数字奇迹工作者
在21岁的布里顿·博尔根于2024年1月前往美国福尔斯辅助生活中心后，雷和塔米·纳什与州外的家庭成员重新建立了联系，并恢复了与孩子们的日常交流.
Bolgen, who is serving as an AmeriCorps member with 365滚球官网扩展’s 数字经济计划 (DEP), 在埃奇伍德斯普林斯克里克餐厅，他向纳什夫妇和其他人宣布，如果有人愿意和他见面，接受几个小时的免费电脑初365滚球官网培训，他将赠送一台二手Chromebook笔记本电脑.
The aim of DEP is to reduce the digital divide, 或者是那些能上网和使用可靠设备的人与不能上网的人之间的差距, by teaching rural Idahoans 基本的计算机技能, and the results can be life changing for participants.
UI 扩展的三名地区DEP协调员负责监督10名美国服务队工作人员, 包括Bolgen, 谁在他们所分配的社区中采用创造性的方法来教授数字素养. 该计划还包括a Remote Work Professional Certificate 课程，教参与者如何使用技术成功地在家工作.
The Nashes had no way of connecting with loved ones, aside from in-person visits and using the Edgewood Spring Creek business phone, after they let their cell phone plans lapse to cut costs. 现在，他们有了技术手段，可以随时通过Messenger与朋友和家人聊天, which Bolgen helped them download onto their Chromebooks.
“That’s how I communicate with my kids. They think it’s great,” said Tammy Nash. “I communicate with my sisters who live in Eugene, 俄勒冈州, and I can communicate with my sister who lives in Medford, 俄勒冈州.”
Mastering modern technology has been especially challenging for Ray Nash, and he’s appreciated Bolgen’s willingness to repeatedly explain the same concepts.
“I’ve had some things that were messed up and he says, ‘It’s OK. 我来告诉你怎么做,’” Ray Nash said while playing a puzzle game, 用宝石来装饰的, 在他的Chromebook上. “他有约伯的耐心.”
博尔根每天把他的工作活动报告发给爱达荷州东南部地区主任, 莫妮卡汉普顿. 该项目由爱达荷州北部的斯蒂芬妮·盖顿和爱达荷州西南部的凯瑟琳·利奇负责.
博尔根与耶稣基督后期圣徒教会一起从波斯尼亚-黑塞哥维那传教回来后，于2024年1月加入了这个项目, 他计划在今年8月在DEP的任期结束后进入护理学校. He learned of the opportunity through Randy Jensen, superintendent of the American Falls School District.
詹森说:“他是这份工作的最佳人选，因为他非常善良，非常有耐心。. “他也很有野心. He’s taken the initiative to find people he can help and serve.”
The school district retires students’ personal Chromebooks after five years in service. Jensen has been giving them to Bolgen, 谁擦了硬盘然后用它来招募社区成员参加他的培训计划. He’s given away more than 60 Chromebooks so far.
Bolgen personally developed the curriculum he teaches, covering how to set up an email account, 如何视频聊天, 如何配置Chromebook, basic keyboard functions and other skills.
博尔根晚上参加了学区的家长会，詹森对此印象深刻, during which he helped 26 families sign up for $1,000 stipends per child totaling $48,通过爱达荷州教育部为他的社区提供互联网服务和其他合格的教育服务和设备 让父母 格兰特.
Bolgen keeps an office at the school district’s Community Center, where he teaches technology classes starting at 6 p.m. 每个星期二. He also offers classes at American Falls District Library. 招募参与者, 他给学区的家长发电子邮件，并在当地的聚会场所进行宣传, such as lunchtime at Power County Senior Center. 有时, he dines with the seniors to field questions about computers, cell phones and technology in general.
“看到人们在完成培训后脸上的笑容，他们可以保留这些chromebook，这真是太有意义了. I had a lady give me a hug out of nowhere,” Bolgen said. “I can’t imagine what it would be like if this position wasn’t in American Falls, just because of the huge difference it has made in the community.”
During a recent Friday afternoon class 在图书馆, Bolgen answered technology questions from a small group of students. 他帮助詹尼斯·卡尔森解锁了一部智能手机的秘密，她已经用了一年多，但仍在学习使用.
丹尼斯·米勒(Denise Miller)帮助培训了她91岁的岳父，后者把博尔根的一台chromebook带回家.
“He did not want a Chromebook but we got him one anyway, and now he loves it. It actually has changed his life,” Miller said. “He plays solitaire and he listens to old country music that he can’t get on the radio.”
Overcoming a Stroke with Technology
大约七年前，一名妇女到萨尔蒙公共图书馆寻求DEP美国服务队成员麦肯齐·戴维斯(Mckenzie 戴维斯)的帮助，因为中风而失去了与人交谈的能力.
戴维斯, 谁为莱姆希县服务, has helped 那个女人 adapt to a new way of communicating using technology.
自从中风之后, 那个女人, 他要求匿名, hasn’t been able to speak or comprehend spoken words. 然而，她保持了用文字表达自己想法和理解书面文字的能力.
戴维斯在这名女子的手机上安装了一个应用程序，可以将音频通信转换为文本, which has enabled her to resume face-to-face and phone conversations. 戴维斯还在这位女士的电脑上下载了谷歌语音应用程序，以记录Zoom的讨论, 从而使她能够通过打字和字幕参与中风幸存者的在线支持小组.
“她几乎要哭了，因为这对她更好地沟通有多大帮助，因为我认为她不知道还有别的办法,戴维斯说.
戴维斯每周二上午10点开始的技术帮助会议吸引了越来越多的人.m. 到2点.m. 在图书馆. 人们经常来寻求帮助填写医疗补助福利的在线申请. 她也教Excel, 基本的计算机技能, how to work a cell phone and even how to print return labels for online purchases.
“There are a bunch of people in Salmon who are lacking digital skills. I came up with this idea of Tech Tuesdays 在图书馆,戴维斯说. “I didn’t expect it to explode as much as it did.”
戴维斯, 24, 她曾与图书馆管理人员会面，讨论她在美国服务队(AmeriCorps)在DEP的服务期限于7月结束后，能否继续以志愿者的身份提供服务.
“这个项目的结束让我很难过，因为我认为这个地区仍然需要这种资源,戴维斯说.
Bridging the Workforce Digital Divide
U of I partners with Utah State University (USU) to offer the four-week, online Remote Work Professional Certificate, which is one of DEP’s other major prongs.
Participants complete virtual learning modules offered by USU, which prepare them to work remotely and remain in their rural communities. DEP员工批改作业，监督分组讨论室，并为爱达荷州的参与者提供直接支持.
“我们确实开始引入可能被企业使用的工具，这样他们就可以熟悉一些他们可能不熟悉的东西,安布尔·斯迈耶说, 部经理.
The Idaho Legislature authorized $1.3 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funding toward the three-year program. 自该项目于2022年11月启动以来，已经有10个小组(每个小组最多有12名学生)完成了该证书课程. UI 扩展 subsidizes the enrollment costs, 该州人口最多的六个县的居民收费100美元，退伍军人收费50美元, low-income participants and residents of rural counties.
The certificate program has drawn mostly women seeking greater flexibility, 包括年轻的母亲, caregivers of aging parents and retirees seeking a new income stream. Other participants look to bolster skills for jobs they already have.
“The goal is to get people online,” Smyer said. “通过专注于支持那些由于缺乏数字访问而无法充分参与我们日益数字化的社会和经济中的项目或服务的爱达荷人, 我们可以赋予他们技能和信心，让他们能够利用我们的资源来提高生活质量.”
