Connecticut First State in Nation To Provide Access To Learning Devices for All PK-12 Students in Need

Through the Everybody Learns Initiative, Connecticut Fulfills Promise to Purchase Learning Devices and Internet Connections for Every PK-12 Student in Need

Governor Ned Lamont today announced that Connecticut is the first state in the nation to provide a learning device to every PK-12 student in need, achieving a major milestone in the fight to close the K-12 digital divide in Connecticut, particularly as many schools move toward remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The governor committed to closing the state’s PK-12 digital divide by purchasing every student who indicated a need with a learning device and a reliable, at-home internet connection.

Since the outset of the pandemic earlier this year, every local school district has been sharing data with the State Department of Education on the number of students who indicated that they were without a learning device or internet connection in their homes. Using this data, the nonprofit organization Partnership for Connecticut spent $24 million in March to provide 60,000 laptops to high school students in need.

In July, Governor Lamont launched the Everybody Learns initiative, which included a $43.5 million investment from the state’s portion of the federal CARES Act, to purchase 82,000 laptops and 44,000 at-home internet connections for Connecticut students. Combined, these two initiatives have invested more money per student in remote learning since March than all but two other states in the nation and makes Connecticut a leader among Northeast states.