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You can have a way to broadcast to car radio

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Using phone for zoom access

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Shamika Goddard - Tech Chaplain and PhD Student at the University of Colorado at Boulder

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Shamika Goddard - Tech Chaplain and PhD Student at the University of Colorado at Boulder

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Here to help with research and perspectives on technology resources and options.

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https://www.oaklandca.gov/topics/oakwifi

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Discounted internet programs through service providers- pay bills for low income people. Programs can cost as little as $12/account per month.

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Discounted internet programs through service providers- pay bills for low income people. Programs can cost as little as $12/account per month.

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Might a Google or Facebook be interested in (partially) sponsoring universal wifi access, as it's closely related to their own work and would bolster their own profile with regard to social justice.

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American Rescue Plan Broadband Provisions

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American Rescue Plan Broadband Provisions

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https://www.brookings.edu/research/the-american-rescue-plan-is-the-broadband-down-payment-the-country-needs/?utm_campaign=Brookings%20Brief&utm_medium=email&utm_content=131221474&utm_source=hs_email

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For over two decades, digital equity advocates have done their best to raise awareness about the digital divide-the gap between those who can access and use internet-based services and those who cannot. All it took was a global pandemic and economic shutdown to finally get the public's attention.

Stories from the past year made it impossible to ignore how essential broadband is in our daily lives: young students unable to login to their digital classroom; workers without in-home connectivity forced to travel to their job sites; retirees who couldn't video chat with their families; and sick people who couldn't access telehealth services.

Fortunately, the federal government is finally ready to address the digital divide. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act offer billions of broadband-related dollars to reduce consumer prices, build out network infrastructure, and fund digital skills programming. And that funding may only be the start, as House and Senate leaders are coalescing around bipartisan legislation-similar to proposals within the American Jobs Plan -to construct broadband networks in every underserved neighborhood and dramatically expand support for digital equity services.

This federal activity is a welcome development, but it also creates a challenging puzzle for state and local leaders. The approved funding can improve digital equity right away, but it's not enough to address every community's long-term needs. Meanwhile, major broadband legislation (potentially rolled into a larger infrastructure package) promises to offer capital and operations funding at an appropriate scale, but it's hard to count on money that's not yet approved.

How should state and local leaders balance it all? We recommend a two-phase strategy.

The first phase should prioritize immediate relief. Leaders should leverage new resources to subsidize broadband subscriptions, lower device prices, and provide digital navigation and literacy support to ensure these affordability programs extend through the 2021-22 school year. Leaders should also prioritize only those network investments that can quickly initiate new service, such as E-rate connections through qualifying institutions like schools. Critically, state and local governments should use ARP funds (if permitted) or local resources to launch state and local digital equity offices to coordinate these programs, including benefits to both households and small businesses.

The second phase should predevelop a durable digital equity plan using ARP's one-time funding infusion (and any additional local resources if necessary). New digital equity offices should aggressively measure digital need across their jurisdictions, including speed testing, accurate pricing data, physical network gaps, and locations for wraparound equity programming. Whichever agency manages broadband networks should then use the measurement data to develop a long-range capital plan to reach universal adoption, including pricing out capital investments with outside vendors and the specifications to launch cooperative-, civic-, or public-owned networks.

If executed well, this strategy can help state and local leaders reduce the digital divide today while designing a plan to permanently eliminate it in the coming decade.

The digital divide won't go away on its own

It's no longer a debate: Broadband is essential infrastructure. And no essential infrastructure should have the kinds of gaps we see within the broadband sector.

The best household data we can get is from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, which in 2019 found that roughly 16.7 million U.S. households (or 14%) did not have an in-home or wireless broadband subscription. But even that headline number understates the issue. Since wireline and wireless broadband are complementary goods, not substitutes, we really want every individual to have access to both. Unfortunately, there are another 24 million households (20%) that only have access to one or the other.

There are even more troubling broadband statistics among some of society's most vulnerable. According to the Census Bureau's Week 29 Household Pulse Survey-equivalent to April 28 through May 10, 2021-18% of households with children in public or private school did not always have internet available for educational purposes. Fifteen percent of white respondents and 16% of Asian American respondents reported not always having internet access for educational purposes, while 20% of Latino or Hispanic respondents and 21% of Black and mixed-race respondents faced this barrier. American Community Survey data also reveals a generational digital divide; 22% of those over age 65 have no broadband internet subscription, in comparison to 9% of those ages 18 to 64.

Researchers consistently find a set of factors that contribute to broadband gaps. Some communities, especially isolated towns, struggle with a lack of network connectivity. For some households and businesses, broadband subscriptions and devices are too expensive. And across entire communities, a lack of digital skills impedes adoption of digital services. Bridging the digital divide will require leaders at all levels of government, the private sector, and the civic community to design solutions that directly address these factors.
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ARP authorizes sizable broadband investments

Congress has made an enormous amount of funding available to states and localities to address digital equity. ARP includes nine provisions that provide about $388.1 billion in flexible funding, for which a variety of digital equity activities are eligible (Figure 2). In addition, the Consolidated Appropriations Act created the $3.2 billion Emergency Broadband Benefit program, which the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) launched on May 12. While the magnitude of these investments is unprecedented, broadband is not guaranteed to emerge as the priority for all funding streams in all communities, so community leaders must break down these big numbers and plan how to get the most out of them.

Three programs-the Emergency Broadband Benefit, the ARP Emergency Connectivity Fund, and the ARP Capital Projects Fund- exclusively set aside funding for digital equity policies. These three programs together total $20.371 billion.

The Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) program is already providing broadband affordability relief to households; it provides a groundbreaking $50 per month ($75 in qualifying tribal lands) discount on broadband services, as well as a one-time $100 discount for purchasing eligible devices. State and local actors should shape their ARP efforts to complement this FCC-administered program, which will conclude when expended or six months after the COVID-19 emergency period ends, whichever occurs first.

To address the immediate educational impacts of the digital divide, ARP's Emergency Connectivity Fund provides $7.171 billion in E-rate funding for emergency educational connections and devices for library patrons and school students. This level of funding puts schools and libraries on a viable path toward closing the homework gap by reimbursing 100% of reasonable costs paid to supply laptops, tablets, hotspots, and broadband subscriptions to students and their households. Notably, schools and libraries whose students and patrons have no commercially available connectivity options may even use the Emergency Connectivity Fund to support network construction and datacasting. The FCC's May 11 final rule also clarified that any funds remaining after accepting all applications for future purchases could be used to reimburse past eligible purchases made during the COVID-19 pandemic.

An additional $10 billion is available through the ARP Capital Projects Fund to support "capital projects directly enabling work, education, and health monitoring, including remote options, in response to the public health emergency." The Treasury Department indicated that broadband will be primary focus of the fund, as it seeks to meet the "continuing need for connectivity in response to the COVID-19 pandemic." There are also opportunities for capital projects that provide other forms of connectivity access, such as community co-working hubs with digital assets. Further Treasury Department guidance on this fund is expected before applications are accepted this summer.

That leaves another $370.9 billion in an assortment of flexible ARP funds for which certain digital equity activities are eligible, but of which broadband will compete against other pressing relief and recovery needs. For schools and libraries, flexible funds include the $122.775 billion Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund-for which a portion of funds are eligible to be spent on devices, software, and connectivity subscriptions for low-income students-and $200 million of flexible funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Beyond school students and library patrons, ARP's $9.961 billion Homeowner Assistance Fund will provide timely relief to homeowners who experienced financial hardship after January 21, 2020 and who earn incomes below 150% of the area median income. The fund-which the Treasury Department allocates to states, territories, and tribes-covers a variety of expenses, including mortgage payment assistance, utility bills, and broadband internet service. While some of the larger eligible expenses dwarf the fund's broadband expenses, the inclusion of broadband in the Homeowner Assistance Fund affirms ARP's capacity to rapidly deliver essential broadband relief to households.

ARP's Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds offer the most flexibility for digital inclusion activities through $233 billion to state, local, territorial, and tribal governments. A wide range of digital inclusion activities, including physical network build-out in unserved and underserved areas, device and connectivity subscription support, and digital literacy training are eligible for these funds.

For newly constructed networks, Treasury Department guidance sets notable standards: They encourage recipients to provide symmetrical 100 megabits per second (Mbps) upload and download speeds (with exceptions), an attempt to match the rising demand for bandwidth we've seen in recent years. The guidance also encourages funding recipients to prioritize nonprofit, government-affiliated, and co-op internet service providers (ISPs). But this can be a challenge; in addition to the complexities of quickly standing up a new ISP, unserved and underserved areas could involve significant logistical challenges that slowed or halted commercial deployment in the first place. Funding recipients should take the time to plan and prepare beforehand if they decide to negotiate network construction contracts with large commercial ISPs; no community can afford for this wave of federal investment to build yet another expensive, inequitable, and sub-standard network. Finally, the guidance limits new network construction to unserved and underserved areas (those without "reliable" wireline service of at least 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload speeds) although many places will need better data and mapping to understand where those areas actually are.

The Treasury Department's guidance is much less restrictive for digital equity activities such as device and connectivity support and digital literacy training, all of which can be offered to any household that has suffered negative economic impacts due to COVID-19. Similarly, broadband subscription support is an eligible use of the fund's loans and grants to mitigate small businesses' financial hardship. However, since neighborhood-level broadband measurement is spotty at best, ARP recipients should justify new measurement and planning data as a prerequisite to targeting ARP programming dollars and maximizing return on investment.
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ARP can address immediate broadband needs while laying the foundation for more durable digital equity

As helpful as ARP and other commitments are to bridging the digital divide, there simply is not enough funding to complete the job. It will take anywhere from $60 billion to over $100 billion to wire every American community for broadband, and that doesn't include estimates to upgrade all wireline connections to fiber or to blanket the U.S. with 5G wireless. American communities also need funding for digital equity programs that lasts beyond 2024, including permanent federal offices to partner with. It's going to take bigger, purpose-built broadband legislation-like that introduced by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), or wherever the White House's infrastructure negotiation lands-to approach those funding amounts.

What today's broadband dollars can do, though, is build a foundation for more durable digital equity while still targeting the most immediate needs of households and businesses who are digitally disconnected. To strike a balance between money available now and major legislation likely to pass during this Congress, we recommend state and local officials adopt a two-phase strategy.

Phase 1: Get emergency broadband support to those most in need

Even as regional economies begin to reopen, state and local leaders will still confront the same network, affordability, and skills issues that created the digital divide pre-pandemic. Those leaders should treat the digital divide like a long-run economic recession, getting emergency support to those most in need as quickly as possible. This should be the immediate focus while communities take a more patient approach to capital planning. During this phase, state and local leaders should:

Immediately designate a chief digital equity officer and establish Digital Equity Offices as fast as possible. ARP and the EBB demand a broadband quarterback to coordinate programming across a jurisdiction. The programming breadth implicates multiple agencies and the potential for duplicative programming is enormous. If not already assigned, someone should serve as the chief coordinator of these equity-focused activities. States and localities should move quickly to establish a Digital Equity Office, which will house that officer plus other staff to permanently coordinate digital equity activities. They should explore whether ARP funding will cover the office's operations, and also where to place the office, like inside state or local broadband offices that may already exist. In addition to network build-out and device and subscription support, Maryland's planned $300 million dollar ARP broadband investments include $2 million each for digital navigator programs and the state's digital inclusion fund, as well as $4 million for a new digital literacy program through the University System of Maryland.

Tap programs to subsidize subscriptions. The digital equity officer should build relationships with multiple departments to make subscriptions more affordable, of which both the EBB and most ARP programs count as a qualified activity. Community health offices, libraries, schools, community groups, and community development financial institutions (CFDIs) should all encourage households to sign up for the EBB through local ISPs. The FCC prepared a ready-to-use EBB Outreach Toolkit to assist organizations in getting the word out. San Diego has already partnered with a local nonprofit and trusted community voice, Pillars of the Community, to help eligible residents take advantage of the benefit. School boards can establish programs this summer to promote connectivity for disconnected students. Housing and tax authorities can do the same for homeowners seeking discounted service. Economic development agencies can focus on monitoring small business needs. Across each of these instances, public officials should collect lists of who requested discounted service to inform ongoing measures of need, following the example set by California and Texas to compile location-specific lists to help households find available and affordable broadband plans.

Get devices into people's hands. Nearly all of the ARP programs plus the EBB allow device rebates for qualifying households. Digital equity officers should work with school boards, libraries, housing authorities, and other offices to get devices into people's hands as quickly as possible. It is also worth exploring whether those devices should be wireless-capable and then bundled with discounted wireless service. Over the course of the pandemic, digital equity initiatives have helped community institutions across the country distribute devices, such as the St. Louis County Library's use of CARES Act funds to distribute 1,500 wireless-capable "GrandPad" tablets to seniors in Missouri. Connected Nation's State Connectivity COVID-19 Response Plan advises local actors to consider the varying device needs of different student and patron populations when purchasing or allocating donated devices.

Top-up digital skills programming already underway. Many libraries and community nonprofits-such as Cleveland's DigitalC and Ashbury Senior Computer Community Center-already offered digital skills curricula before COVID-19. The digital equity office should prioritize reinvestment in established skills programming to grow digital literacy and other skills.

Phase 2a: Invest in broadband measurement

Overcoming the digital divide won't be easy, but it's significantly harder without accurate data. Nearly all states and localities face a sweeping set of data gaps: incomplete maps of their network gaps; inaccurate readings on dependable internet speeds; an absence of pricing data; and outdated or inaccurate maps of household and business subscription rates. These data gaps compound when it comes to digital equity, since accurate data of broadband need would also help target digital skills services.

As an intermediate step, states and localities should immediately design and implement a long-term broadband measurement plan within their Digital Equity Office. Since the FCC is currently implementing the Broadband DATA Act -a 2020 federal law to enhance network availability data-state and local measures should focus on local data gaps, particularly pricing and more granular speed data. Local surveys of subscription rates among households and businesses are also important, and some of the data can be collected via the emergency relief programs detailed in Phase 1.

Improved measurement data has the opportunity to improve the effectiveness of capital programs and make them significantly cheaper to execute. With multiple years to execute capital programs and the opportunity to triage immediate gaps through other programming, state and local officials should not feel rushed when planning capital investments.

Phase 2b: Develop a capital plan and execute high-value projects with remaining funding

While the top-line figures are enormous, ARP may not leave nearly as much money available for capital investments as it initially seems. The need for immediate relief, such as hazard pay for workers, can quickly whittle down the total funding pot, especially from the oversized and flexible State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds. Broadband also isn't the only category of qualifying capital expenses, with water utilities and school systems as some of the other groups vying for limited dollars. In the end, broadband-focused officials will need to get creative.

We recommend state and local officials use this unique opportunity to develop a capital plan for long-term need. Similar to peers in the housing and transportation sectors, broadband officials can start to plan capital investments around their long-term needs. They should include planned stages of investment, using the broadband measurement plan to prioritize specific neighborhoods and projects. Capital plans are also an opportunity to conduct scenario planning, including new ownership models, federal legislative events, and new local revenue-raising models.

A capital plan will also help state and local officials determine which projects have the greatest potential to return value within the limits of remaining funding. ARP qualifies so many different projects and ownership models when it comes to broadband assets that governments need a clear way to judge different projects and build public trust on why officials select certain projects. A capital plan will help do that. Building off two pilot programs funded through the CARES Act, the Franklin County Digital Equity Coalition Framework in Ohio offers a leading example of the prerequisite measurement and engagement necessary to build an inclusive capital plan.
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Closing the digital divide begins now

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the depths of the digital divide, finally convincing community leaders and the public that broadband is no longer a luxury. Fortunately, this collective awakening creates a major opportunity, which ARP's broadband-related programs and the new EBB program help to fill.

These programs' immediate relief is well timed for individuals and businesses who could benefit from lower prices and new digital skills. And with the promise of even bigger capital investments and operational funding through future broadband legislation, ARP programs also offer an opportunity to plan long-term investments. Community leaders should seize this opportunity to start overcoming the digital divide once and for all.
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The American Rescue Plan is the broadband down payment the country needs

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For over two decades, digital equity advocates have done their best to raise awareness about the digital divide-the gap between those who can access and use internet-based services and those who cannot. All it took was a global pandemic and economic shutdown to finally get the public's attention.

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Changing Lives by Connecting People to the Internet

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Changing Lives by Connecting People to the Internet

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https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2021/05/19/changing-lives-by-connecting-all-americans-to-broadband-internet/?utm_campaign=Brookings%20Brief&utm_medium=email&utm_content=128297935&utm_source=hs_email

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Changing lives by connecting all Americans to broadband internet

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Jackson and Owsley counties in eastern Kentucky are examples of what expanding broadband infrastructure can accomplish, writes Tom Wheeler.

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Why California Students Lack Broadband Access

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Why California Students Lack Broadband Access

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About twice a week, the $9.99 per month internet connection falters. It's often as Mario Ramírez finally wrangles his kids into their seats - the fourth-grader studies in the bedroom he shares with his 12 year-old sister, who studies in her parents' bedroom - in time for virtual class. The screens freeze - sometimes during online tests. At times the little one bursts into frustrated tears as they wait for their connection to resume, precious class time slipping away.

Though he hides it from his kids, Ramírez' frustration spikes too, along with fear: What if this is the year that his kids lose interest in their education? In Ramírez' view, it's their ticket to a life unburdened by the monthly rent panic that Ramírez has often faced since immigrating from Mexico nearly 30 years ago.

"Sometimes I wonder, 'Will my kids be unable to get ahead?'" Ramirez said in Spanish.

Depending on a student's access to reliable internet, the last year of virtual school has ranged from enriching to impossibly discouraging.

Which kids have access follows a stark pattern: Across urban and rural areas alike, public schools with more students in poverty were far more likely to serve households that lacked a basic broadband connection at home in the months before school went online, according to an unprecedented CalMatters analysis. For the vast majority, the barrier to access was not a lack of internet infrastructure - indicating that the more common obstacle was affordability. But for the state's small population of rural students, those two obstacles unite, leaving three in ten households without a reliable connection.

Though schools have scrambled to deliver laptops, tablets and hotspots to students, and promoted low-income internet plans offered by telecom companies like AT&T and Comcast, one in five California households with K-12 students told the Census Bureau in late March they don't always have the internet access needed for virtual school. Interviews with over 30 students, teachers, researchers, advocates and education leaders revealed that hotspots and discount broadband are often unreliable, leading to a year of education disrupted by screen freezes, distorted audio, and getting booted out of Zoom classes.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought California's digital divide out of the shadows and to the forefront of public policy. Families sued school systems and the state for failing to provide poor, Black and Latino students equal access to high quality education online. Education leaders argued that logging on at home will be part of a 21st century K-12 education. Lawmakers are now calling internet access a basic civil right.

"We need to envision being able to provide affordable, reliable internet for all like we provide water and electricity," said Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, a Democrat from Torrance, during a recent webinar about closing the broadband divide.

With billions of dollars in federal relief money flowing into California - and the potential for billions more from President Joe Biden's $2 trillion infrastructure plan - state policymakers have readied at least 20 proposals aiming to close California's digital divide once and for all. At stake is the chance to narrow long-standing achievement gaps that got even worse during the pandemic between internet haves and have-nots.

Deep disparity before pandemic

The Ramírez family had neither broadband nor computers until schools shut down last spring. Their charter school loaned them two laptops, but they never received a hotspot, so Ramírez signed up for their current $9.99 Internet Essentials plan with Comcast for low-income households.

"If we had to pay the regular price, we wouldn't get it because it's too expensive," said Ramírez, who receives Social Security because of a kidney illness for which he must do dialysis five times a week. His wife cleans houses, though fewer clients call since the pandemic.

But the $9.99 plan still cuts out too frequently, Ramírez said. The kids' grades are slipping, especially his son, also named Mario. Before the pandemic, little Mario was a buoyant kid whose afternoons and weekends brimmed with soccer, swimming, karate, and track and field. Now Ramírez struggles to unglue his son from video games or his cell phone, sometimes baiting him with ice cream just to get him out of the house. Ramírez' son has put on weight, which his mom attributes to anxiety.

"I feel more bored. I feel like there's no world left and it's only me and my sister because there's no one here," the fourth-grader said.

Little Mario's teacher has suggested he may need to repeat fourth grade.

Mario Ramírez Garcia, 10, and his father Mario Ramírez sit for a portrait in the Oakland home on April 21, 2021. Ramírez worries that the frustrations his children have experienced this year may lead them to lose interest in their education. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters

Monserrat Ramírez Garcia, 12, and her brother, Mario, 10, have a pillow fight in the bedroom they share during their lunch period on April 23, 2021. Both siblings miss going to school in-person and have found it difficult to focus when the internet connection is unstable several times a week. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters

The Ramírez' experience is common. Combining data from agencies that oversee telecommunications companies and schools, CalMatters built a public database of broadband adoption and availability estimates in the neighborhoods of most California public K-12 schools. Reporters found that California public schools with the most students in poverty serve neighborhoods in which three in 10 households lacked a broadband connection that could handle the most basic online activities in December 2019.

Meanwhile, in the attendance boundaries of schools with the most affluent students, 88% of households had a connection.

The 20% of schools with the greatest proportion of students getting free and reduced price lunches were compared to the 20% of schools with the least.

"This is just going to have a ripple effect for generations," said Jamey Olney, a Modesto middle school teacher who teaches English to students who are mostly recent immigrants, live in deep poverty, and lacked a home internet connection before the pandemic.

Affordability is a main barrier to access, agreed Carolyn McIntyre, president of the California Cable & Telecommunications Association.

"Based on information available from the Public Utilities Commission alone, we have about 2.1 million households that could connect to broadband, and they don't," she said. Other factors she cited: a lack of digital literacy and language barriers.

"I don't think that the providers have received enough recognition for their voluntary efforts" to provide discounted programs, McIntyre said. But she added, "clearly, as long as we have unserved families that could be connected to the internet, more needs to be done."

"This is just going to have a ripple effect for generations."
Jamey Olney, Modesto middle school teacher

Representatives from Comcast Corp., one of the largest internet service providers in the state, contended that a lack of digital literacy, lack of interest, tech skills and devices, as well as language barriers, were more common obstacles than affordability.

Sena Fitzmaurice, a senior vice president at Comcast, said the Ramírez' connectivity problems could be due to the devices they are using to connect, where their router is placed or problems like rusted wiring outside the home. She said the speed shouldn't be a problem, citing a study by a research lab funded by the global cable industry as proof. The study said that at a speed of 50 Mbps download, 5 Mbps upload - the theoretical speed of the Internet Essentials plan the Ramírez family uses - 10 laptops should be able to do video conferencing simultaneously with no problem.

After being contacted by CalMatters, Comcast offered to reach out and send a repair person to the Ramírez family free of charge.

Affordability at root of divide

Barriers to home broadband access generally boil down to two main factors. Has an internet company connected the household to its complex above- and below-ground network of high-speed fiber, copper wires, cables, towers and antenna? If so, is the household able to afford the plan?

Efforts to solve California's digital divide have often focused on the former: funding broadband infrastructure in remote parts of the state. If only we could get telecommunications companies to build out the last miles of high-speed fiber to California's remote communities, we could close the gap, the thinking went.

"Before the pandemic... there's been more attention to deployment issues," said Hernan Galperin, a University of Southern California professor who researches internet policy and digital inequality. "But much less attention to the affordability gap."

Yet CalMatters' analysis, backed up by a 2019 study from the California agency that regulates internet service providers, paints a more complicated picture. Cost stood out as a more common barrier for most California students, in rural and urban areas alike. In other words, even if high-speed broadband were available to every California household, many families wouldn't feel they could afford it.

A 2021 survey by the California Emerging Technology Fund and Galperin confirmed the pattern: 68% of households that didn't have an internet connection cited cost as a principal reason, while 34% said it wasn't available where they lived. Language barriers and limited digital skills also contributed. Nearly a quarter of households that spoke Spanish at home lacked an internet connection.

The average monthly cost for a residential broadband connection plus router in Los Angeles is $59.83, according to research by the New America think tank. That's not including the average one-time installation and activation fees of $104.75. Nor the fact that most plans offered for under $50 per month increase after the first year or two.

The researchers found that low-income plans, usually priced at $10 per month, tend to be so slow that they cost significantly more for each bit of data than do high-speed plans. Households without Wi-Fi usually don't know about them. And many COVID-19 broadband promotions only lasted a few months or expire after the pandemic.

There's no standard definition of what constitutes affordable broadband, unlike housing, which is considered affordable if it costs less than 30% of your income. A December report from the California Broadband Council, a 12 member committee formed in 2010 under then Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to promote broadband deployment in underserved areas, cited research finding that low-income consumers tend to be able to afford $10 to $15 per month plans. New York state just capped the cost of broadband at $15 for low-income people.

There's also no statewide program to help families pay for their internet, unlike electricity. That could change. Two California lawmakers have proposed a fund to help low-income families cover the cost of high-speed broadband. To pay for it, the state would charge internet service providers 23 cents per month per broadband connection.

"The most urgent and widespread problem is lack of competition in the provision of high-speed broadband."
Hernan Galperin, usc professor and digital inequality researcher

In the same vein, the Federal Communications Commission will soon offer $50 per month vouchers to low-income families, including any with kids who qualify for subsidized lunch. But the program will end when it runs out of funds and depends on internet service providers to sign on.

Multiple advocates, though, said these subsidies reward telecom companies for their high rates.

"For the pandemic to just be a windfall for those that provide digital devices and internet connectivity - there's something that feels very immoral about that," said Angelica Jongco, an attorney with Public Advocates, a nonprofit civil rights law firm.

Telecommunications companies can charge unaffordable rates because they face little competition, said Galperin, who found that just over half of Californians had more than one high-speed Wi-fi option, in a January policy brief.

"The most urgent and widespread problem is lack of competition in the provision of high-speed broadband," Galperin and coauthors wrote.

That's especially true in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, according to a report from the progressive Greenlining Institute last summer. The study found that telecommunications companies compete to provide the fastest connections in high-income neighborhoods, while bypassing neighborhoods with a large percentage of poor and Black residents, which the researchers called "digital redlining."

In response to the criticism that government subsidies reward companies for charging high prices resulting from little competition, McIntyre, representing the cable industry, contended that such programs don't cause internet service providers to stop offering discount programs - and that the telecommunications market already is competitive.

An urban and a rural issue

The pandemic revealed that California's K-12 digital divide is as much an urban issue as a rural issue.

"COVID really showed how wide the crack can be due to poverty," said Tim Taylor, executive director of the Small School Districts Association of California. "It got the leaders together to say this is an issue that is not just rural, but it is about poverty and connectivity."

CalMatters' analysis backs that up. Most students who go to the schools with the lowest neighborhood broadband access live in urban and suburban areas, especially Los Angeles, where UC Los Angeles researchers estimated that 29% of Hispanic students and 27% of Black students didn't always have internet last fall, compared to 20% for white students.

But rural school neighborhoods - especially where poverty and a lack of infrastructure layer on top of each other - have much lower broadband adoption rates overall.

CalMatters identified nearly 400 school attendance boundaries spread across California's far North, Sierras, Central Valley, Inland Empire and borderlands in which at least half of households lacked a basic broadband plan. Of those households without, about one in three had no broadband options to choose from.

Evelyn Flores is photographed in front of her home in Los Angeles on April 22, 2021. Evelyn was unable to connect to certain websites, including some college application pages, while using the hotspot provided by her school district Photo by Shae Hammond for CalMatters

Take Evelyn Flores and Katya Velasco, two ambitious graduating high school seniors who faced similar challenges to connecting to their classes in very different places.

Flores attends Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez High School, nestled between the Los Angeles River and Highway 101. Here, just 59% of households have broadband.

Velasco attends Desert Mirage High, an aptly named school in the Coachella Valley, where broadband infrastructure is available to about 76% of households and just 32% had a home connection.

In one sense, Flores was one of the lucky ones. Her family already had a $14.99 per month home internet connection with Spectrum for low-income families. But it wasn't fast enough for Flores and her three sisters to do virtual school and work at the same time - especially when Flores' parents quarantined for three weeks in the family's one bedroom after both contracted COVID-19.

Flores and two of her sisters slept, studied and worked in the living room, competing for connectivity. In virtual classes, classmates told her that her voice warped like a robot when she spoke. She got in the habit of turning her video off to free up bandwidth. Upgrading to a faster internet plan was out of the picture: Her dad lost his supermarket job after his bout with the virus.

Velasco's family can't afford a broadband plan, she said. So for the first month of virtual learning last spring, she relied on the overburdened internet connection of her neighbors. She used her phone hotspot to take her AP exams, hoping she wouldn't run out of data during the hours-long tests.

Then both of the families received multiple Verizon hotspots from their school districts.

The hotspots from LAUSD worked intermittently and only during school hours. The batteries drained quickly. They also wouldn't let Flores connect to certain sites, like some college application websites.

Velasco and her classmates noticed that, in some areas, the Coachella Valley Unified hotspots seemed to grab a weaker connection from nearby cell towers. Velasco's neighborhood was one of them. Oppressive heat and wind often drive local power shutoffs, compounding her connection issues.

Both students described painful class periods trying to keep up with their subjects. On days when Velasco gets kicked out of class repeatedly, she texts her friends to keep her updated, but their summaries are never as good as listening to the teacher.

Despite the challenges, both girls kept their grades up, applied to colleges and got in. Flores is leaning towards CSU Los Angeles, so that she can live at home while saving up for her own place. Velasco will head to UC Irvine, where she wants to study computer science.

But many of Velasco's peers couldn't muster the drive to get through a year of fragmented education, she said. She watched some friends "just completely give up."

Not fast enough

Tenth-grader Kiki Hall lives in a Southeast Fresno home where she often vies for bandwidth with as many as eight other people - four other K-12 students, her mom, her dad and two grandparents.

"Sometimes I just want to throw the computer across the room because it doesn't work," said Hall, who attends Roosevelt High School, which serves neighborhoods in which three in 10 households lacked broadband before the pandemic. Over 90% of students qualify for subsidized lunch.

The family's $43 per month AT&T broadband connection frequently buckles, kicking everyone out of remote classes at the same time. Once, Hall was disconnected from English class 17 times in 80 minutes. By the time the connection stabilized, her teacher was saying goodbye.

Broadband internet, as defined by the FCC, constitutes any connection exceeding 25 megabits per second, or Mbps, to download content online, and 3 Mbps for uploading. California agencies generally use a threshold of 6 Mbps download speed and 1 Mbps upload speed - the standard used in CalMatters' analysis.

"There is no one-size-fits all" speed for remote learning, said Greer Ahlquist, program director for EducationSuperHighway, a San Francisco-based nonprofit focused on bridging the K-12 digital divide. More people using a connection requires more bandwidth, as does streaming.

"Sometimes I just want to throw the computer across the room because it doesn't work."
Kiki Hall, fresno tenth-grader

The California School Board Association has urged a new FCC fund for K-12 connectivity to adopt a standard of 25 Mbps for download and 12 Mbps for upload for each student .

For Hall's family that would mean download speeds of at least 125 Mbps. Their current plan is 100. Hall's mom, Samantha Phillips, said she's thinking about switching to a faster $100 Xfinity plan when their AT&T contract ends in September. "We're just going to have to eat the bill," said Phillips who worked with disabled preschoolers before losing her job to the pandemic.

"If it's a necessity, it shouldn't be an unreasonable amount to afford internet so your child can attend school," Phillips said.

Remote school exhausts Hall, who wants to become a professional cosmetologist after college. She seesaws between lacking motivation to log onto another day of remote school riddled with Wi-Fi challenges, and reminding herself it's important to do her best. Sometimes she'll stay up until 2 a.m. to finish an assignment, only to wake up bleary-eyed the next morning for a class that she can't log into.

"It's so frustrating because I'm trying so hard to keep up with my grades enough as it is and these Wi-Fi issues do not help one bit," Hall said. Her grades in math, already her toughest subject, have dropped below C's.

Gov. Gavin Newsom set a goal last summer of universal access to broadband with download speeds of at least 100 Mbps.

According to CalMatters' analysis, those speeds are nearly universally available for households that attend suburban and urban schools, though they may not be able to afford it. But in rural school neighborhoods, just 68% have access to broadband with download speeds exceeding 100 Mbps.

Many students work with far less, whether through hotspots, discount plans or old technology.

Stan Santos, a splicing technician with AT&T and a representative for the Communications Workers of America union, has tested hotspots issued by school districts in multiple small farmworker communities in Fresno County. Most don't get above download speeds of 5 Mbps.

Driving across the Central Valley's vast expanses of farmland, sometimes he happens on a stand of trees and a cluster of concrete brick buildings and trailers that house the families who work in those fields. The concrete blocks cell signal so children will sit outside with hotspots to log onto classes.

Telecommunications companies often don't build out to these areas, Santos said. When they do, they provide copper-based Digital Subscriber Line connections, an older, slower broadband technology. On one splicing assignment, he visited a man living in a trailer in Coalinga, whose discount $10 per month DSL connection wasn't fast enough for both him and his son to go online at the same time, Santos said. So AT&T offered him a faster option, for $40 per month. Still DSL, it didn't top 6 Mbps download speed.

"...I can do nothing to help them."

Even before the pandemic, students without internet at home consistently scored lower in science, math and reading - something education leaders called the homework gap.

With the internet at their disposal, curious students are able to continue learning on their own, said Imperial County Superintendent of Schools Todd Finnell, while those without one "get behind in all areas of life."

Even after the pandemic, students who can log on at home will have a big advantage. The pandemic has accelerated the integration of technology into K-12 education. In a recent national survey, 15% of school districts said they will continue virtual schooling after the pandemic. Another 10% planned to continue hybrid learning.

Remote learning may be especially important in disaster-prone California. Before the pandemic, fire and smoke often interrupted school days in San Mateo County, said County Superintendent of Schools Nancy Magee.

Having online options makes schools resilient to future COVID-19 flare-ups, natural disasters, or even the next pandemic, so "you're not just sending kids home and canceling school for the day."

Like a nurse in a war zone: "They're bleeding out, but I'm behind the fence and I can do nothing to help them."
Modesto Teacher Jamey Olney

It's too early to quantify the ripple effects of distance learning on student learning, but early research shows alarming trends.

A January study of test scores in 18 California school districts found significant learning loss in both English and math, with low-income and English learner students falling behind faster than others.

Olney, the Modesto English teacher, says that for her middle schoolers, distance learning has included little learning.

She has students who never got a hotspot, or live in households with three families all sharing a single one. She teaches middle schoolers who live between multiple relative's homes, often accessing classes from a cell phone in a car, and migrant students unable to log into classes from Mexico. She can only guess at what's going on with the handful of students who log on for just 15 minutes each week with their cameras and mics turned off.

Sometimes she feels like a nurse trying to triage students in a warzone, she said. "They're bleeding out, but I'm behind the fence and I can do nothing to help them," Olney said.

One thing is clear: Having a quiet workplace and a stable internet connection makes a big difference. In December, a cohort of around a dozen of her highest-needs students began physically coming to the school to log onto Zoom classes in the morning and get one-on-one homework assistance in the afternoons.

Those who came to school improved their GPAs by at least 1.5 points within two months, on average. Among those who stayed home, most continued hovering around D's and F's.

But Olney warns that getting all kids internet access isn't nearly enough. Not for her students who watch over five younger siblings and cousins also doing distance learning while their parents hold down multiple jobs, nor for the students who log in from unconditioned trailers in 110 degree heat - yet "they continue to show up," Olney said.

"I think we have a lot to make up to these students."

Mario Ramírez Garcia, 10, leans back while his teacher addresses the class during distance learning on April 23, 2021. Mario says distance learning was "kind of weird in the beginning" but after more than a year of attending class from home, "now it feels normal." Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters

CalMatters data reporter Jeremia Kimelman contributed to this story.

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Millions of students can't afford broadband | CalMatters

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About twice a week, the $9.99 per month internet connection falters. It's often as Mario Ramírez finally wrangles his kids into their seats - the fourth-grader studies in the bedroom he shares with his 12 year-old sister, who studies in her parents' bedroom - in time for virtual class.

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Ideas for Improving Broadband Access in CA

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Ideas for Improving Broadband Access in CA

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by Su Jin Gatlin Jez

Executive Director

Topics: Affordability, Bachelor's Degrees, Community Colleges, Degree Attainment, Employment, Four-Year Colleges, Sub-Baccalaureate Degrees, Ed Equity, Adults, COVID-19, Workforce, Online Education

The stakes for access to broadband have never been higher and California has a clear opportunity to increase access for low-income college students.

As higher education has almost universally moved online, Californians without high speed internet are being left behind. And those without internet who are left behind are also those who most need internet-Californians without postsecondary degrees.

In past economic recessions, college enrollment has increased with unemployment. As workers find themselves without work and without the prospect of re-employment in the near future, they turn to community colleges to build their skills and knowledge to prepare for the labor market rebound. However, with this recession, community college enrollment has plummeted alongside employment. One key factor for this is likely the lack of fast, reliable internet they would need to take courses right now.

With the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, we hope that the end of this crisis is near, but not near enough for those Californians being left behind. The economic impact of this pandemic will likely be felt for years. It is unclear when educational institutions will open fully for in-person instruction-some estimates indicate that schools could be online through the 2022-2023 academic year, and California State University Chancellor Joseph I. Castro expects up to half of CSU courses to be online in the 2021-22 academic year.

Even after we recover from this crisis, the shift to online education has made its mark and both the CSU Chancellor and University of California President have indicated they expect their systems to increase online courses and program offerings. The California Community Colleges had already made significant commitments to online education with the development of its first completely online college, Calbright, and to building its California Virtual Campus Online Education Initiative, a portal to the online courses and programs offered by the other 115 community colleges. Broadband access is critical for both educational attainment and economic strength.

California must expand broadband access-and quickly. While the building out of broadband infrastructure is more time intensive, many Californians do not have broadband internet because they simply cannot afford it. This challenge the state can address quickly. The federal government has already set out the framework for a solution.

In December 2020, the federal government rolled out the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, which provides Pell Grant recipients access to a low-cost broadband plan, similar to the benefit that families who qualify for free or reduced priced lunch qualify for. While this new program supports millions of low-income students, California has the opportunity and imperative to build off this to ensure those low-income students left in the gaps of the federal play are able to access affordable internet.

California can bolster the federal program by using income thresholds for eligibility for the state financial aid program, Cal Grant, to qualify for subsidized internet. To be clear, we recommend focusing on Cal Grant income thresholds and not using other non-income requirements (such as age or GPA) to qualify for a subsidized broadband offer. The non-income requirements unnecessarily constrain those who could benefit.

Using Cal Grant eligibility also provides access to affordable offers to other groups excluded from the federal program, most notably undocumented students and the large number of low-income students who qualify but do not actually receive a grant. Moreover, the federal program will expire six months after COVID, however these students' need for broadband will remain even after the pandemic ends, as California higher education leaders stated that online education is here to stay. The state must make a commitment to affordable broadband now and in our post-pandemic future.

As always, the devil of these policies is in the details and this policy is no exception. Some of the key questions to be addressed include:

Who should subsidize low-income students? The federal government? The state government? Internet providers? A compromise between the three makes sense as they all stand to lose if we cannot figure out how to extend affordable internet to low-income students. While the federal program is paid for by the federal government, the federal government has resources and powers beyond that of the state. The federal government should keep some skin in the game, and the state and internet service providers should also play their role.

How are students enrolled in this benefit? Rather than a burdensome application or verification process, California should leverage information it already collects for Cal Grant eligibility to automatically extend offers to qualified low-income students.

Should students continue to have access to low-cost broadband after they leave postsecondary education, Particularly, students who are struggling to transition to well-paying jobs? We think yes. Given the importance of internet access for applying for jobs, conducting interviews, and digital communications generally, students' needs for high-speed, reliable internet does not cease the moment they toss their mortar board in the air at graduation. As the state invests hundreds of millions in aligning higher education and workforce, it must see successfully transitioning students from graduation to good jobs as part of postsecondary's role. As such, continuing access to affordable offers until a student is no longer low-income is a smart, long-term move that will help graduates better launch and strengthen an economy built on shared prosperity.

California has an opportunity to make good on its reputation of digital innovation, equity, and global postsecondary leadership by ensuring that low-income college students can afford high-speed, reliable internet. No longer is broadband access nice to have. California will not recover from this crisis if residents cannot turn to the institutions that drive our economic strength and improve individual's social mobility-higher education.

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California Should Expand Broadband Access. Here's How.

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by Su Jin Gatlin Jez Executive Director Topics: Affordability, Bachelor's Degrees, Community Colleges, Degree Attainment, Employment, Four-Year Colleges, Sub-Baccalaureate Degrees, Ed Equity, Adults, COVID-19, Workforce, Online Education The stakes for access to broadband have never been higher and California has a clear opportunity to increase access for low-income college students.

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Sonic partners with BUSD to provide Internet access to students

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Sonic partners with BUSD to provide Internet access to students

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Berkeley, CA, February 11, 2021 - The Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD), in collaboration with the Berkeley Public Schools Fund, today announced a partnership with local internet service provider Sonic to provide free high-speed fiber-optic internet access to all qualifying students for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year (through July 1, 2021). This offer from Sonic, with a value of up to $2.9 million, aims to get all Berkeley Public School students connected at home for distance learning. Sonic and BUSD are currently exploring opportunities to extend the free high-speed fiber-optic internet offer beyond July 1, 2021 to low-income families eligible to receive free or reduced lunch through the District.

Distance learning has made reliable high-speed internet connectivity essential for student households across America. While mobile hotspots are available, they are often in limited supply, and may not always be reliable enough. And in many cases, even low-income wireline internet service plans are unaffordable for families, or too slow for distance learning.

To meet this need locally, Berkeley Unified School District, collaborating with the Berkeley Public Schools Fund, has partnered with Sonic to provide free fiber-optic gigabit (1000Mbps) internet access to all student households not currently connected on Sonic's service. The offer begins immediately.

Sonic's fiber-optic network provides fast, reliable high-speed internet access for students and families. This symmetric Gigabit Fiber Internet at up to 1000Mbps will improve the distance learning experience for students while saving all Berkeley Unified School District families the cost of internet access for the remainder of the school year.

"As a community-based business, Sonic is thrilled to work with Berkeley Unified and the Schools Fund to address the lack of affordable connectivity that impacts student learning here in Berkeley," said Dane Jasper, CEO and Co-Founder Sonic.

Sonic will provide free fiber internet service for all BUSD student families that are not already connected with Sonic through July 1, 2021. A BUSD student household may qualify if:

Their location is served by Sonic Fiber

They have at least one BUSD student in grades Pre-K-12, living at home

They are not a current Sonic internet customer

BUSD families can sign up for this program by visiting sonic.com/busd or calling 510-858-7848.
"We're thrilled to work with the Berkeley Public Schools Fund and to partner with Sonic to help solve connectivity challenges our families are facing-especially our most vulnerable families," said BUSD Superintendent Brent Stephens. "This offer from Sonic has come at a time when many in our school community have lost work or are experiencing diminished incomes due to the pandemic."
Contacts
Berkeley Unified: Trish McDermott, trishmcdermott@berkeley.net 510.631.1463

Berkeley Public Schools Fund: Erin Rhoades, erinrhoades@berkeley.net 510.551.4287

Sonic Press Inquiries: pr@sonic.com , Kinderlin Codding 707.237.2458

About Sonic For over 26 years, Sonic has been committed to changing the way people think about their internet. We stand up in support of an open and fair internet, set a refreshingly-high standard for customer care, and are committed to building a fiber-optic network through the Bay Area and beyond. We want everyone to have access to fast and affordable connectivity with member-focused policies. Named California's fastest ISP in 2020, we're not slowing down anytime soon: You can see if your address is eligible for service by visiting sonic.com.

About Berkeley Unified School DistrictBerkeley Unified School District (BUSD) www.berkeleyschools.net is responsible for educating more than 9,400 students in 11 public elementary schools, 3 middle schools, one comprehensive high school, and an alternative high school. In addition, the district has 3 preschool facilities and an Adult School. Since the founding of the University of California, Berkeley in 1868 and the establishment of Berkeley's first high school in 1879, Berkeley's community has been proud to be a leader in public education. In 1968, BUSD was the nation's first school district to desegregate without a court order. With a tradition of excellence rooted in a vibrant community, Berkeley Unified alumni have become national and international leaders in business, civic society, politics, academia, sports and the arts. Students and staff in Berkeley Unified come from a wide variety of ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, surrounded by one of the most intellectually and culturally rich regions in the United States.
About Berkeley Public Schools Fund
The Berkeley Public Schools Fund www.berkeleypublicschoolsfund.org supports teaching and learning in BUSD through grant opportunities for teachers and a volunteer program that trains community members to support student learning. During COVID, the Schools Fund has been active in addressing the Digital Divide, ensuring that students can access distance learning.
__________________________________________________________________________________ Berkeley Unified School District se Une a Sonic para Ofrecer internet de Fibra-Óptica Gratuito en los Hogares de los Estudiantes
Berkeley, CA, febrero 10, 2021 - Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD), en colaboración con Berkeley Public Schools Fund, anunciaron el día de hoy la asociación con el proveedor local de servicio de internet Sonic para brindar acceso al internet de alta velocidad y tecnología de fibra-óptica a los estudiantes que califiquen, durante el resto del año escolar 2020-21 (hasta el 1 de julio, 2021). Esta oferta de Sonic, con un valor de hasta $2.9 millones, tiene como objetivo lograr que todos los estudiantes en las escuelas públicas en Berkeley tengan una conexión en sus hogares para el aprendizaje a distancia (distance learning). Actualmente Sonic y BUSD están explorando oportunidades para extender la oferta de internet de alta velocidad y tecnología de fibra-óptica más allá del 1 de julio, 2021 a familias de bajos recursos que sean elegibles para recibir almuerzos gratuitos o a precio reducido a través del distrito.

Distance learning ha logrado que la conectividad de internet de alta velocidad sea esencial para los hogares de los estudiantes a través del país. A pesar de que los "hotspots" móviles están disponibles, frecuentemente tienen una disponibilidad limitadas y puede que no sean lo suficientemente seguros. Y en muchos casos, incluso los planes de servicio de Internet por cable para las familias de bajos ingresos son inaccesibles para las familias, o demasiado lentos para el distance learning.

Para satisfacer esta necesidad a nivel local, Berkeley Unified School District, en colaboración con el Berkeley Public Schools Fund, se han asociado con Sonic para ofrecer servicio de internet con tecnología de fibra-óptica de un gigabit (1000 Megabits por segundo) gratuito para todos los hogares de estudiantes que aún no tengan actualmente servicio por medio de Sonic. Esta oferta comienza inmediatamente.

La red de tecnología de fibra-óptica de Sonic ofrece acceso al internet de alta velocidad con rapidez y seguridad para estudiantes y familias. Este Internet simétrico Gigabit Fiber con velocidades de hasta 1000Mbps mejorará la experiencia del distance learning para los estudiantes mientras todas las familias de Berkeley Unified School District se ahorran el costo de un servicio de internet durante el resto del año escolar.

"Como negocio con base en la comunidad, Sonic está encantado de trabajar con Berkeley Unified y el Schools Fund para afrontar la falta de conectividad accesible la cual impacta el aprendizaje de los estudiantes aquí en Berkeley", mencionó Dane Jasper, CEO y cofundador de Sonic.

Sonic proporcionará servicio gratuito de internet con tecnología de fibra-óptica a las familias de estudiantes de BUSD que aún no tengan servicio con Sonic hasta el 1 de julio, 2021. Familias de estudiantes de BUSD pueden calificar si:

Su ubicación se encuentra donde Sonic Fiber ofrece su servicio

Tiene por lo menos un estudiante en BUSD en grados Pre-K-12, viviendo en el hogar

No sean clientes actuales de internet con Sonic

Las familias de BUSD pueden solicitar este programa visitando sonic.com/busd o comunicándose al 510-858-7848.
"Estamos encantados de trabajar con Berkeley Public Schools Fund y de asociarnos con Sonic para ayudar a resolver los retos de conectividad que enfrentan nuestras familias - especialmente nuestras familias más vulnerables", mencionó Brent Stephens, Superintendente de BUSD. "Esta oferta de Sonic llegó a un momento donde muchos en nuestra comunidad escolar han perdido empleo o están enfrentando ingresos disminuidos debido a la pandemia."

Acerca de Sonic Durante más de 26 años, Sonic se ha comprometido a cambiar la forma en que la gente piensa acerca de su internet. Promovemos un Internet abierto y justo, establecemos un nivel de atención al cliente innovador y refrescante y nos comprometemos a construir una red de fibra-óptica a través del Área de la Bahía y más allá. Deseamos que todos tengan acceso a una conectividad rápida y económica con políticas enfocadas a los miembros. Nombrado como el proveedor de internet más rápido en California en el 2020, no vamos a disminuir nuestro ritmo en ningún momento: Usted puede ver si su domicilio es elegible para el servicio visitando sonic.com.

Acerca de Berkeley Unified School District Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) www.berkeleyschools.net es responsable de educar a más de 9,4000 estudiantes en 11 escuelas primarias públicas, 3 escuelas secundarias, una escuela preparatoria integral, y una escuela preparatoria alternativa. Además, el distrito cuenta con 3 instalaciones preescolares, y una Escuela para Adultos. Desde la fundación de la Universidad de California, Berkeley en 1868 y el establecimiento de la primera escuela preparatoria en Berkeley en 1879, la comunidad de Berkeley orgullosamente ha sido líder en la educación pública. En 1968, BUSD fue el primer distrito escolar en la nación en eliminar la segregación sin orden judicial. Con tradición de excelencia enraizada en una comunidad vibrante, los alumnos de Berkeley Unified se han convertido en líderes nacionales e internacionales en negocios, política, sociedad civil, academia, deportes y arte. Los estudiantes y el personal docente de Berkeley Unified provienen de distintos antecedentes étnicos y socioeconómicos, rodeado por una de las regiones más intelectuales y ricas culturalmente en los Estados Unidos.

Acerca de Berkeley Public Schools Fund El Berkeley Public Schools Fund www.berkeleypublicschoolsfund.org respalda la enseñanza y el aprendizaje en BUSD a través de oportunidades otorgando becas para los maestros y un programa de voluntarios que entrena a los miembros de la comunidad a respaldar el aprendizaje estudiantil. Durante COVID, el Schools Fund ha estado activo enfrentando la brecha digital, para asegurarse que los estudiantes puedan tener acceso al distance learning.

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Sonic To Offer Free Gigabit Fiber Internet to BUSD Student Households / Sonic ofrecerá Internet de fibra óptica gratis en los hogares de estudiantes de BUSD | Berkeley Unified School District

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Berkeley, CA, February 11, 2021 - The Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD), in collaboration with the Berkeley Public Schools Fund, today announced a partnership with local internet service provider Sonic to provide free high-speed fiber-optic internet access to all qualifying students for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year (through July 1, 2021).

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Survey our deanery members to understand vis a vis the parishes in our deanery, how big is the problem in your congregation, who has connection, who does not, is the issue connectivity or is the problem having the hardware or both?