Library Internet Access Is 'World-Changing' for Millions but the Money Could Disappear

Before there was high-speed internet in Santo Domingo Pueblo, a tribal community about 40 miles from Albuquerque, New Mexico, leaders would pass around a Verizon hotspot to help run their tribal programs. It was inconvenient, and only a limited amount of high-speed data was available. But without broadband access, there was no other choice. It wasn't until 2017 that the local library got high-speed internet, thanks to a tribally built and owned fiber-optic network paid for by community funds and the federal E-Rate program. In August 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, that access expanded to homes throughout the pueblo. Students no longer had to be driven 5 miles east to get a cell signal and do their homework on their phones. Now, they could access the internet at home or go to the library to get online. "The broadband initiative was really quite world-changing for us," says Herman Sanchez, the pueblo's tribal programs administrator. "It allows our students the same tools ... Read full article.