Students in New Haven, Connecticut, will kick off the first day of class Thursday with 10 weeks of remote learning. Plans are also underway to make sure every student has access to the internet.
New Haven schools will provide internet access and distribute over 21,000 laptops and tablets to students in need, through donations and federal coronavirus relief funding.
The city’s school system also plans to install 13 public internet hotspots in underserved neighborhoods.
Mayor Justin Elicker said the plan will help address the digital divide in the city’s Black and brown communities.
“It’s vital to make sure that every single New Haven student has the ability to access online learning. And in New Haven we have a digital divide where many families either don’t have a device or don’t have quality internet,” Elicker said.
The New Haven Board of Education had announced this month the first 10 weeks of class will be held entirely online, against the wishes of Elicker and Governor Ned Lamont who had supported a hybrid model. School officials said they didn’t feel ready.
