The Federal Communications Commission said on May 4 it will commit another $39 million of Emergency Connectivity Funding (ECF) to help schools expand broadband access and the purchase of devices for students.
The FCC’s latest funding wave will be the 14th of its kind, and is meant to help close the “homework gap” often cited by the agency’s chairwoman, Jessica Rosenworcel. The latest round of funding will support 140 schools, 14 libraries, and one consortium across the country.
“I’m proud that we’ve now gotten more than 12.5 million kids connected through the Emergency Connectivity Fund,” said Rosenworcel in a press release. “We have some more work to do to get this help to all our students, but this is major progress on closing the Homework Gap in the United States.”
Applicants seeking support for the 2022-2023 school year must apply by the May 13, 2022 deadline through the third application window opened by FCC last week.
This third filing window was opened by the FCC on April 28, and eligible schools and libraries can submit requests for funding to purchase eligible equipment and services – such as laptops, tablets, routers or broadband connections – between July 1, 2022 and Dec. 31, 2023.
To date, total commitments for the ECF include over $4.79 billion for over 11,000 schools, 900 libraries, and 130 consortia.
