FOR THE CONNECTED DEVICES PROGRAM, YOU MUST BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE ACP BROADBAND PROGRAM (BY INCOME OR ENROLLED IN A BENEFIT PROGRAM) AND THERE IS A LIMIT OF ONE COMPUTER PER HOUSEHOLD.
Please check back in mid-June for additional information.
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Montgomery Connects – Computer For You
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REGISTRATION FOR NEW APPOINTMENTS IS CLOSED.
Montgomery Connects is the County’s digital equity and inclusion initiative. Our goal is to close the digital equity gap. We aspire to empower 100% of Montgomery County's residents and local businesses to be fully connected and engaged in our shared digital world. Leaping the digital divide requires access to a home computer; affordable high speed broadband and digital literacy training. Montgomery Connects leans into addressing all three of these needs. Montgomery Connects is operated by the Department of Technology & Enterprise Business Solutions (TEBS). To help achieve this goal, Montgomery Connects has provided 50,000 new loaner Chromebook laptop computers to lower-income Montgomery County residents who do not have a computer for educational purposes.The Montgomery Connects – Computer For You program has now come to an end, as all 50,000 computers have been distributed!
We will be starting a new Maryland Connected Devices program in June 2023 that will provide one computer per address for households enrolled in benefit programs (such as SNAP, Medicaid, school lunch, Pell college grants), eligible for the Affordable Connectivity Program broadband benefit, or earning up to 200% of the federal poverty rate ($29,160 for 1 person plus $10,280 for each additional person in the household). We will update our web page once the new program starts.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can I sell my Chromebook? No, you may not sell the Chromebook. Montgomery County owns the Chromebooks for three years. The County is loaning the Chromebook to you. The loaned Chromebooks may not be resold during this time . If you attempt to sell the loaned computer while the County owns it, or attempt to receive more than one computer per person, the County may use your information to recover computers or take action against you.
What if my Chomebook is damaged, lost, or stolen? You must report damaged, lost, or stolen computers to montgomeryconnects@montgomerycountymd.gov. The County will decide on a case-by-case basis whether to repair or replace damaged or lost and stolen devices. If the loaned computer is returned to the County, the computer will be wiped clean of all data and the County has no responsibility to protect or recover removed data.
How Can I Activate my ChromeBook? You must have or create a Google account (which is different from a Google or other email). Instructions are available here in English and here in Spanish.
How Do I Create An Email Account? Follow these instructions in English or in Spanish to create an email account.
How Do I Find or Create a Library Card Number? If you have not used your library card in the past two years, it may have been deactivated. You can create a new digital library card here if your card has been deactivated or you cannot find it or you need a first time digital library card. Here are instructions in English or in Spanish to create a digital library card.
Does the Chromebook come with tech support or software? No, Montgomery County does not provide any tech support or software for loaned computers. The computer does not come with anti-virus protection. It is a Google Chromebook and will automatically load computer updates for you.
I don’t know how to set up my Chromebook. How can I get help? The County offers in-person and online technology training courses for people 50 years and older through the Senior Planet Montgomery program in English, Spanish, and Mandarin. You can learn to use a computer, email, the internet, and more. At the top of the Senior Planet webpage, under “Resources” you can find technology training videos and information or you can call the Senior Planet help line at 888-713-3495. Here are basic instructions on how to use a Chromebook, install Zoom, or set up email.
Why do you need my personal information? How will it be used?
- The County does not sell your data.
- The County asks for your phone number and email to contact you as necessary and to transfer the computer warranty to you. Parents and caregivers may use their phone number and email for children and adults.
- The County asks about the devices you own, benefit programs you may be enrolled in, as well as age, ethnicity, and gender to better understand the population receiving these devices.
- Your address is used to verify that you are a Montgomery County resident and to understand how well computers are being distributed to areas of the County with most demand (based on Census and similar statistical data).
- Your reported income may be used to prioritize distribution of computers to lower income residents.
- The County does not report individually identifiable data to other agencies (meaning, for example, we do not report your individual income to any other agency but we may report the percentage of recipients with household income in a specific range).
- The County reserves the right to email information about other digital equity technology training programs to computer recipients and use program demographic data to apply for more digital equity grants.
Important Additional Information
The loaned computers are Dell 3100 or Lenovo 300e, 14” laptop with an 11” touchscreen that folds over and be used as a tablet. The computers do not include software (e.g., Word, Excel) but you may download free versions at Office for Web (formerly Office 365), or get free Google products here.
The federal grant providing funding to purchase these computers requires Montgomery County to own the computer for 3 years. You may keep possession of the computer for your own use. County regulations will govern what happens to the loaned computer after 3 years. You must report damaged, lost, or stolen computers to montgomeryconnects@montgomerycountymd.gov and the County will decide on a case-by-case basis whether to repair or replace damaged or lost and stolen devices. If the loaned computer is returned to the County, the computer will be wiped clean of all data and the County has no responsibility to protect or recover removed data. IF YOU ATTEMPT TO SELL THE LOANED COMPUTER WHILE THE COUNTY OWNS IT, OR ATTEMPT TO RECEIVE MORE ONE COMPUTER PER PERSON, THE COUNTY MAY USE YOUR INFORMATION TO RECOVER COMPUTERS OR TAKE ACTION AGAINST YOU.
The County will not provide technical support for the loaned computer. The federal grant use to purchase the computers does not allow the County to purchase software to provide with the loaned computer. The computer does not come with anti-virus protection. It is a Google Chromebook and will automatically load computer updates for you. If you need technology training to set up email and learn to use the computer, the County offers courses for people 50 years and older at Senior Planet Montgomery in English, Spanish, and Mandarin. Here are instructions if you need help to set up a Google Gmail account in English and Spanish.
The County will provide written instructions with the loaned computer on how to create a Google Account or you can get these instructions in English and Spanish. You need to have a Google Account to log into the loaned computer for the first time and you need an email address to set up the Google Account. Here are the instructions to set up a Google Account in English and in Spanish. Here are instructions on how to create an email account in English. Here are basic instructions on how to use the Chromebook in English.
The County will use the email address you provide in your registration to transfer the computer warranty to you. Google uses the Google Account to automatically send updates to your computer to keep it up to date. Here are instructions on how to create an email account in English .
The County is required to maintain a record of your name and the loaned computer provided to you (serial number, make and model), and a signed certification that you would not have a loaned computer for your educational needs if the County did not provide you a computer. The County is the owner of the loaned computer and retains data about loaned computers including dates when the loaned computers are loaned, returned, reported damages or stolen.
Security cameras may be in use at event locations. Computer distributions are public events without an expectation of privacy. Montgomery County, and its officers, employees, and agents, and other organizations may take photographs, video or digital recordings of adults and minor children attending the event. By attending this event, you consent to use of these photographs and recordings in any and all media, for the purpose of promoting awareness of digital equity programs and the work of Montgomery County. If you provide your name and identity to a photographer, videographer, reporter, producer, or similar person, your name and identity may be revealed in media or by descriptive text or commentary. By attending this event, you assign Montgomery County and the above-named entities all rights to exhibit this work in print or electronic form publicly or privately and to use the images and sounds; you waive any rights, claims, or interest you may have to control the use of your identity or likeness in whatever media is gathered during this event; you release and forever discharge Montgomery County, its officers, assigns, agents, and employees from every claim, demand, damage, right or cause of action of whatever kind or nature which is related to the acquisition and use of the photographs and recordings. You understand that there will be no financial or other remuneration for recording you or your children, either for the initial or for any subsequent publication, transmission or playback. IF YOU DO NOT WANT YOUR PHOTO TAKEN FOR PUBLICITY PURPOSES, PLEASE LET US KNOW WHEN YOU CHECK-IN at the event.
The Montgomery Connects Computer For You Program is administered and managed by the Department of Technology & Enterprise Business Solutions (TEBS), Office of Broadband Programs (OBP). Montgomery Connects includes many different digital equity and inclusion programs offered by TEBS.
The purpose is to provide loaner laptop computers to residents who do not have access to a computer at home. Montgomery County, in partnership with Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL), received a federal Emergency Connectivity Fund to purchase 40,000 computers. The federal grant is a Covid-response which built upon the federal E-rate program providing funding to schools and libraries for internet, equipment, and computers, by providing funding for students and library patrons to receive computers for use at home (school and library WiFi and computers could not be accessed during Covid-closures). Montgomery Connects requires computer recipients to have a Montgomery County library card because the federal grant is through MCPL, and because there are many free training programs and resources available to computer recipients with an MCPL library card. The grant funds up to $400 per computer and specifically prohibits the County from using grant funds to purchase software, cases, and other peripherals.
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