City of Boston Digital Equity Fund (Massachusetts)

Deadline: 11/06/2023

Size of the Grant: $250,000

Grant Duration: 2 years

Details:

The city is excited to continue helping ensure that residents have affordable and reliable internet, needs-based digital skills training, and access to vital online resources.

This year’s Digital Equity Fund will continue to accelerate solutions for: social, educational, and economic problems through community-based digital equity programs.

The programs will provide immediate, positive impacts on Boston families. They will help to increase participation and access to opportunities in all aspects of life for those who have been historically left behind. The City of Boston Digital Equity Fund will cover three areas.

• Enrollment into the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP),
• Efforts to improve telehealth programming, and
• Device refurbishment projects.

Funding will be Prioritized to

• local non-profits,
• places of worship,
• healthcare organizations, and
• community-based organizations serving Boston neighborhoods disproportionately impacted by the digital divide. This includes (but is not limited to) Dorchester, Roxbury, Mattapan, East Boston, and Hyde Park.

Funding Information

This year’s fund is not only the largest to date, totaling $1,522,200, but they have also expanded it to have three focus areas:

• Enrollment into the Affordable Connectivity Program ($922,200)
  • Awards for this portion of the ACP will range from $20,000 to $30,000 and recipients will have one year to expend funds from when they are received.
• Efforts to Improve Telehealth Programming ($500,000)
  • They plan on competitively distributing two awards of $250,000 each to be spent over a two year period to existing providers and partners
• Device Refurbishment Programming ($100,000)
  • The device refurbishment portion will provide two awards of $50,000 each to be spent over a two year period.

They encourage organizations that work with the following populations to apply:

• Households with income at or below 200% of the national poverty line.
• Households where any member participates in one of these programs:
  • Assistance programs such as SNAP, Medicaid, SSI, Federal Public Housing Assistance, WIC, Veterans and Survivors Pension Benefits, or Lifeline.
  • Eligible Tribal programs.
  • A currently-awarded federal Pell Grant.
  • A school lunch or breakfast program.
  • Households where any member meets the eligibility criteria for a participating service provider’s existing low-income program.

Eligibility Criteria

• Be a 501(c)(3) or have a fiscal sponsor
• Be Boston-based and/or serve Boston residents specifically.

For more information, visit City of Boston.