Washington DC Access to the Internet at home helps low-income families improve the quality of their schoolwork, job performance and ability to care for their family’s health, according to the results of a two-year study evaluating the impact of One Economy programs in San Jose, California, and Miami, Florida.
The programs, funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, brought affordable computers and Internet access into the homes of 200 families. Digital Connectors, part of One Economy’s youth program, provided technical support and training on localized versions of One Economy’s self-help website, the Beehive. These bilingual sites (www.beehivesanjose.org and www.beehivemiami.org) provide resources on topics including jobs, money, entrepreneurship, health, education and more.
To measure the effectiveness of these programs, Knight Foundation provided additional funding for One Economy to engage an independent evaluator, SRI International. SRI compared Internet usage among One Economy program participants to a national sample of low-income families surveyed by the Pew Internet and American Life Project.
By comparing findings of these families to the national study, SRI found that One Economy program participants are more likely to make technology a part of their lives. One Economy program participants reported feeling more capable and less disadvantaged in relation to others. Not only did technology empower them to take action, but their lives were more emotionally enriched.
“Our findings offer strong evidence that the One Economy program helps clients to integrate technology into their daily lives,” said Vera Michalchik, an SRI policy analyst and the study’s principal investigator. “The program offers tremendous promise to provide low-income people with tools needed to access useful and relevant information.”
Additional findings on the One Economy program participants include:
- As many as 50 percent use their computers to apply for jobs, make purchases, pursue educational activities and engage in banking.
- Over 70 percent report an improvement in schoolwork.
- Compared to the national sample, they are more than 50 percent more likely to take a class online.
“This study affirms that if low-income people have access to technology, they can and will use it to improve their lives,” said Rey Ramsey, Chief Executive Officer of One Economy Corporation. “The tools of the Digital Age do serve as a bridge between economic isolation and the economic mainstream.”
To view the full study, please visit www.one-economy.com/evaluations.
About One Economy Corporation
One Economy Corporation is a multi-national nonprofit founded in 2000 that uses technology-based strategies to help low income people improve their lives and join the economic mainstream. One Economy’s strategy brings broadband into the home along with online content through their bilingual consumer website the Beehive (www.thebeehive.org). Through its Bring IT Home campaign, One Economy has helped bring broadband into the homes of 200,000 low income people. To date nearly nine million individuals have used the Beehive. One Economy recently launched a campaign to expand these online offerings by creating the Public Internet Channel. For more information, visit
About John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes journalism excellence worldwide and invests in the vitality of U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. To learn more, visit www.knightfoundation.org.
About SRI International
Silicon Valley-based SRI International (www.sri.com) is one of the world’s leading independent research and technology development organizations. The nonprofit research institute performs contract research and development for government agencies, commercial businesses, and private foundations. In addition to conducting contract R&D, SRI licenses its technologies, forms strategic partnerships, and creates spin-off companies.
About the National Sample
The Pew Internet & American Life Project placed several questions on its December 2005 national survey of Americans that corresponded to the questions used by SRI in its longitudinal survey for One Economy. The Project worked in collaboration with SRI in developing a survey instrument for the longitudinal study that used the same or similar questions asked in earlier Pew Internet surveys. The data from the Pew Internet Project’s December 2005 survey is publicly available at: http://www.pewinternet.org
The Pew Internet & American Life Project (www.pewinternet.org) produces reports that explore the impact of the Internet on families, communities, work and home, daily life, education, health care, and civic and political life. The Project aims to be an authoritative source on the evolution of the Internet through collection of data and analysis of real-world developments as they affect the virtual world.