The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that as part of its efforts to close the homework gap it has allocated more than $24 million in a new funding round for the Emergency Connectivity Fund Program (ECP), which provides digital services for students across the country.
Through the ECP, the FCC has provided schools and libraries with three different “application windows” to apply for support. This latest round of funding supports applications from all three application windows. The latest round of funding will benefit roughly 45,000 across the country, including students in Alaska, Arizona, California, Minnesota, New York, Oklahoma, and Texas. The funding will go to approximately 55 schools, five libraries, and one consortium.
“We are committed to making sure all our kids have the digital tools they need to connect with their teachers and online homework,” said FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel. “This program is an important step toward meeting that goal, and builds on our progress to close the Homework Gap.”
To date, the program has provided support to approximately 11,000 schools, 1,000 libraries, and 100 consortia, and provided nearly 13 million connected devices and over 8 million broadband connections.
