The City of Seattle will donate $320,000 in cash, labor, software, and hardware to expand technology access in marginalized communities. The funds and resources are the latest investment from the city’s Technology Matching Fund, an annual grant program designed to improve digital literacy.
“We want to do our part to level the technology learning field and give all Seattle residents the educational opportunities afforded to them despite access or income level,” said Seattle’s Chief Technology Officer Saad Bashir in a statement.
For more than two decades, the Technology Matching Fund has been awarding grants of up to $50,000 to fund digital equity projects at non-profits around the city. The program is one branch of Seattle’s Digital Equity Initiative.
The city chose 11 recipients from a pool of 47 applicants for this year’s donations. The projects include coding and web design training for low-income women of color, a computer lab for people experiencing homelessness, and more programs to narrow the digital skills gap in Seattle.
This year’s recipients of the Technology Matching Fund grants are:
- Atlantic Street Center
- Computing For All
- Dress for Success Seattle
- Full Life Care
- Indigenouz PlaceMakerz
- Jack Straw Foundation
- Kin On Health Care Center
- Multimedia Resources and Training Institute
- Real Change Homeless Empowerment Project
- Seattle Neighborhood Group
- South Park Information and Resource Center
