Connecticut Public Libraries seek to address the growing digital divide between the state\u2019s diverse communities through its CT Libraries & Partners for Digital Equity initiative, which participated in a series of Juneteenth events last month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The CT Libraries & Partners for Digital Equity Coalition<\/a> oversees the new initiative that aims to provide computers, affordable high-speed broadband, and community digital navigators to local communities. Public Library staff and other community members formed the Coalition in January 2020 as a team dedicated to closing the drastic gap in digital access across Connecticut. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere are still families at home who don\u2019t have internet access, who do not have a device, and who do not know how to use it,\u201d said Dawn LaValle, Director of the Division of Library Development for the CT State Library. \u201cSo, the pandemic really shined a light on this problem and we\u2019re just realizing the expanse of it.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly amplified the lack of digital access among local BIPOC communities, specifically among Black and Latino households. LaValle explained that CT Public Libraries have been aware of a digital gap between CT\u2019s diverse communities but most did not recognize the gap\u2019s full extent until 2020. <\/p>\n\n\n\n About 31 percent of Black residents don\u2019t have computer access at home, while 34 percent of Black residents and 35 percent of Latinx residents lack wireline broadband at home, according to a 2020 Digital Divide in CT<\/a> report. Data also showed that senior citizens, low-income households, and residents with disabilities are disproportionately affected by digital inequity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Digital Equity Coalition saw Juneteeth as an opportunity <\/a>to discuss the importance of digital equity among local Black communities. National reports have shown that a lack of internet access strongly correlates with COVID-19 death rates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOver the last few years, researchers have started to see internet access, and in particular high-speed broadband, as a critical component of health \u2014 something vital for connecting people not only with health care, but also with food, housing, education, and income, all of which are considered social determinants of health,\u201d according to Vox<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2020, state-wide efforts immediately focused on the digital needs of in-need youth to assist in providing the tools necessary for remote education. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHelping public libraries reach out to residents who have faced discrimination and need support to join the ranks of the digitally included is central to our mission,\u201d LaValle said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Four CT Public Libraries are participating in the Digital Navigation Pilot Project<\/a>, a program that trains members of the community to help residents set up affordable broadband internet, obtain electronic devices, and learn a variety of digital skills. \u201cBasically, as digital navigators, we meet with clients and we work with them to achieve a goal,\u201d said Aujahdai Ambrose, a digital navigator for the East Hartford Public Library. <\/p>\n\n\n\n LaValle explained that navigators\u2019 strong interpersonal skills have been crucial to the program\u2019s success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s having someone with that empathy, that patience, but also the skills to be able to teach this\u2026and make that connection with a person who\u2019s never used a computer before,\u201d LaValle said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Ambrose mentioned the value of having several bilingual navigators and libraries on staff. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re making a move so that we can be able to accommodate everybody,\u201d Ambrose said. \u201cWe have a language line and we also have a Spanish speaker so that clients\u2026can still get connected with our program\u2026even if they don\u2019t speak English.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The East Hartford, Hamden, and Hartford locations, along with the Ferguson Library in Stanford have employed four navigators in each library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n