Page 36 - BusinessWest May 15, 2023

Bridging the Divide
Massachusetts Awards $14 Million to Address Digital Equity
“Digital equity and inclusion is truly a super-social determinant of health, critical to our meaningful progress toward health equity and satisfying basic human rights in this connected society, linking people to vital resources, such as jobs, education, healthcare, food, and information.”
Leaders from the Commonwealth’s Executive Office of Eco- nomic Development and the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) at MassTech recently announced $14 million
in new grants from the state’s Digital Equity Partnership Pro- gram to address statewide digital-equity gaps during an event at Tech Foundry in Springfield.
The three grants were announced by Economic Development Secretary Yvonne Hao, who highlighted selected projects from Tech Goes Home, which will receive $4.5 million; Vinfen, on behalf of the Human Services Alliance for Digital Equity, which will receive $4.3 million; and Baystate Health, on behalf of the Western Massachusetts Alliance for Digital Equity, which will receive $5.1 million.
“Massachusetts has a real opportunity to close the digital divide and ensure all people in our state can participate in
the digital economy,” Hao said. “These grants will help resi- dents build their digital skills and get online affordably, thereby expanding their connections to job and training opportunities, healthcare resources, social connections, and so much more. We are grateful to the Massachusetts Broadband Institute for its work to make affordable high-speed internet available to resi- dents across the state.”
The secretary was joined at the event by business and non- profit leaders from across the state, highlighting the critical need for increased digital connectivity for residents statewide, an issue that grew in importance during the COVID-19 public- health crisis. Following the secretary’s remarks, MassMutual Chairman, President, and CEO Roger Crandall spoke about the issue, appearing in his role as a board member of the Mas- sachusetts Competitive Partnership, which published a report
last year titled “Connecting Communities through Digital Equity,” highlighting the importance of addressing digital equity statewide.
“Internet access is a crucial driver of economic and social advancement, from fostering innovation and creating new jobs to utilizing government and community services,” Crandall said. “Yet, far too many households in Massachusetts lack broadband service, creating a significant barrier to many career and edu- cational opportunities. The business community has a collec- tive responsibility to help address this inequity by continuing to invest in and expand access to digital infrastructure, literacy pro- grams, and affordable digital tools for all residents throughout the Commonwealth.”
The event included a roundtable discussion with executives from the three grant-recipient organizations, which pointed to the digital-equity challenges Massachusetts citizens face each day and how the awarded projects aim to increase connectivity and access. The grants will support two years of critical digital- equity project development and implementation across the state.
“The genesis of the Alliance for Digital Equity in June 2020 was a direct response to digital disparity — not new — and our societal dependence on the internet to address to meeting basic material needs as the COVID-19 pandemic surfaced,” said Dr. Frank Robinson, vice president of Public Health at Baystate Health. “It was embarrassingly obvious that digital marginaliza- tion for already-marginalized people would exacerbate negative health outcomes, economic oppression, and racial injustice. Digital equity and inclusion is truly a super-social determinant of health, critical to our meaningful progress toward health equity and satisfying basic human rights in this connected society, link-
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