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About Us

Mission

Connecting For Good provides internet access, computers, digital skills training and community partnerships to help low and moderate income communities open minds and opportunities for a better future.

vision

Connected communities through digital equity.

Our Core Values

  • Internet connectivity equals opportunity. It is an 
    absolute necessity in order to fully participate as a productive citizen in a digital society.
  • Education is the number one thing that lifts people from poverty. In a digital society it is impossible to pursue a quality education without access to the Internet.
  • In-home internet is as essential as any modern utility.

Digital Inclusion—and Connecting For Good as a National Leader

Connecting For Good provides internet access, computers, digital skills training and community partnerships to help low and moderate income communities open minds and opportunities for a better future.

Connecting For Good is one of only a small number of organizations in the United States offering programs across each of these five elements. Since we started in 2012, we have:

  • Built and installed over 60 internet networks forlow-income KC community partners
  • Refurbished and sold for as little as $50 each, over 2,000 donated computers
  • Provided training—from basic to advanced digital skills—to over 15,000 low-income KC residents
  • Created customized curriculum as well as access to hundreds of available courses for topics ranging from youth STEM to technical certifications
  • Supported over 100 non-profit partners with technical support and computer repairs

As a founding member of the Kansas City Coalition for Digital Inclusion, Connecting For Good is helping Kansas City forge a national leadership model to effectively bridging the Digital Divide.

program Impact

Connecting For Good has been bridging the Digital Divide since 2012 by providing connectivity, hardware and training and delivering impact through a focus on Education, Employment, Economic Impact and the Environment. We operate two community computer training and donation centers at 158 Santa Fe St in Kansas City, Missouri and 3210 Michigan Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri. These areas are two of Kansas City’s most under resourced neighborhoods.

sustainable outcomes

Education: In 2016, we trained 7,000 individuals from the urban core by teaching over 53 different digital literacy topics in over 15 different Kansas City locations.

Employment: We employ individuals we teach—six of our current staff started out as volunteers or students. We provide technical skills training through internships and partnerships with local work investment organizations like the Full Employment Council and in 2017, The KC Social Innovation Center, who organized the HireKC Youth program. In total, we have hosted over 30 interns since 2015, one of whom, has become a paid staff member.

Economic Impact: Our programs are built with sustainability in mind. We refurbish donated computers for resale to income-qualified consumers and we offer tech support as well as internet service support to community centers and non-profits serving the urban core. In 2016, we sold nearly 300 computers and connected over 1,400 internet subscribers in low-income housing. With growing demand from residents and non-profits for more computers and internet service, the earned income from computer sales and tech support helps to defray the costs of our services to the community.

Environment: Our communities benefit from the planet-friendly impact on our environment through our donation centers, computer refurbishing and responsible recycling of any unused computer equipment. We have prevented several tons of landfill from claiming unused computers through partnership with The Surplus Exchange and EPC, both certified recyclers of tech equipment. We are always looking to increase the number of donated computers we service and the amount of recyclable material we generate.

Our Approach

The bulk of CFG’s impact has come from building relationships through individualized training in both of our community computer labs, as well as remote training provided to low-income residents at churches, community centers and public housing facilities.

All but two of the staff began as clients or volunteers. According to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), “To successfully increase broadband adoption, all barriers must be addressed through a diverse set of local partners with established roots in the community. Each local solution should be tailored to the individual community. Equally important, trust – between the individual and organization providing instruction – is essential.” Every staff member has a high degree of empathy with clients.

As the only organization in the region whose sole mission is digital inclusion, CFG seeks to optimize collective impact across any organization offering help for low-income residents who seek to improve their lives through digital fluency.

Going Beyond Technology Access

CFG targets 7,500 participants in the current year, an average of 26 people per day across all sites served. Over 80% have annual incomes below federal poverty guidelines. Demographics include 85% African American, 10% Caucasian, and 5% Hispanic/Latino in KCMO and in KCK, the demographic is 85% African American, 5% Latino, and 10% Somali. Sixty-five percent are working age adults over the age of 21; 25% are retirees and older adults and 20% school-age children. Many clients are considered high-need based on risk factors such as a single-mother leading a household, poor academic attainment, lost time at work, negative behaviors (smoking, alcoholism, drug use), health issues (depression, obesity, heart disease) and language barriers among parents. The most common difficulty CFG faces is the constant interruption of these risk factors in the lives of its clients. This is why CFG’s staffing criteria include empathy, patience and positive persistence. CFG’s mission is founded on researched principles that is just now starting to become part of a national and global dialogue.

As the only organization in the region whose sole mission is digital inclusion, CFG seeks to optimize collective impact across any organization offering help for low-income residents who seek to improve their lives through digital fluency.

  • Partnering with Front Porch Alliance and Operation Breakthrough to teach digital literacy to moms with young kids
  • Youth STEM camps at Juniper Gardens
  • Supplying laptops and support to the Black Family Technology Awareness Association STEM Olympics fair
  • Equipping GreenWorks with computers and curriculum to supplement their interns’ professional development
  • Teaching a wide variety of digital courses to residents of the Housing Authority of KC
  • Participating monthly as a Steering Council member of the KC Coalition for Digital Inclusion