Dallas ISD abandons private wireless network to focus on effective ways to provide internet access at home for students who don't have it.

More than two years after the Dallas Public Library added laptops and hotspots to its circulation catalog, they’re still in high demand.

Dallas ISD invested in 40,000 hotspots last school year for families without reliable internet at home, but this year DISD plans to spend $18 million on at-home wired connections for its students.

Now that anyone who wants a vaccine can get one, the challenge is overcoming barriers such as internet access needed to register for the vaccine and transportation needed to get to appointments, plus the even more daunting barrier of trust.

Dallas ISD built a large cell tower on Lincoln High School’s campus to extend the existing WiFi signal to homes within a two-mile radius of the school so students and their families could access the internet for free.

Dallas ISD officials have a three-phase plan to give families free WiFi that could minimize the city’s digital divide.