As we work to eliminate the digital divide that exists in the tri-state region, we are sharing a series of Q&A sessions with community leaders about the state of digital inclusion in their communities.
For this interview, we sat down with John Bamber, Rhea County Economic & Community Development Director, to learn about the digital divide in his community.
Q: How could your work benefit from being in a community where there was no digital divide?
A: It’s difficult to even imagine not having a digital divide. With greater connectivity available, so many more people in this community would be able to do online learning, telemedicine, job applications, and so many other things. As it is, people are having to relocate in order to work from home or make incredible sacrifices with their time and daily routines in order to manage their digital activities when reliable broadband is unavailable.
Q: What are the next steps that need to be taken to address the digital divide in your community?
A: I’m helping the Rhea County Executive and the County Commissioners examine proposals from all of our local internet service providers (ISPs) so that the County Commission can make an informed choice on how to spend some of the American Rescue Plan funds in order to try and serve every household in this county. I’ve been keeping my eye out for grants, though on the broadband site, most of the grants are intended for ISPs. The only issue with grants is finding the right partners to assist with matching funds.
Q: What is your community’s greatest digital need?
A: Education. There’s such a lack of understanding about broadband in general. It’s difficult to serve our community (or even survey it) when the comprehension of broadband and connectivity sometimes starts and stops with “using Grandma’s phone as a hotspot.”
Q: What would having total digital equality mean for your community? What opportunities would this present to its residents and industries? How could this impact its economy?
A: Digital equality would mean that any home or business could have broadband access if they needed it, and could pay for this service. Those that have difficulty affording broadband service would be able to apply for financial assistance. There are countless homes and numerous neighborhoods that aren’t well-served with broadband, and that lack certainly causes homes to be less desirable, and therefore, also negatively affects home values.
Q: The pandemic has really highlighted the extreme digital equality issues we have in our communities. What are some of the most pressing digital issues that need to be addressed coming out of this pandemic?
A: The education gap is starting to show more and more, especially as Covid has accelerated the digital economy. From the 20% of Rhea County’s population that doesn’t have a high school diploma to the 12.1% unemployment rate, our population needs to be able to have access to technology and education in order to thrive in this new economy. Another need is more education with STEM, coding, and IT, and we’re hoping to start including more programs across the board.
Q: What does a community without a digital divide look like in your eyes?
A: Frankly, it’s almost hard to imagine! It would be a place where more opportunities are available for low-income families (and especially children) to not get left behind with educational opportunities. It’s also a place where the multitude of homes who are “stranded” without broadband access would be able to have Zoom calls, participate in telemedicine and education, or have the ability to work from home.
You can find additional information about Digital Inclusion on the national digital inclusion alliance website.
We invite you to join us as we work to address the digital divide in counties and communities across the greater Chattanooga region, like Rhea County.