Through the ad hoc Northern Kentucky Digital Literacy Advisory Council in tandem with the Northern Kentucky Area Development District, the Extension Digital Literacy Agent was made aware of Meals on Wheels Digital Connect of Northern Kentucky's desire to provide basic technology skills and digital literacy lessons to seniors in their shared service area.

Meals on Wheels Digital Connect earned a grant allowing them to distribute up to 100 Samsung Tablets to seniors on fixed / limited incomes across northern Kentucky. They determined that in order to earn a tablet, individuals should complete a series of classes and demonstrate acquisition of skills proving that they could and would use the tablets moving forward.

After learning of their program, the Digital Literacy Agent offered to work with Digital Connect to develop and deliver this instruction and was taken up on the offer.

The Digital Literacy Agent outlined and proposed a series of skills divided into 4 lessons to be delivered at each of the 5 partner sites across Kenton, Campbell, and Boone counties in Kentucky. (St. Aloycious Apartments and Golden Towers in Kenton County, Grand Towers and Highland Village Apartments in Campbell County, and Panorama Plus Apartments in Boone County).

Classes included a crash course on operating a smart tablet (gesture controls, navigation controls, and editing device settings), Online Connections (WiFi, email, and cloud services), browsers and privacy online, and Applications (awareness of advertisements and in app purchases in addition to basic skills installing and uninstalling Apps). 

The program reached 71 unique individuals (out of a maximum of 100) across 5 partner sites, each of which received 4 classes as part of a series. Participants were all seniors on fixed incomes without access to smart tablets at present. 

Of the 23 program participants who chose to respond to survey questions after participation in instruction events, 96% indicated they felt confident they could practice safer internet use, 100% indicated they felt confident they could act as better digital citizens, and 96% indicated they improved their personal skills related to technology use as a result of the program.