North Carolina Office of the Governor

Gov Roy Cooper (R-NC) announced nearly $40 million in funding for NC Student Connect, a new partnership created to address internet connectivity gaps that are a barrier to remote learning for many North Carolina students. When school resumed in August, superintendents estimated that at least 100,000 students still lacked a reliable internet connection at home. NC Student Connect investment includes:

Better internet access is coming to 19 rural, economically disadvantaged counties in North Carolina thanks to nearly $10 million in grants. The Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) program provides matching grants to internet service providers and electric membership cooperatives that compete for funding to lower financial barriers that prevent high-speed internet service expansion in Tier 1 counties. Twenty-one applicants in 19 counties will receive a total of $9,855,026 in GREAT Grant funding to bring high-speed internet access to 9,800 households and more than 590 bu