Comcast Logo
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Comcast Greater Chicago Region

Serving Central & Northern Illinois, Northwest Indiana & Southwest Michigan

  • About
  • Contact

Comcast and Chicago Housing Authority Collaborate to Close the Digital Divide for up to 91,000 HUD-Assisted Chicago Households in Major Internet Essentials Program Expansion

July 15, 2016

Internet Essentials to Reach More Than 40 Percent of All HUD-Assisted Households Nationwide…

Comcast and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) ConnectHome initiative took an historic step to close the digital divide in America.  Now, public housing and HUD-assisted residents living in Comcast’s service area can participate in Internet Essentials, the company’s high-speed internet adoption program for low-income families.  The expansion of Internet Essentials eligibility brings an affordable internet option to an estimated 2 million HUD-assisted homes nationwide, including Public Housing, Housing Choice Voucher and Multifamily programs.

In Chicago, Comcast and the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) will now work together to ensure that all CHA-supported households and the 91,000 HUD-assisted households in the city can participate in the digital economy and utilize online services on a fast, reliable home internet connection.  Chicago has more HUD-assisted households than any other city served by Comcast and Illinois is among the top states.  In addition to expanding in Chicago area, this announcement applies in additional cities Comcast serves in Illinois, including Rockford, Joliet, Peoria, Springfield and others.

Rahm Emanuel
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel

“From digital literacy training at Chicago Public Library to working with companies like Comcast to bring affordable internet to families, Chicago is committed to providing residents opportunities for success,” Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said. “This expansion will make it easier for more children to do their homework, more adults to look for jobs and for more Chicagoans to build a better future.”

The top ten states and cities with the largest numbers of HUD-assisted households in Comcast’s service area include*:

Top 10 States Top 10 Cities
California 191,000 Chicago, IL 91,000
Illinois 175,000 Philadelphia, PA 35,000
Massachusetts 167,000 Miami, FL 31,000
Pennsylvania 164,000 Baltimore, MD 31,000
Florida 136,000 Houston, TX 31,000
Michigan 110,000 Washington, DC 30,000
New Jersey 105,000 Detroit, MI 25,000
Maryland 88,000 Atlanta, GA 24,000
Georgia 84,000 San Francisco, CA 22,000
Tennessee 80,000 Pittsburgh, PA 20,000

*These numbers are for all HUD-assisted homes of which approximately 35 percent have school-aged children and are, therefore, already eligible to apply for Internet Essentials. These numbers also include households covered by Comcast’s public housing pilot announced in March.

04.12.16 - Chicago, IL - Headshots of CEO Eugene Jones, Jr.
Eugene Jones, Chicago Housing Authority Chief Executive Officer

“CHA is pleased that this program is expanding so that our residents can have the convenience of Internet access at home,” said CHA CEO Eugene Jones, Jr. “Providing quality services to our residents to support their needs and improve their lives continues to be our biggest priority at CHA.”

“This announcement underscores Comcast’s determination to partner with leading organizations to close the digital divide for low-income families across the entire city of Chicago,” said John Crowley, senior vice president of Comcast’s Greater Chicago Region.  “This is the single largest expansion of the Internet Essentials program in its history, and we’re thrilled to be working with the CHA to help connect even more families, including seniors, veterans and adults without children, to the transformative power of having internet service at home.”

Between 2009 and 2014, broadband service providers spent over $422 billion on capital investments, and three in four American households now use broadband at home.  Despite this significant progress, one in four American households still don’t access the internet at home, particularly lower-income families with children.  According to the 2013 American Community Survey, less than 43 percent of individuals without a high school diploma or equivalent lack home internet access, but under this opportunity adults and young learners can get connected from the comfort of their own homes and take advantage of resources to get a GED, apply for and complete college, and acquire the necessary digital literacy skills to thrive in a highly competitive, global workforce.

ConnectHome strives to ensure students can access the same level of high-speed Internet at home that they have in their classrooms.  Today’s announcement furthers this vision and brings this commitment to more communities, benefiting students of all ages.

This is the ninth time in five years Comcast has expanded eligibility for Internet Essentials. The policy change marks the first time, nationally, households without children eligible to participate in the National School Lunch Program are officially able to apply for Internet Essentials. In 2011, the program was first offered to families with children eligible to receive a free school lunch from the National School Lunch Program.  It was expanded, in 2012, to children eligible for the reduced price school lunch program.  In 2013, Comcast expanded eligibility to include families with children in parochial, private, charter, and cyber schools, as well as students who are home schooled.  Last year, Comcast extended the program two more times, on a pilot basis, to low-income community college students in Illinois and Colorado and to low-income seniors in areas of Boston, Palm Beach County, Philadelphia, San Francisco County, and Seattle.  Earlier this year, another pilot program extended Internet Essentials to those living in public housing in Miami, Nashville, Philadelphia, and Seattle.  Finally, Comcast has expanded the number of schools where every student in the school will be deemed eligible for the program so long as a certain percentage of the kids in that school are NSLP eligible – from 70 percent, to 50 percent, and now to 40 percent.  As a result, Comcast estimates auto-enrollment now applies to about half of the 48,000 schools across its service area.

Internet Essentials Key Investments

From August 2011 through December 2015, Internet Essentials has connected more than 600,000 low-income families, benefitting more than 2.4 million Americans, to the internet at home. Also since 2011, Comcast has invested more than $280 million in cash and in-kind support to help fund digital literacy training and education initiatives, reaching nearly 4.4 million people through national and local nonprofit community partners. 

  • Provided more than 47,000 subsidized computers at less than $150 each.
  • Distributed for free nearly 51 million Internet Essentials program materials.
  • Broadcast more than 8.3 million public service announcements, valued at more than $100 million.
  • Welcomed 5 million visitors to the Internet Essentials websites in English and Spanish and its Online Learning Center.
  • Fielded more than 3.9 million phone calls to our Internet Essentials call center.
  • Made Internet Essentials available in nearly 48,000 schools in more than 5,000 school districts, in 39 states and the District of Columbia.
  • Partnered with 9,000 community-based organizations, government agencies, and federal, state, and local elected officials – with 1,000 in the Chicago region alone – to spread the word.

 About ConnectHome

Building on the Obama Administration’s goal to expand high speed broadband to all Americans, in July 2015, President Obama and HUD Secretary Julián Castro announced ConnectHome, an initiative to extend affordable broadband access to families living in HUD-assisted housing.  Through ConnectHome, internet service providers, non-profits and the private sector are offering broadband access, technical training, digital literacy programs, and devices for residents in assisted housing units in 28 pilot communities across the nation. ConnectHome creates a platform to help ensure that students have access to high-speed internet for studying and doing their homework at home, as well as in school.

About Internet Essentials

Internet Essentials from Comcast is the nation’s largest and most comprehensive high-speed internet adoption program.  It provides low-cost high-speed internet service for $9.95 a month plus tax; the option to purchase an internet-ready computer for under $150; and multiple options to access free digital literacy training in print, online and in-person.  For more information, or to apply for the program, visit www.InternetEssentials.com or call 1-855-846-8376. Spanish speakers should call 1-855-765-6995.

About Comcast Corporation

Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is one of the nation’s largest video, high-speed internet and phone providers to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses.  NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts.  Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.

Filed Under: 2016 Community Investment
Tagged With: Chicago Housing Authority, ConnectHome, david l. cohen, digital divide, Eugene Jones, internet essentials, john crowley, Julian Castro, Rahm Emanuel

Products and Services

Comcast Signs Agreements with State of Indiana: Joint $50 Million Investment Will Bring Fiber Network to 10,000+ Rural Hoosiers Across 19 Counties

February 6, 2023

February 6, 2023 – Comcast has signed contracts with Indiana’s Office of Community & Rural Affairs (OCRA) to bring gigabit-capable broadband service to … Read More...

Community Investment

Springfield Area Business and Community Leaders Discuss Once-in-a-generation Chance to Bring Broadband Internet Service to Rural and Underserved Communities

February 6, 2023

Future of Sangamon County Relies on Increasing Digital Equity, Building a Next Generation Workforce  February 6, 2023 – Springfield area business and … Read More...

Customer Experience

Joe Browning named Comcast’s Regional Vice President of Technical Operations

December 5, 2022

Milton resident joins senior regional leadership team December 5, 2022 – Milton, WI, resident Joe Browning has been named Vice President of Technical … Read More...

Terms of Service. Privacy Policy. Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Copyright © 2023 Comcast Corporation. All rights reserved.

Comcast Logo

This site uses cookies to enable your digital experience. By continuing to use this site, you agree to the use of cookies as described in our Privacy Policy.

I agree
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo