Music City Bridging the Digital Literacy Divide

HUD Senior Policy Advisor Robbie Greenblum

Regional Administrator Ed Jennings, Jr.

Nashville Mayor Megan Barry (www.nashville.gov/Mayors-Office.aspx) kicked off the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency ConnectHome Convening at the Music City Center. The convening brought together local government leaders, local partners, and federal agencies to start the discussion of issues and opportunities to address the Digital Literacy Divide. HUD Regional Administrator (RA) Ed Jennings, Jr. addressed the convening discussing the importance of bridging the Digital Divide as internet connectivity has moved from a luxury to a necessity. After Jennings spoke, Robbie Greenblum, Senior Policy Advisor to HUD Secretary Castro provided an overview of the ConnectHome (http://connecthome.hud.gov/) program.

The convening then broke into small table discussions where the local stakeholders were led in guided discussions on what was available in Nashville to achieve Digital Inclusion specifically focused on digital literacy. The preliminary plan for ConnectHome Nashville is to partner with Google fiber to provide free access to broadband internet to 1,256 families in four of Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency’s (MDHA) four larger family properties to provide access to the ever expanding world of information and opportunity 24/7 on the internet for both educational as well as employment opportunities.

Through ConnectHome, Internet Service Providers, non-profits and the private sector will offer broadband access, technical training, digital literacy programs, and devices for residents in assisted housing units in 28 communities across the nation. The President and HUD Secretary Julián Castro announced that HUD selected Nashville, TN and the following twenty-seven cities and one tribal nation to participate in ConnectHome: Albany, GA; Atlanta, GA; Baltimore, MD; Baton Rouge, LA; Boston, MA; Camden, NJ; Choctaw Nation, OK; Cleveland, OH; Denver, CO; Durham, NC; Fresno, CA; Kansas City, MO; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; Macon, GA; Memphis, TN; Meriden, CT; New Orleans, LA; New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; Rockford, IL; San Antonio, TX; Seattle, WA; Springfield, MA; Tampa, FL; and Washington, DC.

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