- Digital Navigator Corps Report - Federal Broadband Legislation Updates - Seattle Adds Digital Kiosks - Digital Opportunity Map Connects Michigan - Smart City Pilot Network DIGITAL NAVIGATOR CORPS REPORT The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) has released its National Digital Navigator Corps (NDNC) program evaluation report. The NDNC is a multiyear pilot program that launched in 2022 to support the creation of digital navigator programs in rural and tribal communities. At that time, NDIA awarded 18 grants totaling $6.6 million to organizations to fund this work. NDNC marks a shift in the Digital Navigator model that launched in 2020, expanding what was once largely limited to urban communities. The report includes key findings learned over the course of 31 months and offers recommendations to support digital navigator programs moving forward. One finding is that NDNC’s existence strengthened the core value proposition of the broader Digital Navigator model. The investment in this pilot program created lasting impacts beyond digital navigation services, through new resources and guidance. The pilot program has also strengthened NDIA’s partnerships with rural and tribal communities. However, effectively delivering these digital navigator services in these communities required strategy adjustments and time. The most valuable learnings were those related to durable career skills. The findings also revealed challenges with the program. First, digital navigators took on many roles, from educators to data managers, which created risk of burnout. Data collection standardization was a challenge for various technical and programmatic reasons, as subgrantee organizations had wide-ranging levels of experience. Finally, a lack of funding was the primary barrier for these organizations to continue offering digital navigator services. The recommendations aim to improve digital navigator programs moving forward. For example, program administrators for initiatives like NDNC should allocate both time and budget to learning about the funded organizations and the