Helping Kalamazoo Teens Start the School Year Connected

Addressing the digital divide

Helping Kalamazoo Teens Start the School Year Connected

David LewisPresident, AT&T Heartland States

September 2, 2026

Key insights

To start the school year strong, AT&T was proud to partner with Human-I-T to provide 100 teens served by the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Kalamazoo with free MacBooks and backpacks filled with school supplies.

Each backpack included supplies like notebooks, pencils and headphones — along with cards of encouragement written by AT&T employees.

We’re proud that AT&T has committed $5 billion nationally to help 25 million people get and stay connected to high-speed internet by 2030.

For students, a new school year is filled with possibility — new classes, new goals and new opportunities to learn and grow. But for too many young people, that excitement can come with a real barrier: not having reliable access to the technology they need to fully participate in today’s connected world.

The laptops and backpacks were given to the top 100 Club teen attendees, recognizing students who have shown strong participation and commitment by consistently showing up at the Club. Each backpack included supplies like notebooks, pencils and headphones — along with cards of encouragement written by AT&T employees.

For many students, a laptop is more than a device. It is a way to complete homework, explore new interests, build digital skills and stay connected to the educational resources that can help open doors long after the school day ends.

Leaders from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kalamazoo see every day how access to support, technology, and opportunity can shape a young person’s future.

“At the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kalamazoo, we believe great futures start here. This partnership with AT&T helps remove barriers and gives our teen members access to technology that can support their education, spark creativity, and open doors to new opportunities. We are grateful for AT&T’s investment in our youth and their futures,” said Matt Forkin, Chief Executive Officer, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kalamazoo.

We were excited to have Kalamazoo Mayor David Anderson, Sheriff Richard Fuller, and Police Chief David Boysen join us for the distribution. And the Mayor underscored perfectly what this support can mean for local students.

“Every student deserves the opportunity to learn, grow and succeed in today’s connected world. This investment from AT&T and Human-I-T will help young people in Kalamazoo access the technology and school supplies they need to start the year strong and continue building toward a bright future,” said Mayor Anderson.

For us, this work is critical because we know connectivity has become a key to nearly every door of opportunity. Yet the digital divide — the gap between those who can fully participate online and those who cannot — still affects millions of people nationwide, including here in Michigan.

That’s why our corporate responsibility work is focused on trying to help close that digital divide and connect more Americans. We’re proud that AT&T has committed $5 billion nationally to help 25 million people get and stay connected to high-speed internet by 2030.

But the goal is bigger than technology alone – it’s about connecting people to greater possibilities. And we’re proud to do our part to help more Kalamazoo teens have the technology and connectivity they need to keep learning and dreaming big.

Helping Kalamazoo Teens Start the School Year Connected

Helping Kalamazoo Teens Start the School Year Connected

Key insights

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