EQS-News: Comcast Makes Significant Investments in Fresno, California to Help Close the Digital Divide | 27.10.22

This new Lift Zone will provide free WiFi access, powered by a Comcast Business solution, to help connect young people and their families, seniors and community members to the internet so they can fully participate in educational opportunities and the economy digital. With this new location, Comcast has now established 16 lifting zones in Fresno County and a total of more than 150 lifting zones throughout its California service area.

Comcast also donated $ 25,000 to Saint Rest Baptist Church to help create a new computer lab and provide digital literacy training to students, families, seniors, and community members within Fresno. Earlier this year, Comcast also invested $ 1 million to expand its network in Biola, California, a rural community in Fresno County, as well as opening a lift zone in the Biola Community Services District. .

Through these significant investments and the provision of reliable WiFi service in multiple educational and community spaces, as well as homes and businesses, Comcast has helped thousands of people get online, bringing Central Valley closer to closing the digital divide.

Additionally, Comcast today announced at a technology trainee event a $ 200,000 investment in Bitwise Impact, a 501 (c) (3) to provide paid apprenticeships to learn technology skills and connect to significant technology opportunities in the Central Valley. The donation will help these organizations continue their impactful work in Fresno

For years, Comcast has demonstrated its commitment to supporting low-income families and our community by providing them with access to a cheap, fast, and reliable Internet connection, said Pastor DJ Criner, pastor of Saint Rest Baptist Church. We are proud to partner with Comcast to open this lift zone and look forward to the positive benefits it will bring to our Saint Rest community.

Comcast’s significant investment in Fresno will expand workforce development initiatives and show their commitment to connecting those who have been widely disadvantaged with life-changing opportunities in technology, said Irma Olguin Jr., board member of Bitwise Impact. . Today’s announcement and continued support from Comcast will increase access to technology training that supports small businesses, creates future leaders and entrepreneurs from individuals who otherwise would not have seen the tech industry as a place for them.

Our continued partnership with the St. Rest and Bitwise Baptist Church community is part of our ongoing work here in Fresno as we worked to promote digital equity and workforce preparedness in Central Valley communities, he said. Broderick Johnson, EVP, Digital Equity and EVP, Public Policy, Comcast Corporation. The opening of this new Lift Zone and computer lab in St. Rest and our $ 200,000 donation to Bitwise allows us to support students, seniors and families and provide them with the tools, skills and resources they need. to connect and achieve their goals.