Connecting Communities: National and Local Partners Linking Families to the Internet

In 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, better known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, released $65 billion to be used to support digital connectivity to bridge the digital divide. This large investment has provided access to connectivity and devices for millions across the United States and significantly accelerates efforts to close the digital learning gap — including efforts to build the capacity of both parents and educators to access and deploy technology to support student learning through new EdTech tools and curricula.

Join us on January 9, from 3–4:30 pm ET as we launch our new Big Bets Working webinar series with an exploration of local and national efforts to ensure digital connectivity. We will hear how several organizations identified places where access gaps were the largest — poor, rural, Black and Latinx communities — and worked to overcome barriers and boost awareness of the resources available through this legislation. Panelists will also share how they built trust in communities and implemented strategies for supporting enrollment in the newly funded programs.

Adeyinka Ogunlegan of EducationSuperHighway will describe their four-pronged action plan to develop awareness, identify unconnected households, engage partners and enable apartment owners housing low-income families to aggregate benefits to provide access throughout buildings. Amina Fazlullah of Common Sense Media will share their mission to connect every family in the country and the importance of partnerships with community schools and libraries in accomplishing this work. Andrew Spector of The Patterson Foundation will share how their Digital Access for All initiative has supported training and knowledge-sharing for community-based nonprofit partners — all with the same goal of digital connectivity and universal access to the internet.