FCC
WASHINGTON — The Federal Communications Commission today announced it is committing over $40 million in a new funding round through the Emergency Connectivity Program, which provides digital services for students in communities across the country. Today’s funding commitments support applications from the third application window, benefiting approximately 100,000 students across the country, including students in Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Washington, and Wisconsin.
“This program has equipped millions of students with the digital tools they need for after-school homework and connecting with teachers,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. “Today’s funding round is another step in our ongoing work to close the Homework Gap.”
The Emergency Connectivity Program, which launched in 2021, has provided schools and libraries three different “application windows” for schools and libraries to apply for support. Today’s announcement will fund applications from the third application window that will support over 275 schools, 15 libraries, and 5 consortia.
The funding can be used to support off-campus learning, such as nightly homework, to ensure
students across the country have the necessary support to keep up with their education. To date, the program has provided support to approximately 10,000 schools, 1,000 libraries, and 100 consortia, and providing over 12 million connected devices and over 8 million broadband connections. Of the approximately $6.5 billion in funding commitments approved to date, approximately $4.14 billion is supporting applications from Window 1; $833 million from Window 2; and $1.57 billion from Window 3.
More details about which schools and libraries have received funding commitments can be found at https://www.fcc.gov/emergency-connectivity-fund.