Project purpose:the community college of philadelphia (the college)'S connecting minority communities project will address key digital equity and inclusion gaps through strategically targeted…

The Community College of Philadelphia was awarded a $5.9 million project grant from the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration under the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program (CFDA 11.028) to address digital equity gaps in underserved Philadelphia communities. The College will expand access to technology, broadband services, and workforce training through three main activities. It will provide refurbished desktops and laptops to students, expand its broadband network to two Philadelphia sites, and develop digital literacy and workforce development training programs. The digital literacy programs will offer cloud computing, machine learning, and data analytics courses for students, as well as customer service, field technician, and outreach training for community members. Upon completion, participants will receive digital badges, certifications, or internal qualifications. This project aims to significantly contribute to closing the digital divide by creating long-term digital equity and career opportunities for students and community members in the College's anchor community.

Project purpose:the community college of philadelphia (the college)'S connecting minority communities project will address key digital equity and inclusion gaps through strategically targeted initiatives aimed at underserved communities in philadelphia. The primary goal of this project is to expand access to technology equipment, services, and trainings to provide sustainable digital equity to the communities in and around the community college of philadelphia. This proposal includes wireless infrastructure development and expansion of access to broadband services and equipment, as well as training to provide essential knowledge and career readiness skills for job placement in the technology sector.activities:the major components of the program are: (1) expand access to needed technology devices (DESKTOPS/LAPTOPS); (2) increase access to internet connectivity (wireless and private LTE broadband); and (3) digital literacy education (community digital literacy training and on-campus workforce development training courses). To expand access to technology devices, the college will provide refurbished desktop and laptop computers to students. To increase access to internet connectivity, the college will expand its broadband network at two sites in philadelphia. To provide digital literacy education, the college will develop two training programs to expand the digital literacy and workforce development opportunities across the target communities. The first component of the trainings will be expanded course offerings at the college, including cloud development, machine learning, data analytics, and more. Students who complete a pathway of the coursework will receive a digital badge and certification. The second component of this training will be community workforce development training for customer service, field technician, and community outreach roles. Intensive training courses will be available, after which workers will receive an internal certification and be eligible to join the CO-OP.outcomes:by targeting the underserved communities where the community college of philadelphia's main campus and regional centers reside, the college intends to make a significant contribution to addressing the digital divide. This three-part approach will provide a multi-layered investment in the community to create long term digital equity. Providing technology devices in the form of DESKTOPS and LAPTOPS will create immediate continuity of access for people who currently need to use public devices to access internet and perform. The investment in broadband expansion throughout the community enables continued learning off campus and creates access for families throughout the community. The workforce development training to be provided both directly to community members and as an available coursework for enrolled students at the college will create long term opportunities for digital literacy and career advancement.beneficiaries: this project will have direct benefits to the students of the community college of philadelphia, as well as community members in the sites of broadband expansion and access to trainings. The project will provide broadband connection to community college of philadelphia students and community members in the community college of philadelphia anchor community by providing them with laptop computers, broadband service, and digital literacy training courses.subrecipient activities (if applicable):the recipient does not intend to subaward funds.