In a meeting with the FCC on January 6, several groups, including SHLB and CoSN, expressed their support for reform of the FCC’s Lifeline program to include broadband services for low-income individuals. Representatives also discussed the potential for anchor institutions, such as schools and libraries, to aggregate Lifeline support within their communities as a potential means of providing students with off-campus connectivity, i.e. bridging the “homework gap”.
A recent report published by the Pew Research Center noted that the percentage of homes with broadband Internet access in America has plateaued. The report cites the monthly cost of these services as the most significant reason for non-adoption of high-speed Internet at home.
The absence of broadband Internet access at home is of growing concern to school districts who have adopted digital curriculum and provided students with digital learning devices, only to discover that their students have limited use of these devices after school hours.
