Fall 2022 Digital Equity Leadership Lab Cohort Announcement
Fall 2022 Digital Equity Leadership Lab Cohort Announcement
The Robert W. Deutsch Foundation is thrilled to announce the twenty-seven participants selected for our third Digital Equity Leadership Lab (DELL) Cohort. DELL is a seven-week program designed for city residents who want to increase their understanding of the internet and strengthen their ability to advocate for fast, affordable, and reliable broadband for all of Baltimore’s neighborhoods.
Grounded in the belief that the internet is the most powerful technology of our lifetime, DELL recognizes community advocates have been taught very little about how the internet, and its related technologies, work. DELL was designed to support resident advocates working to close the digital divide in Baltimore, with a focus on building an increased understanding of how the internet and internet regulation work so that community members can imagine and build new solutions for their communities.
At the end of the program, participants are eligible to apply for collaborative small-project grants. To date, DELL grants have supported a Community Internet Fair, Cell Phone Repair Clinic, a Bring the Internet Outdoors Design Charrette, and more.
Fall 2022 DELL Participants:
Leo Arreaza , Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition
Alphonso Barney, East Baltimore Development Inc.
Jamila Blake, Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition
Erica Brice, Village Learning Place
Terry Brown, PCs for People
Carey Cabrera, Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs
Cesia Calero, Robert W. Deutsch Foundation
Audrey Carter, The People’s Association of Oliver Community
Antonia Daniels, East Baltimore Development, Inc.
Franklin Delaine, People’s Park Initiative/Baltimore Cease Fire
Dominique Douglas-Aur, PCs for People
Leslie Evans, Pathways to Housing Baltimore
David Fedd, Charles Village Community Benefits District
Aja Hope, Village Learning Place
Fancie Kirby, NPower Maryland
Alethia McCullough, Reservoir Hill Association
Megan McSwain, Central Baltimore Partnership
James Merritt,
Maggie Schneider, Central Baltimore Partnership
Raymond Spence, Motor House
Isadora Stern, Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition
William Sullivan, North East Housing Initiative
Melda Washington, Reservoir Hill Association
Kristina Williams, Charles Village Community Benefits District
Kyle Wise, NPower Maryland
Wynisha Witt, Byte Back
Wesley Wood, PCs for People
“Since our founding, the Robert W. Deutsch Foundation has been involved in efforts to bring, what was then known as the ‘world wide web,’ to communities that could benefit from the opportunities it created. Three decades later, we remain committed to the belief that the internet should be treated as an equitable public infrastructure with the potential to generate enormous community benefits,” said Jane Brown, the foundation’s President.
amalia deloney, Vice President and Director of Digital Equity, added, “The power of the internet is undeniable; it should be a force for social good, solving real problems in local communities. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill provides $2.75 billion dollars for the purpose of achieving digital equity + inclusion. This is a once-in-a-generation investment that requires significant input and oversight from communities. Now more than ever we need community voices and visions shaping the future of this critical infrastructure.”
Over the course of seven-weeks, DELL participants will be joined by the following national experts:
Andrew Afflerbach, CEO and Director, CTC Technology and Energy
Matt Wood, Vice President of Policy and General Counsel, Free Press
Chris Mitchell, Director of the Community Broadband Networks Initiative, Institute for Local Self Reliance
Ry Marcattilio McCracken, Senior Researcher, Institute for Local Self-Reliance
Sarah Morris, Senior Advisor, Office of the Assistant Secretary, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (invited)
Angela Bennet, Digital Equity Director, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (invited)
Gigi Sohn, Distinguished Fellow at the Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law &
Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, Former Commissioner and Acting Chairwoman of the FCC
Councilor Jonathan Paz, City Council for Ward 9, Waltham, MA
Hannah Sassman, Executive Director, People’s Tech Project
Brandon Forester, National Organizer for Internet Rights and Platform Accountability, MediaJustice
Presentation topics include, but are not limited to: FCC Advocacy, How the Internet Works, Community Networks, the Internet and Racial Justice, and the Telecom Industry.