DELN Bulletin: March 12, 2025

DELN BULLETIN :

MARCH 12, 2025

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UPDATES

March 20, 12:00 - 1:00pm PST  DELN Meeting: Cybersecurity is Equity Work

REGISTER NOW! Cybersecurity is a critical component of digital equity, yet many community organizations lack the resources and IT support needed to protect themselves. Join us on Thursday, March 20th from 12:00 - 1:00 PST for an insightful presentation featuring Library Technology Officer Charles Wesley who will discuss lessons learned from the Seattle Public Library’s cybersecurity attack and share practical, cost-effective strategies to improve your organization’s cybersecurity readiness, empower staff with best practices, and ensure equitable access to secure digital spaces.

Nominate Your 2025 Digital Equity Champions

Do you know someone who should be recognized for their work in digital equity? Or someone who has brought a fresh, innovative perspective to the field? NDIA is now accepting applications for the 2025 Digital Equity Champion Awards!

Call for Abstracts - TPRC53 Research Conference Due March  15th

Share your research and insights at TPRC53! The Research Conference on Communications, Information, and Internet Policy (TPRC) is now accepting abstract submissions for its 53rd annual conference. This includes papers, posters, panels, and the Student Paper Competition. TPRC is the leading interdisciplinary conference focused on communications, information, and internet policy. It offers a fantastic opportunity to present your latest research and engage with thought leaders from the telecom, communications, broadband, and internet community.

Digital Inclusion Bytes - part 2 of a 4 part series by David Keyes

Digital Skills – Using frameworks and skill lists. his post (part two) explores the available frameworks and skill lists, how to use them, and digital literacy definitions.

Register for Net Inclusion

The Net Inclusion conference has been a staple in the digital inclusion community since 2016, bringing hundreds of practitioners, advocates, academics, internet service providers, and policymakers together to share their knowledge and discuss a variety of topics.

DE WEBINARS

March 13, 3:00-4:15pm EST “Charting the Course: Adapting to Policy Shifts While Keeping Our Eyes on the Prize”

“Charting the Course: Adapting to Policy Shifts While Keeping Our Eyes on the Prize” promises to bring hundreds of digital inclusion practitioners together for the increasingly popular virtual gathering that aims to offer insights and ground-truth on how communities continue to their work in closing the digital divide at a time when the programs established to do so have been tossed into disarray.

March 14, 1:00pm EST "Building Bridges to Digital Resilience: Introducing BRIDGES Interactive 

The BRIDGES Digital Skills framework, checklists of digital competencies, edtech routines, and more are now part of an interactive toolkit. The updated interactive site will help you streamline edtech integration and digital literacy development. Join to hear more about the free resources at your fingertips!

March 19th, 1 PM ET Understanding Internet Access and Use Among Older Adults

Join the Benton Institute on March 19th, 1 PM ET on their Youtube page for a discussion about how states can better understand internet access and use among older adults.

DE WEBINARS

CBAN's Broadband Glossary

The Community Broadband Action Network (CBAN) has just published a comprehensive broadband glossary of over 140 terms encompassing everything from digital equity to infrastructure, government agencies and their intersections with broadband and digital equity, emerging cybersecurity terms, and more.

6 Digital Navigator forms translated into Spanish are now available on NDIA's new website

Includes the baseline job description, intake form, skills assessment, session summary form, process explainer and NDIA's digital navigator standards.

NDIA Affilicate Map

This new tool makes it easier to connect with NDIA Affiliates. This user-friendly map includes these key features: Search Bar: search for individual Affiliates by organization name, city or state using the search bar at the top right of the map. Filter: filter by city or state using the filter button at the top left. Dynamic List: the list below the map shows Affiliates currently visible on the map. Zoom and move the map to update the list. Reset View: the “home” button at the bottom left returns to the original map view. Explore the map today and discover the NDIA Affiliates in your area!

Literacy Source's Basic Digital Skills Checklist

Digital Literacy tool to assess student skills in class

Portland Broadband Equity Study Story Map

The City of Portland is excited to announce the launch of the Broadband Equity Study Story Map, an interactive tool designed to highlight internet access disparities across our city. Reliable, high-speed internet is essential for healthcare, education, employment, and daily life. Yet, many Portlanders still face connectivity challenges due to affordability, lack of transparency from Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and digital skills barriers.

Verizon Innovative Learning

Since 2012, Verizon Innovative Learning has empowered students and educators around the country to build the skills they need for tomorrow's opportunities.

ARTICLES & RESEARCH

Transforming Lives Through Digital Skills: A Story of Libraries, Laptops, and Lifelong Learning.

This impact story includes many components that make a successful digital navigator program. CSPWAL has strong partnerships with local libraries, has identified what their community members need, and has created creative ways for them to learn digital skills with their Digital Skills Challenge BINGO game. They also teach community members how to learn digital skills for digital disaster preparedness.

To expand broadband, rural communities need clarity on government funding

Rural communities across America have been working flat out to expand fast, reliable internet access, but to succeed, they urgently need clarity about the resources available to move forward.

How Digital Skills Are Opening Doors for Eastern Kentuckians

How Ashley Smith, digital navigator is working with community members on digital skilling to help them with education, job readiness, access to essential services, and health care.

BEAD Program Targeting: A preliminary analysis

This policy brief examines the targeting of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a $42.45 billion federal initiative under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) aimed at expanding high-speed internet access the United States

Building Digital Skills in Rural Maine: One Skill, One Device, One Person at a Time

This digital navigator program in rural Washington County, serves older residents. NDEC partners with community organizations, libraries, town halls, churches, and senior centers to provide digital training and guidance, transforming spaces that locals trust into digital learning hubs. Their approach is rooted in patience and understanding, offering one-on-one support and leaning on NDEC Digital Skills staff to teach digital skills tailored to each community’s needs.