Partnering for Wireless Connections

The federal government’s financial commitment to broadband access — $65 billion in last year’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — offers school districts an unprecedented chance to push universal broadband access out to underserved and unconnected communities.

The challenge is daunting. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in spring 2020, an estimated 17 million schoolchildren in the United States lived in households that lacked broadband internet access. Millions of children went with little to no instruction as schools shifted to remote learning, a significant learning loss currently being reflected in academic achievement scores.