Community Op-Ed: Bridging the Digital Divide: Providing 350,000 Students with FREE Chromebooks

In today’s digital world, access to reliable technology and high-speed internet is a necessity. Unfortunately, far too many New York City students don’t have this access, which, in turn, creates barriers to learning and taking advantage of opportunities.

To bridge the digital divide and provide all our students with the technology they need to succeed — no matter their zip code or income — this school year, we are providing 350,000 brand new Chromebooks to New York City public school students with LTE or 5G access. These free devices will be distributed to students at more than 1,700 schools to help bring them on a level playing field for academic success. That’s 350,000 opportunities to support future James Baldwins, Shirley Chisholms, or mayors of New York City in the making because 350,000 students will soon possess the essential tools necessary to succeed in today’s digital learning environment.

This is a monumental investment in our young people’s potential and working-class families of our city, and we are using data to ensure that the Chromebooks are distributed in areas where the need is greatest. These devices come preloaded with 5G internet access and educational programs so students can continue to learn, take advantage of remote opportunities, and apply for jobs and colleges. Our Chromebook initiative also replaces outdated equipment that no longer meets current instructional and security standards and ensures that the nation’s largest school district remains ahead of the curve.

And because we know that too many families are still struggling with the cost of living and cannot always afford new, internet-enabled devices, we are providing these devices to students for FREE.

Earlier this year, New York City announced an agreement with T-Mobile to become a major wireless carrier to support city operations. This agreement saved taxpayers millions of dollars on city-issued mobile devices, and ensured we could pay for these Chromebooks and that students have high-speed internet regardless of where they live or how much their parents earn — because access should not be determined by zip code or by your income.

This initiative builds on all the other initiatives our administration has launched to build a better future for our children, including increased reading and math scores for public school children, nation-leading dyslexia screenings for all students, adding 57 Gifted and Talented programs to our public schools, helping nearly 14,000 students complete work-based learning experiences for the 2024-2025 school year through FutureReadyNYC, dramatically increasing early childhood education enrollment to 150,000 children across the city’s system, and investing $180 million to implement a comprehensive class size reduction plan that provides more individualized care to students, among other initiatives.

At the end of the day, we want our young people to have all the tools they deserve and the technology they need to go as far as their dreams will take them. Investing in our students is critical as we continue to strive for a stronger, fairer, and more affordable city.