2024 TECHNOLOGY MATCHING FUND PROJECTS
Casa Latina – $35,000 *funded by Comcast
Digital Literacy Program for Latinx Immigrant Workers provides digital navigator services and digital literacy classes for Latino immigrant workers to develop basic digital literacy skills.
Dabuli – $24,500 *funded by Comcast
The Technology for All project provides digital literacy training to immigrants, refugees, and seniors in the Seattle area, including general workshops on technology use and deeper training on specific technologies such as the Microsoft Office suite.
Eritrean Community in Seattle and Vicinity – $35,000
The Technology for the ECISV project supports the technological needs of newly immigrated Eritreans, Eritrean youth, and Eritrean elders through the distribution of laptops, tablets, and hotspots along with access to information for the safety and health of the Eritrean community.
Ethnic Cultural Heritage Exchange – $30,000
DIGITIZE provides digital literacy instruction with culturally responsive support services to give youth and young adults a platform for building confidence in their expression of identity and heritage and sharing their “own voices” and impactful stories through digital storytelling.
Evergreen Goodwill of Northwest Washington – $35,000
Digital Device Access and Navigation provides access to computers, in-person digital navigation, basic digital skills training, and technology assistance to support those furthest from economic opportunity.
KD Hall Foundation – $35,000
Elevating Future Female Tech Leaders through Digital Literacy provides a holistic approach that empowers women and girls by fostering skills, confidence, and inclusivity through digital literacy workshops, devices, technical support, and internet connectivity.
Lao Senior Outreach – $25,000
Lao Seniors Connect provides mobile devices, digital literacy skills training, and technical support to Lao-Southeast Asian seniors, enhancing their digital skills, increasing their access to information and opportunities, reducing their social isolation and loneliness, and improving their quality of life.
Literacy Source – $35,000
Classes and Training for Adults provides basic digital skills training to individuals and small groups of adults impacted by racial, economic, and digital disparities.
Local Connectivity Lab – $35,000
Seattle Community Network (SCN) provides smartphones and laptops with free mobile data and Wi-Fi using the Citizens’ Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) LTE wireless network, providing internet access for low-income and housing-unstable groups.
Oromo Cultural Center – $35,000
Digital Navigator Project provides a team of bilingual digital navigators in Oromo, Somali, Amharic, and English, addressing the unique cultural, linguistic, and economic challenges these communities face in accessing digital resources and technology and using online resources for education, employment, and civic participation.
Path with Art – $35,000
Digital Accessibility and Equity provides multidisciplinary arts engagement, community building, access to devices and the internet, and individualized technology assistance to close the digital divide for underserved adults in recovery from trauma.
Renaissance 21 – $35,000
Project Lift Off by Star Tech Global Academy provides workshops, devices, connectivity, digital literacy skills, and job market readiness for underserved young adults.
Seattle Jobs Initiative – $35,000
Digital Bridge provides digital literacy training, technology, and open labs to underrepresented and low-income residents, creating digital independence through sustained training in common applications and tools to write resumes, access benefits and health care, and search for jobs online.
Serve Ethiopians Washington – $35,000
Digital Empowerment for East African Seniors provides personalized support via digital navigators, smartphones, and digital literacy instruction in Amharic and Oromo.
Solid Ground Washington – $35,000
Resident Devices and Connectivity provides devices and hotspots across two housing sites for community members formerly experiencing homelessness and living on low incomes.
Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle – $35,000
Digital Navigation and Skills Training provides digital navigation services and culturally relevant one-on-one and group-setting digital skills training for diverse ethnic groups, including those experiencing homelessness, previously incarcerated, seniors, veterans, those under or unemployed with limited job-related skills training, and those who may or may not have a high school diploma or GED.
Wasat Community – $35,000
Digital Literacy Initiative provides essential digital skills, from basic computer literacy to internet safety, enabling BIPOC, immigrant, and refugee participants to access vital online resources, job opportunities, and community services.
YWCA Seattle King Snohomish – $35,000
Work$ Digital Equity Enhancement provides laptops and digital literacy instruction to low-income BIPOC residents enrolled in the YWCA’s Work$ vocational training programs who require access to the necessary technology and skills to find and maintain jobs and participate in career development activities.
Applications were reviewed by 14 community volunteers from the Community Technology Advisory Board (CTAB), Washington State Library, Seattle Pacific University, and community-based organizations, as well as City of Seattle employees from Seattle IT, Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs, Human Services Department, Department of Neighborhoods, and The Seattle Public Library.