Accessing free public WiFi continues to get easier in the Indiana Uplands as communities use Digital Towns grant funding to provide this essential component of a thriving community. Earlier this summer, Salem held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate free public WiFi available throughout the city.
Free WiFi is now available on the historic city square, the Community Walking Trail, and Pekin Park.
The Washington County Community Foundation received the Digital Towns grant to install the three WiFi workspaces and partner with Ivy Tech Sellersburg to offer digital literacy classes that focused on topics such as smartphone basics and safety on social media.
All three WiFi hotspots are expected to be used heavily by community members and will help residents access the internet who cannot do so at home, especially during events like the annual Fourth of July Festival in Pekin Park, according to Lindsey Wade-Swift, the associate director of the Washington County Community Foundation. Parents, students, and visitors will also be able to use the hotspot on the Community Walking Trail during soccer and softball games and Little League football practice.
Salem Community Schools students also use the free WiFi when conducting experiments on the creek and preserved nature area in classes such as biology. The hope is for students to also use the WiFi while completing homework on the trail. The Foundation also anticipates the WiFi to be used often by those visiting the trail and the creek on the weekends during warmer weather months.
The Historic Salem Square WiFi hotspot will see extra usage during popular events such as Friday Night on the Square and the Christmas Cookie Walk during Small Business Saturday along with visitors to the new Monon South Walking Trail. Salem is one of six towns that will have a Monon South Trailhead.
Using grant funding, Salem’s Community Learning Center offered Digital Literacy Classes. Classes were marketed on Facebook and to senior groups at the YMCA And Salem Senior Citizens Center. The first class began with a survey to determine the needs of the attendees and what should be included in the syllabus. Classes centered around a variety of topics including internet safety, social media, online communication skills, online shopping, and banking online.
Washington County Community Foundation Executive Director Judy Johnson expressed gratitude for the grant, which has enabled more residents and visitors to connect to the digital world.
“We are so grateful for the continued support from ROI,” said Judy Johnson, executive director of the Washington County Community Foundation. “Their dedication to enhancing our region through individual community impact is one of the many reasons our region is ‘On the Rise.’”