San Diego Wants to Fix Your Computer. Or Maybe Buy You One. Or a Phone

About 53,000 San Diegans have no internet access, according to city officials

According to city figures, about 53,000 San Diegans have no internet access, which has prompted officials to launch the Digital Navigator program.
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The city of San Dβ€ͺiego is now offering to be your own, personal IT department. For free.

OK, OK, hold up, you can also put it this way: The city's "Digital Navigator Plan" offers "free one-on-one support for San Diegans to obtain affordable internet service and to improve computer skills."

City officials say the driving force behind the idea is "to close the digital divide that leaves an estimated 53,000 San Diegans without internet access" and that the plan will operate under the city's SD Access 4 All initiative that provides wi-fi at more than 400 sites and has "purchased thousands of new laptops and mobile hotspots available for checkout from libraries."

Officials said, so far, more than 700 people have gotten help from digital navigators since July's soft launch of the program, which at this point has had $105,000 budgeted, with seven "digital navigators," a city spokeswoman told NBC 7 on Wednesday. Four additional navigators are expected to be hired soon as well, she added.

"The navigators are interns that work part-time," the spokeswoman said. "They are managed by city staff and the San Diego Futures Foundation, which is partnering with the city on this program."

According to city figures, about 53,000 San Diegans have no internet access, which has prompted officials to launch the Digital Navigator program. The "navigators" can, according to the city:

  • Obtain a low-cost computer or smartphone
  • Get basic tech support
  • Find and enroll in adult educational programs, workforce development or digital literacy classes
  • Sign up for affordable internet subscriptions
  • Use online programs to access education, work, telehealth, government services, housing assistance and more

β€œThe global pandemic made it clear how vital internet access is in our modern world as we saw many families struggle with online learning and remote work,” Jonathan Behnke, director of the city's IT department said in a news release sent out this week.

People looking for help will be offered assistance in multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Arabic, Cantonese, Dari/Farsi, French, Hindi, Russian and Vietnamese.

Want to connect with a digital navigator? Call 800-350-6945. The help line is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (till 6 p.m. on Tuesdays), and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Users can also get in-person assistance "during select weekdays (hours vary)" at the following locations: Central Library, Logan Heights Library, Park de la Cruz Community Center, San Ysidro Library, San Diego College of Continuing Education and Valencia Park/Malcolm X Library.

NBC 7 has asked the city how many employees are involved in the program and what the program's operating budget is and will update this article when that information has been passed along β€” Ed.

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