Our world is proving increasingly connected, but many struggle to either obtain affordable internet access or to incorporate it effectively in their everyday lives. Digital navigators – guides and teachers, often volunteers – step in to help communities access and use affordable, reliable broadband service in an effort to close the digital divide. Two weeks ago, more than a dozen such digital navigators from 14 states visited Capitol Hill, attending over 60 meetings with Offices representing 18 states to demonstrate the vital importance of their work to lawmakers. Multiple organizations supported these fly-ins, including the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA), Free Press, New America’s Open Technology Institute, Common Sense, Media Justice, and Public Knowledge. Both the digital navigators and the public interest groups supporting them urged policymakers to work with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to distribute grant funds made available through the Digital Equity Act’s Digital Equity Competitive Grant as soon as possible. This program was created to ensure covered populations, including veterans, seniors, low-income families, and more, have the tools and skills needed to safely navigate the internet to empower themselves and their communities.
During this “Hill Day,” Public Knowledge played a key role in training digital navigators and arranging meetings with U.S. House and Senate offices, as well as with Federal Communications Commission key staff, to provide digital navigators opportunities to speak directly with their representatives in Congress and the people who deploy telecommunications policy nationwide.
Our fly-in participants represented organizations with digital navigators from 14 states: Alaska, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Washington. These participants are deeply involved in their communities and remain committed to connecting unserved or underserved community members to the internet and digital tools they need to participate in life. This could mean connecting children to the internet to complete their homework through computers on mobile school bus libraries; teaching an elderly woman how to shop online to get essentials delivered to her door without the difficulty of leaving the house; helping a disabled veteran connect to virtual VA appointments for therapy; providing non-English speakers tools to learn how to read and write in English; or even using familiar games like Bingo to encourage seniors with fixed incomes to engage in “learn to earn” programs to learn new digital skills and earn their own devices in the process. Resources run thin for these programs, but the Digital Equity Act was passed to provide critical funding opportunities to close digital skills gaps and build digital literacy across the country.
The Digital Equity Act was passed as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), and it provides more than $2.75 billion to promote digital equity and inclusion through three grant programs:
- The State Digital Equity Planning Grant, providing states with the funds necessary to develop Digital Equity Plans;
- The State Digital Equity Capacity Grant, providing states with funds to put their Digital Equity Plans into action; and
- The Digital Equity Competitive Grant, providing community support organizations the opportunity to receive funds to help ensure that communities have the access and skills necessary to use the internet and complement activities funded by the Capacity Grant program.
As described by the NTIA, these grant programs “aim to ensure that all people and communities have the skills, technology, and capacity needed to reap the full benefits of our digital economy.” Each digital navigator represented in the Hill Day meetings has been recommended for the award of a Competitive Grant, but has not yet received the funding desperately needed to continue this impactful work.
These Hill meetings provided an opportunity to inquire about the status of these grants and address several other questions about the future of digital equity. Digital navigators gave concrete examples of what programming and services are possible through the crucial funds from the Digital Equity Act. They urged Congress to work closely with the NTIA and the NIST to move the Competitive Grant Program along, especially as the funds are already approved by Congress through the passage of the IIJA, and any further delay would lead to unnecessary hardship for communities who have proven they need this support.
During these meetings, digital navigators reemphasized the connections between IIJA’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program and the Digital Equity Act, which were designed to work together on a complementary basis. Furthermore, they discussed how affordability is still a major barrier to broadband adoption, especially due to the now-expired Affordable Connectivity Program, or ACP. Digital navigators also described the challenges their communities now face due to the lapse in funding and described how support mechanisms like the ACP through a reformed Universal Service Fund will improve the economic and social well-being for millions of households across the nation.
The digital navigators that Public Knowledge staff joined on the Hill embody what should be modeled by policymakers. They are dedicated problem-solvers who work to ensure people are empowered with knowledge about our increasingly digital world. They are the backbone of their communities and it is clear that increased support for the digital inclusion ecosystem will transform the country for the better. It is more important than ever that policymakers work as diligently as our digital navigators to extend affordable, reliable broadband, devices, and digital skills to all communities.
By following their example, you can also make an impact by reaching out to your representatives to discuss how supporting digital equity is important to you and your community.
You can read the following from Public Knowledge to learn more about these important issues:
- New Orders are Scrubbing the Internet of Equity, Dismantling Transparency, and Making it Harder To Implement Bipartisan Law by Peter Gregory
- How To Build a Connected Future: Prioritizing Accuracy, Affordability, and Workforce Development by Alisa Valentin
- A Sustainable Path Toward Digital Equity Must Prioritize Broadband Affordability Assistance by Alisa Valentin
- The Critical Role of the Affordable Connectivity Program in Closing the Digital Divide by L Harriman
- Biased Oversight Should Not Undermine Closing the Digital Divide by Alisa Valentin
And learn more about the digital navigators Public Knowledge joined for legislative fly-ins below:
“I want to be a bridge to help people feel comfortable with technology. It’s about listening, respecting, and making sure their voices are heard.” Learn how Mikhail Sundust and Tyler Smith of Digital Connect Initiative in Gila River Indian Community have shaped their community “through tailored solutions, dedicated outreach, and a deep understanding of the community, [are] shaping a future where technology serves the people—and not the other way around” in Building a Digital Ecosystem in Gila River Through Connection and Trust by Kristi Zappie-Ferradino.
“Through this program I have more hope and a way better understanding of computers and the program software that will help me drastically in the profession I want in the future.” Read how Ashley Smith, a digital navigator at SOAR in Kentucky, provides a “lifeline for Eastern Kentuckians, offering education, opportunity, and confidence to those who need it most. With more partnerships and funding secured, SOAR’s Digital Navigator program is set to expand and continue breaking down digital barriers in the Appalachian region—one person, one skill, and one connection at a time” in How Digital Skills Are Opening Doors for Eastern Kentuckians by Kristi Zappie-Ferradino.
“The best part is that we’re using our native language to teach our community—it helps them truly understand what they’re learning.” See how Angela Diahkah, Program Director at Jemez Pueblo Tribal Network, is bridging the digital divide not just through technology but also through people in her community by “combining cultural understanding with technical expertise to empower [the] community to thrive in the digital world without losing touch with their traditions” in Building Digital Skills for the Pueblo of Jemez: Respecting Tradition While Embracing Technology by Kristenn Fortson.
“This program is about more than digital skills; it’s about empowering individuals and strengthening communities.” Hear how Megan Waiters, the lead Digital Navigator for the Community Service Programs of West Alabama, reflects on her work: “‘I knew that libraries would be a good place to build a digital navigator program across ten counties because they are trusted community resource hubs for people to come in and receive hands-on support” in Transforming Lives Through Digital Skills: A Story of Libraries, Laptops, and Lifelong Learning by Kristenn Fortson.