In 2021, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy announced that education officials in his state had “closed” the digital divide by ensuring that every public school student had a laptop or tablet and internet access.
“Closing the digital divide wasn’t just about meeting the challenges of remote learning,” Murphy, a Democrat, said at the time. “It’s been about ensuring every student has the tools they need to excel in a 21st century educational environment.”
While the Murphy administration was successful in giving 358,212 students access to critical education tools they previously lacked, the digital divide remains a problem in New Jersey as well as throughout the nation.
The Conversation, January 19, 2022
Authored by Stephanie Holcomb. Andrea Hetling, Gregory Porumbescu, Vishal Trehan