The Federal Communications Commission announced the 2020 winners of the Chairman's Awards for Advancements in Accessibility (Chairman’s AAA). This FCC program, which began in 2011, is focused on improving access to telecommunications and technology for people with disabilities. The award winners for 2020 are:
31% of Black households do not have high-speed home broadband, affecting Black school-aged children and their ability to complete homework assignments at a disproportionate rate.
It’s become clear to teachers, administrators, and community members that the digital divide is too big for schools to bridge on their own. The infrastructure needed to teach rural students remotely would require systemic change — it would require government assistance. Months into the pandemic, educators say they still don’t have what they need.
Melissa Lawson does whatever she can to ensure her children have a great education. The single mom of three juggles working as a licensed cosmetologist, a Zumba instructor and a school’s lunch and recess monitor while ensuring she has the money to keep her children at Sister Thea Bowman Catholic School and Gibault Catholic High School. But now that Lawson’s children are remote learning this school year, she’s had to double her efforts because she can’t afford internet service in her home. She leaves her phone with her kids while she goes to work so they can use her hotspot for school.
Next Century Cities wants the governor to bring the California legislature back for a special session to consider a broadband bill, SB1130. Under current law, California's broadband deployment plan is that no later than Dec. 31, 2022, the state will approve funding for infrastructure projects "that will provide broadband access to no less than 98% of California households." The new law would stretch that timeline by two years, but up the ante on what broadband must be deployed. "[N]o later than Dec.
FCC's October agenda
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