Kaptivate

Five Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) received federal broadband funding. Each faced different terrain: different communities, different levels of trust, different local economies. So each built something different. This is what they built, and what happened. Across all five sites, we found the same underlying logic model at work: local context shaping decisions about infrastructure delivery, adoption strategy, and economic pathway, and those decisions galvanizing regional impacts.

Broadband is more than a utility; it’s a prerequisite for economic mobility. Without reliable internet, people in rural and underserved communities have increasingly limited options for education, employment, healthcare, and civic life. Connectivity on its own is just a start. Adoption is the true driver of income gains, employment access, and entrepreneurial success.