AT&T and the NBA Team Up to Help Close the Homework Gap for Students

Starting with Kia NBA Tip-Off 2020, The Pair Will Be Working with Connected Nation to Help Close the Homework Gap for Students Across the Country Through Retweets

What’s the news? Timed with Kia NBA Tip-Off 2020 (Dec. 22 at 7 p.m. E.T. on TNT), AT&T is teaming up with the NBA to contribute up to a total of $100K to Connected Nation. This will go towards helping vulnerable students who are unable to access the connectivity they need to learn remotely. 

Why are AT&T and the NBA doing this? While the pandemic showed us how important connectivity is to learning this year, it also exposed glaring educational inequities. Nearly 17 million children are unable to take part in learning because their families don’t have an internet connection or devices to support distance learning. This is known as the “homework gap”.

In November, AT&T committed $10 million to support our nation’s most vulnerable students who don’t have adequate internet access and fall into the homework gap by providing Wi-Fi hotspots and free AT&T internet service. AT&T is collaborating with Connected Nation, a leading nonprofit helping communities solve their broadband and digital technology challenges to distribute the hot spots and internet service. The Connected Nation application portal is live and we encourage schools and nonprofits to apply here.

This additional commitment demonstrates a shared effort between AT&T and the NBA to support education, particularly distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on underserved populations and communities of color. AT&T, now entering its 3rd season as an Official Marketing Partner and the Official 5G Wireless Network of the NBA, and the NBA have worked together on education-focused programs, including NBA Math Breaks and a donation to local Chicago organization, Mercy Home, to support their students’ needs for distance learning.

How are AT&T and the NBA doing this? For every retweet of this tweet on the @ATT and @NBACares handles, AT&T will donate $1 to Connected Nation, up to $50K, and the NBA will match our donation (for a total of up to $100K), starting today through January 11.

_{^{*Open to U.S. residents 18+ only. Void in Alabama, Illinois, Massachusetts and Mississippi. All donations benefit Connected Nation.}}