[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image img_size=”overlap-medium” alignment=”center” image=”6724″ animation=”fadeInUp”][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text animation=”fadeInLeft”]May 7, 2020<\/b><\/p>\n
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE LEXINGTON, KY \u2013 The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence and numerous other education, health, business and non-profit organizations are calling for federal funding<\/a> to make universal internet access available in rural areas and to low-income citizens.<\/p>\n \u201cAs businesses and schools have increasingly gone online in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become abundantly clear that the internet is as necessary as electricity and plumbing for our daily lives,\u201d said Prichard Committee President & CEO Brigitte Blom Ramsey.<\/p>\n In 2017, census data showed that Kentucky ranked 44th in the nation for broadband access. Nearly 25 percent of Kentucky households do not have a subscription for high-speed internet, and more than 15 percent do not have a computer, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Among households without home internet, one-third say it simply is too expensive. In many rural parts of the state, high-quality internet connections are unreliable or non-existent.\u00a0Citizens who would like to tell members of congress to support universal internet access\u00a0may visit prichardcommittee.org<\/a>\u00a0to send an email.<\/p>\n \u201cKentucky\u2019s congressional delegation has a powerful platform to ensure all our families have internet access, and they must do so with urgency,\u201d said Ramsey. \u201cSchools and businesses may be closed, but we must ensure that all of Kentucky\u2019s families have the tools they need to learn and earn online, during the pandemic and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n Kentucky agencies and organizations advocating for universal internet access alongside the Prichard Committee include the Kentucky Nonprofit Network, the Kentucky Farm Bureau, the Kentucky School Boards Association, the Kentucky Association of School Superintendents, the Kentucky Association of School Administrators, the Ohio Valley Educational Cooperative, 55,000 Degrees, and the Kentucky Primary Care Association. These groups will deliver a letter to members of Kentucky’s congressional delegation in late May. Organizations who wish to sign on are encouraged to contact the Prichard Committee<\/a>\u00a0before May 15.<\/p>\n The federal E-Rate program, which has historically made internet funding affordable for schools and libraries, could be a possible vehicle for the funding, according to Ramsey.<\/p>\n \u201cFunding for internet access could also come through another coronavirus relief package, similar to the CARES Act,\u201d said Ramsey. \u201cRegardless of the funding vehicle, ensuring universal access to broadband internet for all families is an imperative.\u201d<\/p>\n ###<\/p>\n The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence is an independent, nonpartisan, citizen-led organization working to improve education in Kentucky \u2013 early childhood through postsecondary.<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image img_size=”overlap-medium” alignment=”center” image=”6724″ animation=”fadeInUp”][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text animation=”fadeInLeft”]May 7, 2020 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information, contact: Jessica Fletcher, Senior Director, Communications & External Affairs (cell) 859-539-0511 jessica.fletcher@prichardcommittee.org[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][wyde_heading subheading_tag=”h3″ style=”2″ title=”Prichard Committee and other Kentucky-based organizations urge Congress to fund universal internet access” animation=”slideInLeft”][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text animation=”fadeInRight”] LEXINGTON, KY \u2013 The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence and numerous other<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"passster_activate_protection":false,"passster_protect_child_pages":"","passster_protection_type":"password","passster_password":"","passster_activate_overwrite_defaults":"","passster_headline":"","passster_instruction":"","passster_placeholder":"","passster_button":"","passster_id":"","passster_activate_misc_settings":"","passster_redirect_url":"","passster_hide":"no","passster_area_shortcode":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-press-release"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5132","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5132"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5132\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5948,"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5132\/revisions\/5948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prichard-backup.com\/July\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/b>For more information, contact:
\n<\/span><\/i>Jessica Fletcher<\/strong>, Senior Director, Communications & External Affairs
\n(cell) 859-539-0511
\njessica.fletcher@