Libraries have traditionally been vital for fostering community connections and provide necessary resources. More funds will be available to Maryland’s libraries and schools to improve connectivity and reduce the digital gap.
Leaders from Baltimore, the state, and the federal government emphasized the initiatives on Monday to increase Marylanders’ access to the internet. Recently, the FCC enacted new regulations that will help institutions offer reasonably priced internet access.
According to U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, “having access to the internet is as important as having electricity in the 20th century. Our workers need it to develop skills, people need it to connect with healthcare providers, entrepreneurs need it to help sustain small businesses and students need it to learn”
Schools and libraries will now be able to provide more Wi-Fi hotspots to students and community members thanks to increased funding.
“It serves as an important piece of the puzzle, a source of funding that will help provide more access to more people,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott stated.
The $7 billion Emergency Connectivity Fund program supplied devices to teachers and kids so they could access the internet at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Now as the pandemic fades, what hasn’t faded is that we still have this digital divide,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcell stated.
According to Rosenworcell, thousands of Marylanders are left without dependable internet service because the emergency connectivity grant has ended. Schools and libraries keep filling in the blanks.
“In my area, I don’t have Wi-Fi,” Baltimore resident Sharon Johnson stated. “(Library) is the only place I get Wi-Fi from.”
Ronald Mott, a resident of Baltimore, stated that although he had home internet, it frequently fades in and out.
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“If you have two or three people on a laptop doing homework, that’s a big draw, and it narrows, then someone has to wait,” Mott stated.
In the fall, applications for government funds totaling more than $4 million will be open to schools and libraries.
“Setting our young people and communities up to succeed is important,” Mayor Scott stated. “To ensure that Baltimore as a whole can overcome the legacy of intentional disinvestment that far too many experience in our city.”
