$20 million federal grant awarded to Pennsylvania to bridge the digital divide across the commonwealth

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Local recreation centers, libraries and workforce centers will be among those awarded $20 million to use for digital connectivity projects across Pennsylvania. The federal funds will provide Wi-Fi and technological resources to neighbors in the community.

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker was joined in Philadelphia by Stephen Benjamin, former mayor of Columbia, South Carolina, now White House director for the Office of Public Engagement, and state lawmakers to announce how the funds will be used to help bridge the digital divide in Pa.

“What most of us took for granted pre pre-pandemic, [we] realized that digital infrastructure access to the internet was now 21st-century infrastructure. We all had to have it,” said Benjamin.

Benjamin, who attended the event at the Martin Luther King Recreation Center in North Philly on Friday, said the facility is one example of places that will benefit from the extra funds.

He spoke with WHYY News about the struggles many across the country face due to lack of Wi-Fi and technological resources.

“There’s still a significant number of households that do not have access to full-size devices. It’s very difficult to write a paper for school or apply for a job with a handheld phone, so making sure tablets and laptops are available to families are the other part of the puzzle. Also, making sure people have affordable access to the internet,” Benjamin said.

Under the new plan, rec centers similar to MLK could receive funds to purchase additional laptops and computers for neighbors to use for free.

Devices purchased with the funds will be available for use in home or public spaces, such as schools and libraries, through loan programs. The facilities will also be able to use the funds to provide digital literacy training for the community.

“It allows people working with libraries, working with workforce development centers, working with parks and rec centers to get full devices that are accessible to them to make sure they can live up to their god-given potential,” said Benjamin.

The funds will come from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Capital Projects Fund, which is part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, and will be used to support Pennsylvania’s Digital Access Opportunity Grant program. That program will partner with community anchor institutions, including recreation centers, libraries and other locations that can provide neighbors access to laptops, tablets, desktop computers and Wi-Fi devices throughout the commonwealth.

Benjamin said there is a significant number of households nationwide without access to computers, laptops and Wi-Fi, and reported that millions of Americans across the country have benefitted from the president’s connectivity plan so far.

“The affordable connectivity plan, which led to 23 million Americans, almost 800,000 of them here in Pennsylvania, have access to the internet and people taking advantage of this,” said Benjamin.

Pennsylvania estimates approximately 12,000 individuals across the commonwealth will benefit annually.