Gov. Inslee Visits Chelan County to Discuss Digital Equity

NCW Tech hosted a roundtable at the Mercantile in downtown Wenatchee, with a special guest appearance from Gov. Jay Inslee. On June 24, local governing bodies discussed the future of digital equity in the North Central region.

Prior to the roundtable, Inslee held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Beta Hatch site in Cashmere, a meal-worm processing plant that centers on sustainable animal feed.

The Digital Equity act is a statewide initiative to connect communities struggling with internet broadband services.

Guests included 12th District Representatives Keith Goehner, Mike Steele, and 13th District Representative Alex Ybarra, along with representatives from Chelan PUD, Microsoft, Confluence, CVCH, and NCESD.

NCW Tech also brought the winner from the 2020 UpSkill contest, Gabriela and Juan Servin, a father-daughter team from Moses Lake.

Wash. State Chamber of Commerce received a $7.5 million five-year equity plan to establish the Digital Navigators Program. This volunteer-program is led to help communities get connected online.

Their goal is to have everyone connected by 2028.