By Karyn Walsh, Director of the Laurel-Jones County Library System
Imagine our county’s doors closing to the digital world. Imagine a student sitting outside a dark commercial building in the heat, trying to catch a stray Wi-Fi signal to finish their homework, or an unemployed parent unable to submit a single job application because the screens in their town have gone dark.
This isn’t a dystopian script. It is the looming reality for the Laurel-Jones County Library System if the federal government cuts E-Rate funding for public libraries and schools. Federal lawmakers are considering changes that could eliminate or dramatically reduce the E-Rate program that has helped libraries and schools afford internet access for nearly three decades.