North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences at Whiteville

"Come for the Wi-Fi. Stay for the Wildlife" will establish the NC Museum of Natural Sciences at Whiteville as the location of the only free, high speed, wireless, public internet access in Columbus County. The project is designed to overcome the digital divide for county residents-where two out of every five lack home internet despite the availability of broadband. Visitors will be able to access the internet on their personal devices at a socially safe distance from others while learning to use it for expanding their knowledge about STEM and the natural world. Transforming the museum into a Wi-Fi hot spot will lessen the likelihood of COVID-19 transmission that could occur from the over-utilization of public computers, while providing connections to community resources related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and supporting safer communications with external family members.