The week before Philadelphia initiated its ‘PHLConnectED Week’ in an effort to get more families in the city connected to the internet for virtual school, Concilio hosted a giveaway of 300 laptops to children in the community surrounding its Hunting Park headquarters.

The effort was made possible because of a partnership between the nonprofit, Telemundo 62, Comcast’s Internet Essentials Program, and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation to both boost digital capabilities of Philadelphia’s Latino community for virtual learning, and encourage connectivity among families heading into the holidays.

“The Latino community is one that values deep connections with friends and family, which has been hard to maintain during these periods of isolation,” said Adonis Banegas, executive director of Concilio. “They will be able to use these laptops to not only connect with loved ones, but also attend school, order groceries and other activities that are now much safer to do online than in person.”

It is part of a wider effort from Telemundo to support Latino communities across the U.S.

In addition to Concilio in Philly, it partnered with local organizations in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Fresno County, Houston, Miami, Sacramento, Salt Lake City and Washington D.C. to do similar laptop giveaways.

Since September, Concilio has also been designated as one of the city’s access centers, which provide a place for children to attend virtual school in a safe environment outside of their home.

The centers provide supervision for children who don’t have a caregiver at home during the day to help with school, meals, and other activities.

To further support the effort of Concilio in serving as an access center, Comcast also elevated its Hunting Park headquarters to become one of its more than 30 Lift Zones throughout the city.

The designation comes with an upgraded, high-capacity WiFi connection that will help the site better serve more students simultaneously as they connect to the internet for school.

This article is part of Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project among more than 20 news organizations focused on economic mobility in Philadelphia. Read all of our reporting as brokeinphilly.org.