In the U.S., approximately 9.5 million students have no access to the internet outside of their schools. According to the Federal Reserve, these students have a high school graduation rate six to eight percentage points lower than those who have home access.

Microsoft Corp. announced the launch of a three-year commitment to helping 1 million students from low-income families around the United States connect to the internet. The announcement was made Tuesday at the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting in New York.

“At Microsoft we believe all students should have access to the building blocks of a quality education,” said Anthony Salcito, vice president, Worldwide Education for Microsoft. “Putting technology in the hands of a student who did not have access is a powerful step on the path leading to graduation, employability and a better future.”

The recently announced initiative is an extension of Microsoft’s Shape the Future program - which has provided technology and access to over 10 million students around the world over the past five years.

Charlotte was named among the first cities actively supporting the Shape the Future extension by launching digital inclusion initiatives for students through Project L.I.F.T. - a community initiative aimed at providing intensive support to help close the achievement gap in the West Charlotte Corridor schools

“Economic growth and stability starts with quality education,” said Mayor Anthony Foxx, who graduated from West Charlotte High School. “Charlotte is proud to be on the forefront of this effort by supporting Microsoft and Project L.I.F.T. in this commitment. In this tough economic climate, public private partnerships have the potential to make digital access more attainable for students and their families.”

Over a three-year period, all 50 states plus Guam and Puerto Rico will have the opportunity to participate in the program.

“Roughly 100 million Americans remain unconnected to high-speed Internet and the economic cost of digital exclusion is rising every day,” said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. “This isn’t a problem for government alone. The private sector, nonprofit groups and government actors must work collaboratively to close this gap, create jobs and ensure America’s global competitiveness.

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