Current events have driven our economy to be
much more reliant on digital connectivity…

BRIDGE THE DIVIDE

…and has illuminated the digital divide between
those that HAVE access to technology and
those that DON’T.

OUR DIGITAL DIVIDE IS TREMENDOUS

Pittsburgh’s growing status as an innovation center has not closed the digital divide locally.

In the city of Pittsburgh, 13% of households do not have computers. Nearly one in five households in Allegheny County lack at-home internet. This varies dramatically between neighborhoods– in some areas, up to 70% of the households are without broadband.

With the onset of COVID-19 and the lockdown of Allegheny County in spring 2020, this divide was thrown into sharp relief. Families and workers were expected to complete school and jobs remotely. Yet tens of thousands of students in our community didn’t have access to the devices or the connectivity required to successfully participate in the education of the 21st century.

That’s where we came in, going far beyond our first efforts to activate 1000 laptops for Pittsburgh’s most vulnerable communities.

The digital divide needs to be addressed as a three-legged stool: devices, connectivity, and wrap-around education support.

To tackle Pittsburgh’s divide at breakneck speed, Neighborhood Allies joined with a coalition of nonprofits, universities, government, foundations, and companies across the entire fabric of the City of Pittsburgh to refurbish and distribute 1,200 laptops and provide connectivity to every disconnected Pittsburgh Public School family.

In the coming months we continue our commitment to digital equity through advocacy, access to devices and connectivity solutions, and perhaps most critically — activating these as tools of empowerment and economic transformation through education.

Join us as we add one more bridge to the Pittsburgh landscape — over the digital divide.

SOLUTIONS
FOR THE DIVIDE

mt|computer|

Hardware
Access

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Digital
Connectivity

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Education &
Empowerment

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

DONATE

SUBSCRIBE

BE AN ALLY

HEADLINES OF THE DIVIDE

To bridge digital divide, city-wide Beyond the Laptops initiative connects Pittsburgh Public School families to Comcast Internet Essentials

Jun 24

Comcast

Neighborhood Allies providing 1,000 Pittsburgh school students with free internet service

Jun 15

TribLIVE

Neighborhood Allies secures internet access, devices for PPS families

Jun 11

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

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BEYOND THE LAPTOPS UPDATES

E-Waste’s Role in the Digital Divide

Beyond the Laptops' computer refurbishment partner Computer Reach was a tremendous ally in our race to get devices into community hands. Their incredible team and a dedicated volunteer army worked nonstop for a month to launch a historic effort to refurbish 1200+...

Hardware Relief to Frontline Community Organizations

Communities are the final judges of equity-based programming. As the Beyond the Laptops campaign continues to its next stages, it is important to reflect on community needs and stakeholder feedback. The original Beyond the Laptops campaign goal was to connect...

Sectors Shift, Demand Digital Skills

Digital skills have been increasingly in demand in the workplace, even prior to COVID-19. Beyond laptops and connectivity, one of our major goals is to advance workers’ digital skills so they can thrive in future-proof careers, earning liveable wages. Skill...