Kansas kicks off effort to increase high-speed Internet for schools

The Sunflower State it planning to boost Internet speeds in its public schools.

The State of Kansas on Tuesday announced a partnership with San Francisco-based nonprofit EducationSuperHighway to increase school districts’ access to affordable, high-speed broadband.

At no cost, the organization will help districts with IT support and data analysis to help upgrade the schools’ Internet networks. The effort is a part of Kansas’ larger efforts to increase digital learning among K-12th grade students.

“This partnership will help expand technology in every classroom across the state,” Kansas Commissioner of Education Randy Watson said in a release. “The goal of this initiative is for every child to have the same opportunities when it comes to learning through technology. This is important — especially since the new vision focuses on every child becoming successful.”

EducationSuperHighway was founded in 2012 and focuses on upgrading Internet access in all U.S. schools. EducationSuperHighway — along with its government and education partners — has worked to add an additional $2.5 billion per year in broadband funding from the Federal Communications Commission, according to the company. This helped an additional 20 million students get connected to the Internet in the last year.