Delaware is a national leader in classroom broadband speeds and connectivity, according to a 2018 State of the States report, Expanding Digital Learning in Every Classroom, Every Day, recently released by Education Superhighway. The State of Delaware is recognized for 100 percent school connectivity. The report also highlights that the First State exceeds the 100 Kbps per student goal. Over the past three years, connectivity speeds in Delaware schools have increased nearly eight times from 82 to 638 Kbps.

“My most important job as governor is to make sure that Delaware has a strong, growing and competitive economy. In order to achieve that, we must do everything we can to prepare our students for success,” said Gov. John Carney. “That includes helping provide students and educators with reliable access to high-speed broadband service. The availability of high-speed broadband to leverage digital learning is an absolute must, and the need for reliable access will only grow.”

“We are really excited that all our schools are connected and we have been able to increase speeds,” said James Collins, chief information officer at the Delaware Department of Technology and Information. “This is part of an ongoing process to improve access to broadband across the state. At the end of the day, these students go home and they still need to do their homework and remain connected. We’re working to leverage the investments we have made in our fiber broadband infrastructure. Our hope is to eliminate broadband deserts across our state entirely over the next 24 months through wireless connectivity.”

“Every child should graduate from Delaware’s public schools prepared to succeed in college or in a career,” said Susan Bunting, secretary of the Delaware Department of Education. “High-speed internet access to information and digital content are not only essential to learning but are also critical to preparing students for work in the future. I’m proud our state has worked to improve access for children and educators across the state.”