‘Big burden’ for schools trying to give kids internet access
Associated PressWhen the coronavirus pandemic shut down schools, educators had to figure out how to get kids online. Cherelle Bilal said her free Chicago Connected internet service was crucial to helping her four kids actually attend school, even though they still struggle with staying focused in a virtual classroom. Boulder Valley School District in Colorado started a wireless network with a local internet company three years ago, putting antennas on top of schools and giving nearby low-income students free internet; 6,000 are eligible based on income. For schools to provide internet to students at home invites fraud and waste, said George Ford, economist of the Phoenix Center, a think tank that opposes efforts by cities to make their own broadband networks. In Calipatria, one of its smaller cities, City Council member Hector Cervantes pays $67 a month for AT&T internet that isn’t fast enough to qualify as broadband and that he knows “not to mess with” when his 16-year-old daughter and wife need it for school and work, lest they get kicked off.
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A digital divide haunts schools adapting to virus hurdles
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