A Holistic Vision for Digital Skills in the Heart of the Midwest: How Illinois is Investing its Digital Equity and Broadband Funds
April 9, 2024
The federal Digital Equity Act and the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program will collectively send more than $1 billion to Illinois, and state officials have been working for more than a year to lay out their roadmap for implementation. The State Digital Equity Plan describes how Illinois officials envision supporting broadband adoption, digital devices, and digital skills, while the BEAD 5-year Action Plan and Initial Proposal Vol. II lay out the state’s plans for building out broadband access and increasing affordability and adoption for the 12+ million residents of Illinois. Some highlights of the plan include:
- Building on local momentum
- Intentional connections to broader statewide goals
- Investments in digital skills will help achieve broadband adoption goals
- An emerging partnership with workforce development
- Key stopgap investments to support practitioners on the ground
- A commitment to shared data
A Holistic Vision for Digital Skills in the Heart of the Midwest: How Illinois is Investing its Digital Equity and Broadband Fun