Philadelphia the Latest City to Team Up with Funders on Digital Equity in Schools

Philadelphia has become the latest major city to announce its schools will open virtually and that it has formed a public-private partnership to provide low-income K-12 student households with free internet access and devices.

The two-year, $17.1 million partnership, named PHLConnectED, will cover up to 35,000 low-income households and serve students from traditional public schools, charter schools and private schools. The effort will also provide digital skills training and tech support for families. PHLConnectedED follows on the heels of news announced by the School District of Philadelphia, the eighth-largest in the nation with more than 132,000 students, that it would reverse course and open the new academic year with remote learning. Last month, officials said it would adopt a hybrid model. Its school year starts September 2.