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CONNECTED TECH KITS
The Digital Divide in the Age of COVID-19
Before COVID-19, nearly 27 million Americans, disproportionately Black and Brown, lacked access to the Internet. This number has soared in tandem with job losses stemming from the pandemic and the consequent economic recession. The “new normal” mandates increased work and schooling from home, presenting enormous challenges for those without digital resources, computers, and broadband connections.
As COVID-19 spread in early spring 2020, quarantine measures forced LWB US’ Wash and Learn Initiative (WALI) resources and in-person programming to shut down temporarily. Facing these new constraints, in April 2020, LWB US pivoted towards providing ConnectED Technology Kits to families previously engaged with the WALI laundromats who lacked access to at-home internet and digital devices.
Our Solution: ConnectED Technology Kits
The ConnectED Technology Kit program provides low-income, off-line families with safe, at-home access to the internet and technology. The kits — backpacks equipped with a laptop, mobile hotspot, one year of internet connection, and curated educational resources — are distributed through laundromats, public gardens, food banks, and community centers.
Hundreds of families in two states and the island of Puerto Rico have already benefited from this program. However, millions more lack computers and the internet access necessary to work from home or continue their children’s online education. Given these pressing needs, LWB US continues to expand our distribution of ConnectED Tech Kits with the support of our many partners and sponsors — including Google Fiber and the San Antonio Area Foundation in San Antonio, Amerigroup and the Baltimore City Department of Planning in Baltimore, and Sony in Puerto Rico. LWB US also partners with Wash and Learn Initiative (WALI) laundromats, community gardens, churches, food banks, and community associations to distribute ConnectED Kits to families in need. See Our Partners page for a full list of our sponsors and partners.
Testimonials
Alazaih, one of our recipients in San Antonio, shared that she was able to get a job online because of the laptop she received through the ConnectED Technology Kit program.
“My niece is in college and was able to finish her work on time once the pandemic hit and everything transitioned online”
– Anonymous Recipient, Baltimore MD
“My mom was so happy to get me a computer for free, because we [had] looked for a good computer, but they were too much money… We picked up the kit on a Saturday and I have used it all summer for both of my coding camps, and my summer school camp. I like that I have the hot spot too because even if we are not at home and in the car I can still use my Chromebook, and I was able to join my summer camp meeting even though we were driving in the car…”
– Anonymous Recipient, Baltimore MD
Locations:
Baltimore
As of 2020, 40 percent of Baltimore households were without broadband access. COVID-19 exacerbates the challenges of these households on the wrong side of the digital divide. The ConnectED Technology Kit program in Baltimore City serves residents, mostly people of color, who remain without computers or internet access.
Distribution of these kits is need-based and focuses on residents who live near or around Baltimore Wash and Learn Initiative (WALI) laundromats as well as at-risk youth who fall outside the scope of Baltimore City Public Schools. The majority of COVID-19 response activities are centered around LWB US’ Wash and Learn Initiative (WALI) laundromats in the following neighborhoods and zip codes in Baltimore: Central Park Heights (21215), Mount Clare (21213), Irvington (21229), and Highlandtown (21224), all predominantly Black communities with a per capita annual income below $25,000.
San Antonio
COVID-19 has also deepened the existing digital divide in San Antonio. With the support of Goodwill’s Technology Access Program (TAP), LWB US is able to provide refurbished laptops and webcams in our ConnectED kits to San Antonio residents. We have also partnered with Mobile Beacon to include hotspots in the kits for families and individuals who do not have at-home access to the internet. With the Ruth Mini Mobile Library, we are able to include books in each kit. Google Fiber and the San Antonio Area Foundation sponsor our hardware needs.
In March 2020, LWB US began to distribute ConnectED Tech Kits to low and moderate income residents in Bexar County. The program provides kits to residents in the 78228 and 78251 zip codes who lack computers and at-home internet access. The kits are distributed at our WALI laundromat sites, food banks, and community associations throughout San Antonio.
Puerto Rico
In September 2020, LWB US began to distribute its ConnectED Tech Kits to the community in Loíza. In this municipality, over 35% of households do not have access to the internet nor do they have access to an at-home computing device. LWB US is distributing kits to ensure that students in Loíza — long considered a “forgotten corner” of the island — are able to successfully learn virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic.
LWB US partnered with Link Puerto Rico, a local nonprofit organization that educates, empowers, and supports communities in STEM through education and co-creation, for their technical expertise and assistance with logistical arrangements. LWB US is also working with Camera Mundi, a local provider of refurbished computers, in order to provide low-cost, high-quality equipment to ConnectED Kit recipients.