San Benito County supervisors gave their support this week to a
pilot program that will allow rural county residents to use
high-speed Internet access at their local schools.
Hollister – San Benito County supervisors gave their support this week to a pilot program that will allow rural county residents to use high-speed Internet access at their local schools.
On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to partner with the County Office of Education and provide $500 seed money for the developing program, which will get a trial run at Tres Pinos and Jefferson Elementary schools. The education office will match the county’s contribution and be in charge of hiring someone to be available in the evenings to teach residents how to navigate the Web and monitor how they use it.
“The cost is very minor,” County Superintendent of Schools Tim Foley said. “I think what is significant is it’s a partnership between the county and the County Office of Education that will benefit a significant population of the county that is underserved.”
Foley and Supervisor Reb Monaco have been working since October to develop the program, which they believe has the potential to benefit rural residents, especially those who aren’t computer-savvy.
“If we can get them connected to the opportunities of the Internet, that can be a life-changing event,” Foley said.
Foley said he hopes to get the program up and running sometime after the holidays and before the start of the spring semester.
If the program is successful at Tres Pinos and Jefferson, which are in rural south county, the program could be expanded to include more of the county’s nine rural schools. Monaco said one of the reasons they chose those schools was because Tres Pinos School, while being in a rural area, is larger and less remote than Jefferson.
“We want to use those two as trials, because they represent the extremes of what we’re talking about,” Monaco said. “If it works out successfully I think it has room for expansion – probably to most of the rural schools.”
While at first the program will allow rural residents to use the schools’ Internet for research and possibly making online purchases, Monaco said that it may eventually expand to offer even more – such as adult education classes.
The agreement between the county and the education office lasts until June 30. If the program is successful, Monaco said he and Foley will look into alternative ways to fund it, such as grants. Ongoing costs for the program were not readily available.
Luke Roney covers local government and the environment for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at lr****@fr***********.com
