{"id":147226,"date":"2026-01-21T22:18:24","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T03:18:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=147226"},"modified":"2026-01-21T22:18:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T03:18:24","slug":"northampton-county-pennsylvania-named-one-of-nations-digital-inclusion-trailblazers-for-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=147226","title":{"rendered":"Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Named One of Nation\u2019s Digital Inclusion Trailblazers for 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>[Northampton County, PA]\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) named Northampton County, Pennsylvania, as a 2025 Digital Inclusion Trailblazer, recognizing the county\u2019s efforts to close the digital divide.<\/p>\n<p>Digital inclusion \u2013 access to affordable high-speed internet, devices, and digital skills training \u2013 is essential to participating and thriving in today\u2019s world. Recognizing the ongoing needs of the community, Northampton County continues in its efforts towards digital equity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is an exciting recognition to receive. Closing the gap in the digital divide is such an important part of building equity. It reflects the care and dedication of our staff and partners who realize digital access is necessary for everyone to be connected in our community. My administration is committed to building on this momentum to ensure every resident has the digital access they need to stay connected,\u201d said County Executive Tara Zrinski.<\/p>\n<p>This year, Northampton County joins 58 other Digital Inclusion Trailblazers, paving the way for digitally inclusive communities across the US.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNonprofits, libraries, churches, and other community organizations can\u2019t reach digital equity on their own. For everyone to thrive in today\u2019s digital world, we need all hands on deck,\u201d said Angela Siefer, NDIA executive director. \u201cNDIA\u2019s Digital Inclusion Trailblazer program exemplifies the key role of local governments in building digital opportunities for all of their residents.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trailblazers provide models for other local governments to aspire to as communities build digital inclusion ecosystems. Northampton County achieved Trailblazer status by prioritizing digital inclusion for residents of their communities through:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Continuing the Digital Navigator Coalition<\/li>\n<li>Dedicating the awarded AARP Community Challenge grant funding to digital inclusion<\/li>\n<li>Engaging the Community by Hosting Digital Device Training and Tech Tutorial Events<\/li>\n<li>Continuing the Northampton County Access Device and Giveaway Program, providing refurbished County devices to County organizations and residents<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Trailblazer program identifies seven categories of current best practices. Each applicant\u2019s materials are verified for accuracy, assessed for community impact, and posted in an interactive map and searchable database on NDIA\u2019s website. By sharing materials with open-sourcing, NDIA provides community advocates and local governments ways to continue learning, connect with trailblazing peers, and plan their own digital inclusion solutions.<\/p>\n<p>About National Digital Inclusion Alliance: NDIA advances digital equity by supporting community programs and equipping policymakers to act. Working collaboratively with over 2000 affiliates, NDIA advocates for equitable broadband access, tech devices, digital skills training, and tech support. For more information, visit\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/digitalinclusion.org\/\">digitalinclusion.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Information provided to TVL by:<br \/>\nNorthampton County Executive Office<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[Northampton County, PA]\u00a0\u2013 The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) named Northampton County, Pennsylvania, as a 2025 Digital Inclusion Trailblazer, recognizing the county\u2019s efforts to close the digital divide. Digital inclusion &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=147226\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Named One of Nation\u2019s Digital Inclusion Trailblazers for 2025<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":122147,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[69,5738],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-147226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-valley","category-northampton-county"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/NC-Northampton.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147226"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=147226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147226\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/122147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=147226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=147226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=147226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}