Supporting ConnectED to Enrich K-12 Education

To ensure the opportunity to learn is equitably distributed, we first must connect all students to the Internet. To that end, President Obama’s ConnectED initiative aims to expand high-speed Internet access in schools, connect teachers and students with powerful learning technology, and close the digital divide in order to provide all Americans with expanded opportunity.

We strongly support the goals of ConnectED, as well as the administration’s plan to modernize E-Rate – important steps to ensuring all schools are future ready. Digital Promise is partnering with the White House and expanding awareness about the ConnectED opportunities so our network schools can participate.

Corporate contributions to ConnectED, which have reached over $2 billion so far, provide tremendous resources for schools, teachers, and students nationwide. We are working with many of these contributors to help structure and facilitate commitments as part of cross-sector partnerships, so they can take full advantage of the potential to positively impact education.

Specifically, four Digital Promise corporate partners have committed to supporting the president’s ConnectED plan by providing software, devices, professional development, and financial support.

• Adobe – $300 million worth of free software to teachers and students;
• Apple – $100 million in iPads, MacBooks, and other products, along with content and professional development tools to enrich learning in disadvantaged U.S. schools;
• Microsoft – deeply discounting the price of its Windows operating system, which will decrease the price of Windows-based devices;
• Verizon – multi-year program to support ConnectED through up to $100 million in cash and in-kind commitments, including support for our Digital Promise Schools initiative.

Full details on the commitments, and how to take advantage of them, can be found at the White House’s ConnectED Portal.