KPL Partners with DAFA To Provide Internet Access to 1,000 Kalamazoo Households

Partnership Addresses WiFi Inequalities

Kalamazoo Public Library is honored to partner with Kalamazoo Public Schools (KPS), The Kalamazoo Promise, the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, and the City of Kalamazoo with funding provided by The Foundation for Excellence to provide Wi-Fi routers with unlimited Internet service to 1,000 households in Kalamazoo.

The partnership, known as Digital Access for All (DAFA) was formed on April 2, 2020, to address Wi-Fi inequities in Kalamazoo, an issue that became more exacerbated during the executive order that closed public schools, libraries and many local businesses that used to serve as Wi-Fi providers for many families.

“Access to the Internet has already become more of a necessity than a luxury, even without a pandemic,” stated Ryan Wieber, Director of Kalamazoo Public Library. “It is essential for learning, research, banking, collaborating, and a critical part of an education in itself.”

As part of the DAFA program, hotspots and services will be purchased for KPS students who currently don’t have access to the Internet. KPL will serve as the distribution point where eligible students can check out a hotspot using their OneCard, which already allows students to borrow books, movies, and more from the library.

Eligible participants must be KPS students participating in the OneCard Program. Families that have identified themselves as having “no Internet access” will be offered priority registration. Only one device per street address and residence will be permitted.

More information about the DAFA program will be provided to KPS families in the coming weeks.

Recent MLive coverage of DAFA can be read here.