DeSoto’s South Florida State College helps students and faculty with limited internet access
When South Florida State College in DeSoto County was closed for in-person classes last year because of COVID-19, students flocked to the parking lot to do their school work.
They did not have a reliable internet connection at home, so they had to grab their laptops and drive or catch a ride to the college to use the Wi-Fi there. They would sit hunched over in their cars, working on assignments.
Asena Mott, director of South Florida State College’s DeSoto campus, tells the story of a mother and daughter who drove to the college to use the Wi-Fi almost every day. On one especially hot afternoon, the mother’s car overheated. The daughter’s school work was disrupted, and they had to pay to get their car repaired.