NRPL Foundation Funds WiFi Hot Spots for New Rochelle Students

Last spring as New Rochelle’s School District struggled to implement remote learning it had to confront a stark digital divide: In a city with 10,000 students there more than 1,000 living in homes without Internet access. It was clear that the situation would contribute to a gaping educational chasm.

Made aware of this challenge – and motivated by the New Rochelle Public Library’s mission to provide fair and equal access to information -- the NRPL and the New Rochelle Public Library Foundation launched an effort to provide the community with Mobile WiFi Hot Spot units, to be loaned to library patrons without internet access at home. “The library mission is all about making resources available to the community," explained NRPL Director Tom Geoffino. "It is the cornerstone of what we do.”

The NRPL Foundation pledged an initial $10,000, but community response helped leverage a much larger project. New Rochelle residents responded generously to the Foundation's fund-raising efforts, donating $22,000, while NRPL staff, in conjunction with City School District administrators, investigated the most effective way to help the most students.

The result: On October 22nd, NRPL Director Tom Geoffino, joined by NRPL Board of Trustees President Dierdra Clark and NRPL Foundation Board member Lynn Green, presented 40 T-Mobile WiFi Hot Spot units to Interim Superintendent of Schools Dr. Alex Marrone. Each of the 40 LTE hotspot devices can connect up to 15 devices, and provides 5GB unlimited high-speed data on the T-Mobile network.

Geoffino noted that “The NRPL Foundation raised more than $32,000 for this project. We are very grateful to Foundation Board members and to all who contributed to this incredibly worthwhile project. We also acknowledge and thank the Westchester Library System for its contribution of $2,000 was provided by the Westchester Library System.”

Interim Superintendent of Schools Dr. Alex Marrero accepted the units at the library on Thursday. “We thank the New Rochelle Public Library and the Foundation for this timely and thoughtful gesture,” he said. “With students learning remotely, whether in an all-distance learning or hybrid model, internet connectivity is not merely important – it is critical to ensuring that we offer a high-quality education to all students. These units will help ensure that students will have the access they need.”

Eventually, as the pandemic recedes the mobile Hot Spot units will revert to the Library, which plans to loan them to patrons. "The pandemic has emphasized and deepened the digital divide in our country,” said Foundation Vice President Lynn Green. “These units will help prevent that gap from widening in our community.”

The New Rochelle Public Library Foundation is a nonprofit organization that raises resources and provides advocacy to keep our library vibrant, up-to-date, and able to serve the diverse needs of the New Rochelle community. Created in 1993, to date the Foundation has raised more than $3 million and has established a $2 million+ endowment fund to ensure the future of our Library and provide an ongoing stream of funding for new and emerging needs. In addition, stepping in as a matching funder, the Foundation has been able to leverage its support to bring in an additional $960,000 dollars in New York State grants over the past 7 years. For more information call the NRPL Foundation at 914-632-7878, ext. 1600 or email info@nrplfoundation.org.