Comcast recently announced that it will provide $110,000 in grants to two Atlanta nonprofits – Raising Expectations and Inspiredu – to support the launch of Connect 404, a Digital Navigator program.
Through Connect 404, the organizations are partnering to hire trusted community members (known as digital navigators) to help residents get connected to the internet and access digital skills training programs to advance digital equity for Georgians.
A recent research report by the National Skills Coalition, titled Closing the Digital Skills Divide, analyzed 43 million online job ads and found virtually all of today’s jobs require digital skills including those roles seeking limited education or work experience.
The report showed that those who qualify for jobs that require even one digital skill can earn an average of 23 percent more than those working in jobs requiring no digital skills — an increase of $8,000 per year for an individual full-time worker.
The findings also pointed to four key industries in Georgia that are seeking employees with the following digital skills:
- Finance and insurance: Mobile banking; information security; structured query language; nationwide mortgage licensing system
- Healthcare: Electronic medical records; radiologic technology
- Manufacturing: Enterprise resource planning software; robotics; computer numerical control; programmable logic controller
- Retail: Sales after service retail analytics and consumer goods software; robotics; credit card applications
“We are incredibly grateful to Comcast for their generous donation to our Connect 404 Digital Navigators program,” said Richard Hicks, CEO of Inspiredu. “Comcast has been a great partner in helping to bridge the digital divide here in Atlanta, and we are proud to support their mission.”
In addition to receiving digital navigation services, Atlanta residents who qualify may apply for the federal government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provides families with a $30 per month benefit ($75 per month on Tribal lands) toward their Internet bill. Comcast is making ACP credits available for all of the company’s Xfinity Internet speed tiers, including Internet Essentials.
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