Nonprofit offers alternative funding for school, library Wi-Fi programs
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By
Chris Teale
Mission Telecom said it would match any discounts those institutions received under the FCC’s E-Rate program for loaning out Wi-Fi hotspots and providing service on school buses.
Public schools and libraries are still trying to work out how to help pay for Wi-Fi access on school buses and for programs to loan out Wi-Fi hotspots, and one nonprofit has offered a path forward.
Mission Telecom, a telecommunications provider that also offers grants, said earlier this month it would match any discounts schools and libraries received under the Federal Communications Commission’s E-Rate program for the two connectivity initiatives. The FCC voted last month to end federal funding for bus-based Wi-Fi and library hotspot loans.
Mark Colwell, director of broadband operations at Mission Telecom, said the group was able to afford to step in as it holds spectrum licenses and leases access to a T-Mobile subsidiary. He said it’s a crucial step to help lessen the digital divide, not helped by the FCC’s decision.
“[The FCC vote] was pretty devastating to a lot of schools who had planned on using E-Rate for connections, maybe even entered into contracts with vendors, and now they've got to either foot the bill on their own or cancel their programs,” Colwell told Route Fifty in a recent interview. “What we're seeing with a lot of schools and libraries in this program is they don't have the ability to come up with the out-of-pocket cost that they were expecting from E-Rate.”
Mission Telecom urged schools and libraries to complete a sign-up form and provide a copy of the paperwork they provided to the FCC for E-Rate reimbursement. The organization said it would honor the applicant’s share of cost after it received a discount from the program, and guaranteed it would do so through June 30, 2026.
The effort is fast to set up, too, as Mission Telecom said it could send new SIM cards to compatible hotspot devices for service within three to five business days, and they will offer unlimited data plans and Bring Your Own Device options for schools and libraries as well.
“For the many libraries approved for E-Rate hotspot funding in FY 2025, only to have it snatched away retroactively by the FCC, Mission Telecom’s offer will protect books and services that would otherwise be cut,” Sam Helmick, president of the American Library Association, said in a statement released by Mission Telecom. “We are deeply appreciative that an internet service provider is stepping up to fill the gap left by the FCC this year. Americans, especially those in small and rural communities, need a sustainable solution for broadband. ALA looks forward to the FCC’s Plan B to ensure everyone has affordable, adequate internet access for everyday needs, wherever they live.”
Already, Colwell said there has been a lot of interest from schools and libraries, which have been reeling from the loss of this funding as well as the loss of grants under the Digital Equity Act that were rescinded by President Donald Trump. A lawsuit is trying to reinstate those funds but will take a while to work its way through the courts, making for a worrying situation in the meantime.
“Right now, in the nonprofit sector and even in schools and libraries, there's just a lot of uncertainty,” Colwell said.
Adding to that uncertainty are the budgetary pressures that governments at all levels face as they try to decide how much to fund digital equity, as well as their other competing priorities like food security, housing, the arts and others. Colwell said getting the message right on digital equity will be key.
“I think part of what the digital equity community has to do is try to message to them about the value and economic mobility of a family that gets on the internet, and the value of trying to get people the skill set to use computers and be online,” he said. “I do think we'll see more of it, but it might have to be positioned or messaged in a way that is appealing to the folks who ultimately have to decide between different priorities.”
Using E-Rate to help subsidize school bus Wi-Fi access and hotspot loans may yet return if a future FCC decides to overturn this decision. But it may be stopped altogether if a U.S. Senate-passed resolution to repeal the program also passes in the House of Representatives and is signed by Trump before the end of next year, when the Congressional term ends.
“If there's a silver lining, it's like the better of two bad options,” for the FCC to overturn it without a change in the law by Congress, Colwell said.