Houston Independent School District Receives Laptops, Funding to Bridge the Digital Divide

Comcast Internet Essentials and Telemundo Houston partnered to provide a sizable donation – including laptops and monetary funds – to help the Houston Independent School District bridge the digital divide.

As the largest school district in Texas, serving nearly 200,000 students across 276 campuses, The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is uniquely positioned to ensure low-income families receive the necessary tools to succeed in the digital economy. To help with these efforts, Comcast Internet Essentials and Telemundo Houston today announced the gifting of 500 laptops and a $30,000 monetary donation to the Houston Independent School District (HISD) and Foundation. Houston Independent School District Superintendent, Millard House II, joined by Houston ISD Foundation Executive Director, Katherine Smith, accepted the combined donation of $155,000 (in-kind laptops $125,000; $30k cash).

“We are thankful for partnerships like(this)with Comcast and Telemundo,” said Superintendent Millard House II. “The Career Ready Wagon will be updated using the funding to promote STEM career exploration and the laptops will help our families access resources and connect our students to digital resources.”

The monetary funds will also support students through digital skills and exploration programming after school at two campuses.

Comcast also announced it has been selected as a provider to support the Texas Education Agency Connect Texas initiative, a program that provides reliable, commercially available home-based fixed broadband internet services free of charge to eligible students. HISD students may qualify for this free service; parents can check eligibility at TEAConnectTexas.com.