The FCC on Monday dedicated another $421 million to the Emergency Connectivity Fund, bringing total program commitments to over $3.05 billion. The money is supporting schools and libraries in all 50 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia. It can be used to support off-campus learning, such as nightly homework and virtual learning, as schools and libraries continue to respond to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“Far too many students lack the connections they need to get online and stay connected to their teachers. Thankfully, Congress gave us the tools through this program to make a real difference in our communities as we work to close the homework gap and help schools and libraries engage in online learning,” said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel.
To-date, the program has committed to supporting 6,954 schools, 613 libraries, and 80 groups, which are approved to receive over 6.8 million connected devices and over 3.5 million broadband connections. With these additional commitments, the Commission says it’s met its goal of responding to 70 percent of all applications within 100 days of the closing of the first filing window.
Find more details about which schools and libraries will receive funding here. A state-by-state breakdown of total committed money is here. The program is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company, with oversight from and under rules unanimously adopted by the FCC.
Reader Interactions