Even In Crisis Times, There Is A Push To Wire Rural America

As the COVID-19 crisis took hold and schools in Lockhart (TX) had to close and shift to remote learning, the school district quickly conducted a needs assessment. They found that half of their 6,000 students have no high-speed Internet at home. And despite being a short drive south of Austin (TX), a third of all the students and staff live in "dead zones," where Internet and cell service aren't even available. With the help of a local Internet provider, the district is installing seven booster towers outside each of its schools. These will beam the Internet into every home that needs it across the 300-square-mile district. It will be free to families, costing the district just $30 a year per household. Estrada says he expects 700 homes to connect to the school's Internet service by July.