AT&T brings broadband to Latino youths

By Susan Rush
From The October 7, 2002 Edition Of CED Broadband Direct

Many Latino youths do not have broadband access in their homes, so the ASPIRA Association plans to open two new community technology centers to bring high-speed Internet access into their lives. A $225,000 grant from the AT&T Foundation will help establish the centers.

The centers, which will be outfitted with the latest computer technologies, will be located in Bronx, N.Y. and Bridgeport, Conn. More than 4,000 Latino youths are expected to benefit from the technology centers.

ASPIRA is a national organization dedicated to the education and leadership development of Latino youth. "We've found that the school retention rate of kids who have Internet access to be much higher than those who don't," ASPIRA President and CEO Ronald Blackburn-Moreno said in a prepared statement. Of the 54 million U.S. households with Internet access in 2000, only 9.5 million were Hispanic households, according to the US Census Bureau.

AT&T has contributed more than $500,000 in grants to help ASPIRA build 13 community centers in major-market cities. Eight of the facilities are located in urban areas in New York and New Jersey.