Welcome Southern California Educators!

 

The California Emerging Technology Fund is partnering with schools serving low-income students, to help those students and their families learn more about Affordable/Reduced-Cost Internet Offers. 

Some are available for as little as $10 a month!

We know you are keenly aware of the Homework Gap and the Opportunity Gap; cruel results of the Digital Divide between students who have Home Internet access and those who do not.  These gaps impact low-income and rural area students, making it difficult to complete homework assignments and take advantage of other online opportunities.  Lack of Home Internet connectivity impacts school-parent communication and makes it difficult for parents to support their children academically.

As educators you have the ability to provide information that is reliable, vendor neutral and useful to your students and their families.

Here’s How:

STEP ONE:

Open the Educators Toolkit. It includes graphics and informational flyers to inform parents of reduced-cost Internet offers.  Below is an explanation of everything in the Educators Toolkit:

The Internet Informant provides in-depth details for staff on each of the reduced-cost Internet offers including the price, necessary qualifications, the data cap, etc. Click for more info. The Benefits Informant provides information on the available reduced-cost Internet benefits, pricing, and a toll-free number for parents to call to learn the in-depth details from a trusted source.  Click for more info.
The Buyer’s Guide has complete listings of free or low-cost computers that are available through the program. Click for more info. The Graphics Package inside the toolkit has downloadable graphic elements for newsletters, school social media accounts, website posting and banners. Download Toolkit.

STEP TWO:

Connect! Determine the best way to communicate with students and families in low-income communities.  Families may qualify if their child is enrolled in the Free and Reduced Lunch program, if the parent is a beneficiary of SSI, Cal Fresh (food stamps), or has a household income under $40,000. 

Connect with administrators in Adult Education, Parent and Community Relations, Instructional Technology, Information Technology, Nutritional Services etc. who will join your team to help inform families.

STEP THREE:

Decide!  Determine all the electronic and print-oriented ways to share this information with eligible families, Consider email, texts, or posting info on your website. Also look into printing flyers to hand out at Back-to-School Nights or any event where parents and students are present to receive information!

STEP FOUR:

Change!  Helping students and their families gain Internet connectivity is a game-changer, and we are here to help you get your students and their families online.  Consider setting up a workshop, engaging with one of our trusted community organizations in your area, and ordering 6 x 3 school banners (examples below).     

The California Emerging Technology Fund will sponsor the first 200 banners ordered!  

  • – Each school can order up to 4 banners, in English or Spanish or both
  • – Each district is limited to 20 banners
  • – After your school or district have reached the maximum amount of banners, each banner costs $50

Please click here for more information and to submit your order.  

If you’re interested in learning more about any of the topics listed above or additional help that CETF can provide at no cost, email us at: nadine.hugg@cetfund.org

We hope you’ll join us in closing the Digital Divide in California and empowering communities with Digital Equity!