Project purpose: dominican university new york - DC connection: building broadband and IT capacity project aims to provide access to reliable technology and stable internet on campus and within campus…

Dominican University New York was awarded a $3,959,970 project grant from the Department of Commerce National Telecommunications and Information Administration under the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program (CFDA 11.028). The grant will support the DC Connection project to expand broadband and information technology capacity on campus and within campus buildings.

Key activities to be funded include expanding wireless internet access on campus, providing subsidized broadband access and equipment for student use, hiring additional IT staff, and purchasing video and podcasting equipment. This will enhance remote learning opportunities and digital skills training. The project aims to improve student technological fluency and success in academics and future careers by ensuring stable and reliable technology and internet access. Outcomes include fewer student issues with technology/internet access, increased use of support services, and demonstration of basic digital fluency by more students. The two-year project period runs from February 1, 2023 to January 31, 2025. No subawards are planned.

Project purpose: dominican university new york - DC connection: building broadband and IT capacity project aims to provide access to reliable technology and stable internet on campus and within campus buildings, update learning systems, and improve student technology to support technological fluency and student success in the classroom and in professional pursuits. Activities: the DC connection project will: (1) expand internet access on campus by adding more wireless access points in various locations across campus; (2) provide subsidize broadband access and equipment such as hotspot access equipment, WI-FI extenders, and headphones to be lent to DC students for long-term use; (3) hire two additional IT staff members to support training materials and to ensure that students are able to leverage technological resources toward achieving academic success and that faculty and staff are best positioned to use technological resources to support the student experience and are able to identify potential academic and social issues; and (4) purchase video cameras and podcasting equipment that can be used to facilitate experiential learning with technology in several different classrooms on campus and enhance remote learning to improve digital skills and IT workforce capacity. Outcomes:as a result of implementing the activities, students will report fewer problems with access to technology or the internet, and students accessing support services will increase. Faculty members will demonstrate substantial increases in confidence in the use of technology in the classroom and for administrative/reporting functions and will demonstrate an understanding of the importance of system use for student success. Finally, there will be an increase in the number of students who will demonstrate basic digital fluency. Beneficiaries: the DC connection project will help students, and especially low-income students who may not have the resources to successfully navigate academic and professional work in a post-pandemic world or to succeed in remote learning environments. This project will also benefit the larger local, regional, and national communities in orangeburg, new york. This project will position graduates to better succeed in their chosen fields by providing a stronger background in the use of technology toward accomplishing professional goals and objectives. Those benefits will likely be passed on to the populations served by DC graduates in orangeburg.subrecipient activities (if applicable): the recipient does not intend to subaward funds.