops, tablets, Wi-Fi hot spots, modems, routers and broadband connectivity purchases for off-campus use by students, school staff and library patrons.

Houston, Texas, has started deploying digital kiosks throughout the city. In addition to offering wayfinding services and municipal resources to residents and visitors, they also serve as Internet connectivity hubs.

Plus, the Pew Charitable Trusts launches Opportunity Broadband; the National Urban League releases a new digital equity white paper; and New York City Open Data Week 2022 is now underway.

CenturyLink is applying for $4 million from the Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology Grant for service providers, and now Vance County, N.C., may commit $750,000 of a total $7.8 million project price tag.

School districts in North Carolina, Ohio and Indiana represent case studies in three of the biggest challenges facing K-12 schools today: tech equity for students, cybersecurity and IT staff shortages.

The Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians announced a collaboration with AT&T to build a fiber network on its tribal lands that will connect more than 400 homes on the reservation to reliable high-speed, broadband Internet.

High-speed Internet remains a rare commodity for students in many rural and tribal areas of the U.S., but with government subsidies or other cost-cutting measures, satellites might help bridge this "homework gap."

Plus, why this weekly column has a new name, the NTIA awards $277 million in grants to enhance broadband in 12 states, and a new Illinois broadband program announces its inaugural cohort.

Tomorrow, Verizon plans to roll out its 5G wireless broadband service in Baltimore. The company will be competing with the fiber-based offerings of Comcast. Questions about 5G's affordability remain.

The pandemic demonstrated the importance of including everyone in our increasingly digitized society, but once people are connected to the Internet, do they know how to use it?

Plus, the Colorado Broadband Office is planning to connect more than 99 percent of households in the state, Arizona is investing $68.1 million in connectivity, and lawmakers ask the FCC to translate broadband labels.

The U.S. Department of Education has updated its online transparency tool for prospective college students and families with more fine-grained data on potential costs, graduation rates, earnings and other metrics.

Plus, the National League of Cities announces the innovation projects that have won its 2021 Capstone Challenge; applications are now open for a pair of digital inclusion grant programs in Maryland; and more.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer created the office in June 2021 with the aim of expanding broadband Internet access to more residents, but the office as yet has no budget and therefore no fulltime staff.

Because natural disasters disproportionately affect underserved communities, middle school students in Savannah, Ga., are learning to use mapping tools to design infrastructure changes that could protect their neighborhoods.