About BTOP at MCOE
In October 2010 the Central Coast Broadband Consortium Public Computing Alliance, led by the Monterey County Office of Education (MCOE) and its Media Center for Art, Education and Technology (MCAET), received a Federal stimulus grant, called “BTOP” (Broadband Technology Opportunities Program) to increase computer and digital media literacy in Monterey County’s underserved rural communities.
With this grant the Central Coast Broadband Consortium Public Computing Alliance created the program Conexión Comunitaria to provide free technology classes including basic computer and internet skills, word processing, animation, web design, digital photography, audio and video production, and more.
Conexión Comunitaria partners are building, updating, and equipping public computing centers throughout the region, including a state-of-the-art mobile technology classroom, and offers classes on a regular basis. Conexión Comunitaria serves all of Monterey County, with a particular emphasis on providing workshops throughout the Salinas Valley — from Salinas to King City.
Participants are learning new skills that are helpful to them in school and in the workplace. Classes are offered in English, Spanish, and several indigenous Oaxacan languages.
The first training schedule became available to the public in March 2011, and the formal launching of the mobile technology classroom will soon follow. Many classes are offered in the evenings and on weekends in order to maximize access for everyone, and all classes are completely free of charge to participants.
MCOE’s BTOP Project Partners
Conexión Comunitaria partner organizations include the Monterey County Office Education’s Media Center for Art, Education and Technology; Boys & Girls Clubs of Monterey County; Community Information Center; CSU, Monterey Bay; Hartnell College Monterey County Free Libraries; and the National Steinbeck Center.
This Broadband Technology Opportunities Program project is supported by an ARRA grant administered by the National Telecommunications Information Administration in the US Department of Commerce.
Contact
For more information contact Megan Heath, the BTOP Project Coordinator, at the Media Center for Art, Education & Technology at the Monterey County Office of Education:
(831) 755-0389, megan@mcaet.org. ConexionMonterey@mcaet.org / http://www.ConexionMonterey.org
