Four southern Indiana programs granted $250K for digital equity initiatives
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Southern Indiana not-for-profit Regional Opportunity Initiatives Inc. is awarding nearly $250,000 to four local organizations seeking to improve digital equity.
The total grant award of $241,668 split among the four groups will support projects ranging from the distribution of wireless hotspots to digital literacy course offerings.
Regional Opportunity Initiatives launched the grant fund called Digital Towns after partnering with the Purdue Center for Regional Development to evaluate digital infrastructure in the Indiana Uplands region.
The Digital Towns model was adopted using a framework developed in Ireland to integrate digital information in all aspects of life. Successful projects funded by the Digital Towns grant addressed household connectivity, business opportunity and public service, according to ROI.
“The COVID public health emergency clearly showed that communities with inadequate connectivity and digital resources struggled to implement mitigation strategies such as e-learning and remote work,” ROI Vice President of Economic and Community Development Lisa Abbott said in a news release. “It has also become clear that digital inclusion strategies must be interwoven into community development efforts to allow individuals and businesses to thrive in our increasingly digitized society and economy.”
The projects receiving funding from Digital Towns are:
- Crawford County Public Access Wi-Fi Equity Program: A collaboration between Crawford County schools, libraries and governments, this program will ensure residents without internet are not more than 15 minutes from a public access location. The grant will pay for installation, service and maintenance for two years. Partner Mainstream Fiber will also cover costs during that time.
- Washington County Community Digital Literacy Classes and Hotspots: A partnership between local schools, governments and Ivy Tech Community College, this program will offer free and discounted digital literacy classes. Public Wi-Fi will also be installed throughout Washington County.
- Owen County Connect Program: The Owen County Chamber of Commerce will develop a fiber garden near its new building in Spencer. The chamber will also offer training programs in partnership with Ivy Tech.
- Ivy Tech Foundation Digital Hope+ Program: Ivy Tech Bloomington and the IU Kelley School of Business will partner to offer digital literacy training to residents, small businesses, nonprofits and local governments across the 11-county Indiana Uplands region.
ROI declined to specify how much funding each program received.
More information about Regional Opportunity Initiatives’ digital inclusion efforts can be found by clicking here.