Too many young people across New York City do not have adequate connectivity. Some lack access to technology, and others have difficulty harnessing technology’s potential. Either way, the digital divide persists in all five boroughs.
Not every young New Yorker dreams of a STEAM-related future, but every education or career path involves technology in some capacity. It is critical for young people to have viable, safe options to engage with technology in a productive way that aligns with their lifestyle, education, and career aspirations.
Ikhodi, Inc. and its NYC Computer Lab Initiative are addressing these issues and helping bridge the digital divide. Our ongoing mission is to open a computer lab in every underprivileged and underserved community in New York City, hitting thirteen to date. Along the way, we have realized one key fact: closing the digital divide is not up to one person or one organization; it must be a collaborative, community-wide effort.
With that in mind, we have made it a priority to seek quality community and corporate partners that share our vision of computer literacy and safe spaces. A prime example of that approach has been our collaboration with AT&T over the past year.
AT&T is also on a mission to provide internet access and high-quality educational tools to families and kids who encounter barriers to internet connectivity and digital resources. AT&T’s team in New York has made it a priority to bring this effort home to the Empire State through their Connected Learning Center program.
Connected Learning Centers (CLC) are brick-and-mortar tech labs offering free access to digital resources, including internet, computers, printers, and other tools. AT&T opens these centers alongside local nonprofit organizations that are already adept at supporting underserved populations within their community.
The CLC program aligned perfectly with our efforts at the NYC Computer Lab Initiative. In less than a year, we have collaborated to open two AT&T CLCs in New York City.
In November 2024, we opened the first AT&T Connected Learning Center in the Bronx. Several other partners joined the effort, including the City’s Department of Community Youth & Development, to launch this CLC at Edenwald Houses.
And just this past August, AT&T and the New York City Computer Lab Initiative opened a new CLC inside the Stapleton Houses in Staten Island. This was a big deal because AT&T has now opened a Connected Learning Center in every borough of New York City (with two in the Bronx).
In total, AT&T has opened 12 CLCs in the state of New York in the past eighteen months, and they’ve done this by teaming up with numerous nonprofit organizations like the NYC Computer Lab Initiative, YMCAs, Boys & Girls Clubs, and others.
AT&T is working towards opening at least 100 of these CLCs across the nation by the end of 2027. It is a piece of a larger effort, with the company committing $5 billion to help 25 million people get and stay connected to high-speed internet by 2030.
The collaborative approach is getting more New Yorkers connected. But there is still more work to be done. Nationwide, tens of millions of people still don’t have access to digital resources or connected technology.
We are bridging the digital divide piece by piece here in New York City, by pulling together resources from the public, private, and nonprofit worlds. We encourage others, companies, and individuals alike to work with and support organizations focused on closing the digital divide.
Together, we can get our kids connected.
David Solomon Jones is the founder and executive director of the NYC Computer Lab Initiative.