Local Tech Desert: Racine Public Library’s Techmobile Helps Bridge the Gap

RACINE — closing the gap in the tech desert — the ability to provide everyone with consistent, effective Internet service — remains a common struggle across America.

The Racine area and surrounding communities are certainly not immune to these conditions.

The term “tech desert” has become a buzzword, and while Wisconsin isn’t one of the worst barren areas in the country, the fact that there are many families here is still a problem. In an age where nearly every part of our daily lives revolves around technology, that’s not an option.

The Negative Effects of Tech Deserts

“When technology is behind, it becomes more time-consuming to keep up with your education and career,” said Angela Zimmerman, executive director of the Racine Public Library, in a recent interview with the Racine County Eye. “Outdated or missing technology could completely prevent our community members from having some opportunities.”

According to a 2020 study, the states with the most internet deserts are Mississippi, Arkansas, New Mexico, Louisiana, West Virginia, Alabama, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kentucky and Oklahoma State. The states with the fewest deserts are Washington, Utah, Colorado, New Hampshire, California, Delaware, Maryland, Oregon, New Jersey and Massachusetts.

The study shows that 15% of Wisconsin households do not have access to reliable internet.

According to SatelliteInternet.com, a tech desert is defined as an area where residents cannot find affordable high-speed internet. Most of these occur in sparsely populated or rural areas, although there are some places in urban areas where such services do not exist.

According to a 2020 study by the World Economic Forum, 6% of Americans do not have access to a high-speed internet connection. In 2019, the FCC estimated that 21.3 million Americans did not have access to internet services at broadband speeds; Microsoft research suggests that number could be as high as 157.3 million.

What does this mean to us?

Families in East Caledonia and Wind Point were least affected by the Tech Desert, Zimmerman said, while the most affected areas were West Caledonia and Nerasim.

“However, it’s not just a family issue, but a lack of access affects one’s chances and has a knock-on effect across the community,” she said.

Zimmerman cites a study by staff at Julian Thomas Elementary School, which borders the region’s largest tech desert, as an example. During two years of community conversations at United Way in Racine County, staff reported that “outdated and sparse technology” was one of the biggest challenges facing their school.

Statistically speaking

Zimmerman provides some numbers to demonstrate the problem:

  • Low-income households across the state often sacrifice internet access for other necessities; 33% of households below the ALICE (Limited Assets, Income, Employment) threshold have no internet subscription, compared to 9% of households above the threshold .
  • Job seekers with lower incomes are more likely to apply for jobs on their phones; 32% of smartphone users earn less than $30,000, while 7% earn more than $75,000. Zimmerman points out that applying for jobs by phone is not ideal. “(This puts a bigger hurdle of time and difficulty for these applicants if the job application were to work on their phone at all.”
  • A Deutsche Bank study shows that black and Latino households have Internet access 10 years later than white households. By 2045, if that disparity is not corrected, 76 percent of blacks and 62 percent of Latinos will be “underprepared or completely disqualified” in 86 percent of the country’s jobs, Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman said now is the time for action in Racine and other areas affected by the Tech Desert.

“(We) have an opportunity to grow in a way that offsets inequality and removes barriers for low-income families, people of color and other marginalized communities,” she said. “However, the first step is resources and education, so free technology, easily accessible coding and engineering courses, and other services we offer on Techmobile and in the library.”

Techmobile debuts

Earlier this fall, the Racine Public Library launched its Techmobile, a custom vehicle funded by community donations and built by LDV in Burlington.

There are a number of technology-based programs available for visitors within Techmobile, including hotspots, laptops, programmable robots and technical books in English and Spanish. It will also house some of the library’s 3-D printers and laser engravers, which can be used for workshops and training.

Hopefully Techmobile and Library Go! Services will help bridge that gap, Zimmerman said. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, 6,279 households east of I-94 (11.5% of all households) do not have home Internet access.

The Racine Public Library’s custom Techmobile offers a way to bridge the gap in areas known as tech deserts, where internet service is lacking, among other gaps. – credit: Paul Hawley

“These households, and locations with lower checkout rates than the rest of our service area, are places where Techmobile will focus on serving,” she said.

The laser printers in the RPL Techmobile are hard at work. – credit: Paul Hawley

“If we can get a hot spot in one person’s hands, even if it’s just one person working on their resume, or give a kid a Chromebook so they can do their homework, we’re leveling the playing field and making a difference. Techmobile just provides Another source of innovative, community-wide access to all of the library’s resources.”

Going forward, Zimmerman said, in a perfect world, that gap would be completely closed — of course, we don’t live in a perfect world, and libraries aren’t immune to budget and staffing issues.

In addition to Techmobile, there are many projects that will continue to help Racine and its residents find their way, she said. The library will continue to use its Library Go! Set up with Bookmobile, Book Bike, its home delivery and outreach programs, and Techmobile.

“Ideally, we’d like to be available 24/7 to every corner of the population we serve, but the question of making that happen always comes back to funding and staffing,” Zimmerman said. “We will proudly listen to our community’s needs to the best of our ability…and hope we can develop further in the near future.”


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