The pilot program, ConnectHome, will be carried out in different forms in public housing units in 27 cities and in one Native American tribal area, largely focusing on households with school-age children. The program will involve city officials; eight Internet providers, like Cox Communications; at least one university; and even Best Buy, which will offer computer training to residents in some cities.

In Macon, Ga., the program will offer residents a chance to buy tablets with educational software installed for $30 each. Other communities will receive free help with SAT preparation and free technical support. Google Fiber will offer free Internet connections to some public housing residents in Atlanta; Durham, N.C.; Kansas City, Mo.; and Nashville.

Mr. Obama announced the ConnectHome program in the capital of the Choctaw Nation, where 425 public housing residents will be eligible to receive low-cost Internet connections and free digital literacy classes.

The program is an extension of the president’s ConnectED initiative, which was announced in 2013. It aimed to link 99 percent of the students from kindergarten through 12th grade to high-speed Internet in classrooms and libraries over the next five years.

The housing secretary, Julián Castro, in his first public speech in the role last year, cited expanding broadband access as a priority, mentioning how people lean against the windows outside a library in the Bronx in search of free Wi-Fi for their phones.

Mr. Castro on Wednesday also announced rules that would require new public housing and major renovations to include infrastructure to support broadband connections. He noted that while computers are not being provided to residents now, the agency is exploring opportunities with partners to do so. “We’re not just making the Internet more accessible, but more meaningful,” he said.

The new program is part of a renewed vigor in the Obama administration’s housing agenda coming late in his final term and recently emboldened by a Supreme Court ruling endorsing a broad interpretation of the Fair Housing Act of 1968. That ruling allows for more lawsuits that civil rights groups say could help fight housing discrimination. Last week, the administration announced a new effort to reduce racial segregation in neighborhoods by requiring municipalities to track how they will use federal housing money to reduce racial disparities or face penalties.