As part of the Kansas City Fed’s ongoing digital inclusion initiative, the Bank recently donated 75 computers to Connecting for Good. The Kansas City organization, which helps low-income communities with digital literacy training and access to technology, will refurbish the laptops and distribute them to other area non-profits.
Last year, the Bank provided 25 laptops to Connecting for Good, and many of them were later used in youth education programs at Operation Breakthrough, a Kansas City nonprofit.
“Having affordable home internet, along with the skills and technology to utilize it, is fundamental to participating in today’s economy,” said Jeremy Hegle, senior community development advisor and leader of the digital inclusion project that the Bank launched in 2018. In 2019 the project produced a comprehensive report—Disconnected: Seven Lessons on Fixing the Digital Divide.
This year’s donation of laptops was a collaboration of the Community Development team and the Information Technology and Customer Support division. After the Connecting for Good restoration process, the computers will be provided to organizations supporting young people aging out of foster care, rural students who are learning to code and formerly incarcerated individuals enrolled in workforce development training.
“Our goal is to demonstrate to the broader community several low cost, high impact ways to improve economic conditions for lower income people,” Hegle said.