State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state leaders called representatives from major technology and internet service provider companies to appear at yesterday’s Closing the Digital Divide Task Force meeting to discuss the persistent technology gaps impacting the state’s most vulnerable students. Hundreds of thousands of students in schools throughout the state are still without the necessary devices and internet access needed to participate in distance learning along with their peers.

The full video archive of the meeting can be found on the CDE Facebook web page.

The task force, co-chaired by Senator Connie Leyva (D-Chino), has asked that internet service providers offer free guest access to all California students. During Monday’s hearing, executives from AT&T, Comcast, Cox Communications, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon were asked to provide more details on their efforts to bring connectivity into the homes of students from low-income and rural communities, including providing services for free or at low cost.

Source: Digital Divide Task Force Advocates for Students – Year 2020 (CA Dept of Education)