We talk so much about the digital divide – and we certainly have learned a lot about that gap over the course of the last fourteen months. Across the country, one of the things we’ve really learned is that those communities that don’t have robust broadband were sadly left behind. One of the biggest examples of this was kids who couldn’t access remote school.
When the pandemic hit, NTCA members stepped up to the plate to keep students connect as they started learning remotely. A good example and an amazing success story comes from North Dakota. As soon as the pandemic hit, all of the carriers in the state got together and reached out to the state school system to get the information of students who didn’t have Internet access. Those companies banded together and 99.8% of schoolchildren in North Dakota were connected to broadband access within a couple weeks of the pandemic.
Technology can be a great equalizer, and we can set the next generation up for success if we can continue to get kids connected. Now that we’re returning to “normal” life, the genie isn’t going back in the bottle. There is so much potential for our schools and students thanks to broadband connectivity – and we have to keep up the momentum. I recently spoke to The Hill about the digital divide and what more needs to be done to connect families to affordable Internet service. You can watch the video here.
