Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is committed to providing technology devices and internet access to all students. Chromebooks and iPads are available for CMS students through their school.
As students across the nation engage in remote learning, it has never been more important to have reliable internet service at home. Unfortunately, thousands of students in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools do not have home internet access. This creates an urgency in our community to ensure that every student, regardless of economic circumstance, has access to education this school year.
Following the school closures in March, the CMS Foundation raised more than $1 million to purchase 6,000 mobile hotspots for students without home internet. Now at the start of a new school year, an estimated 16,000 households with CMS students still lack home connectivity.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has deployed more than 116,000 laptops and iPads to equip students with remote learning tools during this crisis. As the district’s nonprofit partner, the CMS Foundation is now asking our community to “Connect for Tech” and close the connectivity gap. Access to education should not be a privilege, and every child in Charlotte-Mecklenburg should have the opportunity to engage in remote learning regardless of financial circumstances.
A gift of $200 covers the cost of one year of internet service for a household with one or more CMS students in need of this support. Every contribution makes a difference. You can text “GIVETECH” to 44-321.
The Emergency Broadband Benefit is an FCC program to help families and households struggling to afford internet service during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Emergency Broadband Benefit will provide a discount of up to $50 per month towards broadband service for eligible households. Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers information can be found here.