$3M grant will help U of A expand high-speed internet access

Students at the University of Arizona who struggle to find consistent access to a reliable internet source will soon have more options for getting online.

The UA is expanding its high-speed internet access after receiving a $3 million grant from the federal government.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced last week it had awarded 12 grants totaling $33.5 million as part of its Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program. The grants are part of the Biden administration’s broader plan to put $65 billion toward expanding internet access across the country.

According to a 2021 report from the White House, 14% of Arizonans live where there is no broadband internet infrastructure with adequate speed; 45% live where there is only one such internet provider; and 13% of Arizonans have no internet subscription at all.

The aim of the specific grant the UA received last week, according to a news release, is to expand community technology hubs, upgrade classroom technology, and increase digital literacy skills at 12 minority serving colleges and universities across 10 states.

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The UA, which is a federally recognized Hispanic Serving Institution, plans to use its $3 million grant to expand broadband internet access in Southern Arizona’s rural communities. The details of that plan include:

Creating “equipment bundles” that can be checked out by students from UA Libraries. The equipment bundles will include hotspots, laptops, headphones and webcams.

Expanding UA network and classroom technologies.

Providing support personnel at education sites in rural Arizona.

Providing broadband internet access and equipment and helping to facilitate educational opportunities and resources for project subrecipients Dunbar Pavilion and the Tucson Urban League, as well as the surrounding community.

“Connecting Arizonans to high-speed broadband is one of our highest priorities, because it’s how we prepare for the economy of the future,” Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs said in a news release. “It is absolutely critical that all communities across our country are included in that future. We are grateful that these funds will be used to hire and train the leaders of tomorrow.”