Wi-Fi and technology are coming to downtown schools to help address the digital divide in Arizona, the Phoenix City Council announced Tuesday at their policy session.
In May, the Phoenix City Council was allocated $2 million from the Coronavirus Relief Fund in order to aid distanced learning and Wi-Fi across the valley.
The money was intended to help solve the digital divide, which is the “growing gap between the underprivileged members of society, especially the poor, rural, elderly, and handicapped portion of the population who do not have access to computers or the internet” and the wealthy or privileged Americans with access, according to Stanford University.
Christine Mackay, the Phoenix community and economic development director, said that the Phoenix City Council’s ultimate goal is to use the funds they received to permanently solve the digital divide in a cost-efficient manner.
“I see national media of children sitting in fast-food parking lots or outside their school buildings trying to accomplish their schoolwork,” Mackay said. “As a mother and an economic developer, that troubles me.”
During the summer, the Phoenix City Council successfully provided 800 tablets to families who live in public housing. They also gave those families free access to a Wi-Fi hotspot for two years in order to ensure that students could connect digitally to schools.
Mackay said that new Wi-Fi points were also installed on the exterior walls and rooftops of libraries and community centers across Phoenix so that students could get online access outside for educational purposes only.
According to Phoenix City Council, the digital divide solution will provide free Wi-Fi and digital access to families who live in densely populated areas. This includes a connection to already existing school internet contentions.
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Mackay said that phase one of the digital divide solution is set to cover all 250 square miles of downtown’s Phoenix Union High School District. Downtown’s Phoenix Elementary School District and Phoenix College will also be partnering with Phoenix City Council to solve the digital divide.
Currently, a micro-proof of concept is being tested on the Phoenix College campus. As of now, they’ve reported back thrilled that the connectivity is extremely strong and better than they anticipated.
Dr. Chad Gestson, superintendent of Phoenix Union, shared his thoughts about why the digital divide solution is important to Phoenix.
“This is an extremely important initiative that lives far beyond just out school districts,” Gestson said. “This is about our city. It’s about our economy and about the future of many of our families out here.”
Contact the reporter at mlizak@asu.edu.
