If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is that broadband access is the key to success in our digital age. Those who could not pivot to remote work, learning, or healthcare risked being left behind. The federal government and many states have responded accordingly, increasing vital funding for broadband deployment. Independent providers like NTCA’s members have achieved impressive deployment, with our most recent survey revealing that 75% of our members reach 75% of their locations with fiber. But, even as we work to increase broadband access, we also need to ensure adoption. It’s one thing to build these future-proof networks but an entirely different ballgame to ensure that they are fully utilized by communities served.
Digital inclusion refers to efforts to achieve equivalent broadband adoption and usage rates across different demographic groups in a community. These efforts aim to ensure broader adoption of digital tools and technology, as well as the skills to use them. And we as a society are all better off with more diversity of thought and experience are around a table – even a virtual one!
One thing that I love about NTCA’s members is how they have taken on digital inclusion efforts for years – especially during the pandemic – and without much fuss or fanfare. They see it simply as connecting their neighbors and supporting their communities. It’s one of the many reasons why I think community-based providers are the best model for service. Here are some great examples:
- Home Telecom, Inc. (Moncks Corner, SC) partners with the local public school district to provide free internet to households with school-age children in lower-performing schools.
- UniTel, Inc. (Unity, ME) provides funding for a digital literacy training program and partners with PCs for Maine to assist with required hardware, software, and devices for people who need a computer to achieve an important personal goal such as literacy, education, small business startups, job skills training or overcoming a disability.
- Totelcom (De Leon, TX) offers a Learning Center once a week in a downtown location where anyone can bring their electronic devices to receive one-on-one assistance. They have been offering these services up for years, long before the pandemic.
To help more NTCA members incorporate digital inclusion efforts into their business models, we have published a Digital Inclusion Series to provide concrete examples and resources for providers. The series includes four parts – Fundamentals of Digital Inclusion, Developing Digital Inclusion Initiatives, Delivering Digital Inclusion Initiatives, and Digital Inclusion Case Studies. I truly encourage NTCA members to take a look at the series, even if you are already undertaking similar activities in your community. Digital inclusion will be hugely important in the coming months as BEAD funding through NTIA aims to increase not only broadband deployment but digital inclusion, as well – and there is always work to be done to get more folks online.
Here are some other resources I also encourage NTCA members to check out:
- Smart Rural Community: Rural Imperatives in Broadband Adoption and Digital Inclusion
- FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program Consumer Outreach Toolkit
- National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) and Microsoft State Digital Equity Scorecard
- The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, BroadbandbandUSA Digital Inclusion Resources
- The International Telecommunication Union Digital Literacy Toolkit
- NDIA National Digital Navigator Corps
As community-based, small providers, NTCA members are already poised to lead the charge in digital inclusion. They know at their core that the connectivity they provide is even more valuable with more folks connected. Let’s work together and bridge the digital divide!