ALAMO, Texas – The Intercultural Development Research Association and ARISE Adelante have joined forces for a project to improve computer literacy skills in four colonias in Hidalgo County.
The two groups joined forces to launch the Digital Ambassadors Program. Under the program, high-school students in four colonias were trained as guides to help colonia residents in Las Milpas, South Tower, Muñiz, and Hargill with essential digital skills.
Michelle Vega, chief technology strategist at IDRA, said the Digital Ambassadors Pilot aims to bridge the digital skills gap by transforming students into technology trainers. She said students aged 12-18 living across the four colonias signed up to be Digital Ambassadors.
Connect Humanity provided ARISE Adelante with a grant to support the project as part of its broader effort to advance digital equity in South Texas through the Rio Grande Valley Broadband Coalition, a coalition initiated by Connect Humanity in collaboration with Rural LISC.