Cold Open And Welcome

Derrick Kenny

Come here. What do senior tech education, digital equity, and extended reality all have in common? One person. Find out next.

Announcer

Good day and welcome to What's Happening MoCo, an authentic, unscripted podcast from your Montgomery County Government. Now, it's your host, Derek Kennedy.

What Montgomery Connects Does

Derrick Kenny

Good day, and welcome to What's Happening MoCo. Here with me today is Mitsuko Herrera. That's it, right? I like to call her Mitsi. Mitsi, is it okay? I'll call you Mitzi. That's fine. All right. What is Montgomery Connects and what is it that you do as part of Montgomery Connects?

Mitsuko Herrera

So Montgomery Connects is the county's digital opportunity program. What we are primarily focused on is we want to help ensure that everyone in the county, regardless of income, age, or where they live, has access to uh affordable broadband, has a device, and has the skills to use that device.

Derrick Kenny

Oh wow. Speaking of devices, not too many years ago, there was this thing called COVID. It was a whole big deal. And there was a certain need for residents of the county, particularly students, to have access to technology. And you played a critical role in that. Tell us about your role in that and what was it you were able to accomplish with the technology and enterprise business solutions department.

Mitsuko Herrera

Well, uh some people would say is that from everything, you can try to make some good happen. And one of the things that COVID uh brought to the forefront is that we had always said is that for a lot of people is that they needed access to a device. And COVID, um, suddenly people turned around the corner. Something like if you imagine Casablanca, I was shocked, shocked that people didn't have a device, didn't have internet at home. Uh and so what that ended up doing is that there were literally $7 billion that the federal government made available to uh schools and libraries. So for library patrons um in Montgomery County, we created a program in which anyone who did not have access to a computer could get access to could get a computer provided to them. Um and then in addition, um the state of Maryland also um provided about $45 million to provide it. So between the two programs, there was about $22 million, I think, in in money. We distributed around $119,000 computers. And then in addition, we've actually um the um the county's Department of Health and Human Services actually had a few more grants, so we distributed another thousand through that program. I think well. Um and then there were a few counties that weren't didn't distribute it, so we've got I think another 700 that we have left to distribute to those are one per household low-income household. So altogether, they'll probably be close to 120,000 people in households in Montgomery County that have access to a Chromebook computer. Um, rather, that they um actually have ownership of a Chromebook computer that that's theirs. The county doesn't provide any ongoing support for those devices, but we do provide training, we do provide um a lot of um support as to how to use them. Um, and the purpose of that is that um a lot of uh the county services, a lot of the way that you access your federal benefits, a lot of the way that you do learning, um all of those things require that you have the ability to be able to do them from home or wherever you're at, that you don't have to go into a library, go to a school, or go to a county building. Um it's good for the county, it's good for people, and that's why we've um supported that program.

Derrick Kenny

And speaking of good for the people, there's one word I love to hear when it comes to county resources. What was the cost for residents that received these computers?

Mitsuko Herrera

Those computers were free. Free!

Derrick Kenny

Oh, wow, that was wonderful. That was wonderful.

Mitsuko Herrera

However, I will say is that the computers themselves were free. Um, but the county did provide a lot of support um in terms of that we didn't just kind of stand out at the back of a truck and distribute them. We did also try to actually, one, we wanted to make sure that we were only distributing one per person, but also we wanted to try to find and keep track of who these people are so we could actually um find some metrics about where these computers were distributed. And more importantly, what we really want to try to do is um we want to be able to provide information to people about how to use the device because that's actually one of the things about there is what I like in it too is um if you went to your older parent and I said, Hey, here is a brand new iPad. Here you go. I'm gonna pay for some internet at your house. Just go ahead and make all your appointments online. Feel free to go ahead and zoom me whenever you need something. And if you can't find anything, go ahead and look it up online. Uh, and you go ahead and do take care of that on your own. It just doesn't happen all by itself. Right. So, a really big thing to think about is that whenever you do these programs, is you want to try as much as possible to make other resources available. Okay. And it's really helpful if you can provide some training so that um somebody one doesn't feel like, oh my God, I've got to remember everything right now all at once. And also so that somebody doesn't feel like that that I'm a burden when I ask you a question.

MocoNet Brings Home Broadband

Derrick Kenny

So you're not just giving people computers, you're teaching them how to use those computers. Well, you did in that instance. And we're gonna talk a little bit more about training, especially training for older adults. But I'm gonna get back to free. There's something else that the county's doing now, free, it's kind of part of the Montgomery Connects program, MocoNet. And that's a program, I believe, that's providing something for free. Tell us a little bit about that program and um how people were able to benefit from it.

Mitsuko Herrera

So MocoNet is a specialized program and it's limited. Um also as part of COVID, uh, the state of Maryland made funding available to expand broadband into areas where broadband was not available. And one of those things was in low-income housing, um, we were able to provide get funds to expand. MoCONET is part of the county's network. It is the residential broadband service. It's a 300 by 300 megabit per second service. It actually reaches, so instead of just providing like the county does right now, where we provide free service, it's available in a library or in a lobby of a government building, it actually goes all the way to the resident's apartment.

Derrick Kenny

Oh wow.

Mitsuko Herrera

Um there are uh there, we are going to there were about 11 apartment complexes that were funded through grant programs. Moconet is going to reach about 17 um affordable housing developments, that is in partnership with um the Housing Opportunities Commission, the um Montgomery Housing Partnership, and Affordable Housing Communities, I believe is the name of it. Anyway, so and we really couldn't do it without our partners. The reason was I wanted to emphasize that. And so um the goal of that is to help bring that service all the way um home so that people can use that to um get better service. There's one study that actually showed that when the federal government was actually subsidizing broadband service, that access to broadband service um increases household income uh by about $146. Oh, wow. Uh, and it increases employment by 0.9%. So really having access to the internet at home is a way for um people to just improve their daily lives.

Derrick Kenny

Wow. And for people that qualify, and in many cases, those are people that uh qualify because of their income level or because of their um ability level and other um perceived needs on help them qualify. And again, that was how much for this type of service for those residents?

Mitsuko Herrera

That would be free.

Derrick Kenny

Helps free. Oh wow.

Mitsuko Herrera

Well, technically, actually, actually, let me let me qualify that one. Um technically, the service costs money, but the county discounts that money so that the end result is free, but the service itself actually has a value.

Derrick Kenny

It has value, it has a value.

Mitsuko Herrera

The county is discounting that so that the end result is that there's no cost, but um we want to we we actually want to do that because um what we're hoping is the county, it is not free to the county to provide that service, and there are various programs that are available, um, and we do want to eventually um have the county be eligible for that uh so that we can just kind of help sustain that over time.

Derrick Kenny

That's great, that's great. And I think what we're talking about by providing the people with those computers during COVID uh and also the broadband now is digital equity. Talk a little bit about what is digital equity and why is that important for some of the residents of the county or residents of the county.

Mitsuko Herrera

Well, what we really believe in is digital opportunity. Um we think that everybody should have the ability to participate in the digital economy. Um the digital economy is the future, it is the way that people will access getting their medications, it is increasingly the way that you can access getting goods and services. And we just want to um it and it's an interesting thing because and the reason why we say the digital digital economy and opportunity is because there are many people in the county, um particularly who are older, who have high incomes, who do not participate in the digital economy because they um are concerned about scams. Um, they're concerned about people um taking their information. Um so it crosses the line. Um it is many reasons why people. Some of it is that that people may have difficulty affording things. Right. Other things are that people um have trust issues. Um, some things are that people don't have a device, um, or they're trying to do something on a phone and it's hard to see on a phone. Right. Um, or you're trying to learn on a class, or you're trying to um it's helpful to have two devices because you're trying to talk to somebody at the same time you're looking at a device. So it's helpful if I'm actually looking at my phone while I'm looking at the device, because then I can actually do the two things at once. Um, so what we really want to focus on is we want to talk about opportunity because that's what America is. That's what Montgomery County is. It is the land of opportunity.

Derrick Kenny

Yes. I'm sorry. I get a little excited when we talk about empowering residents and helping.

Mitsuko Herrera

And that's what it really is. It is about empowerment. And again, what I want to focus on is that the reason why um Montgomery County does it is because it's good for us. We are a 490 square mile county. Wow. When we try to have and say, oh, we're gonna have five offices, that's still a long way to go. People are in Poolsville and we say, Oh, hey, we have an office in Germantown. They don't look and say, Oh, great. They still say that's far. Yeah. Right? But if you can say, hey, we have really good high-speed quality internet that reaches Poolsville or Boyd's or Dickerson or any place that you're out there.

Derrick Kenny

Which area is north of the county.

Mitsuko Herrera

Correct. And that you can um, that you can access county services and reach us and request things any time of the day, because if you're a farmer, you know, your beginning of your day is well before county business hours. And if you're a restaurantur, the end of your day is well after county business hours. If you can access those services and you can reach them when it's convenient for you, if you can pay a parking ticket if you happen to get it, and you can pay it online when it's convenient for you. If you're not worried about paying something and having to get to a post box and how many days it was going to get there, and the county can offer those services and we don't have to have as many offices that open, that are as open, but we can get to them, that's good for us. The federal government is already moving people for social security benefits and all those other things, those are all going online. The more that people are able to access those and they are confident to do those, the more that people can feel comfortable making their um health appointments online using those services. And the more that people go to those health appointments, those that's good for us. The more that people use preventative services and they can potentially visit their doctor when it's appropriate online. There's um one study that showed that when the federal government subsidized um people getting internet for the year, if you got one person on Medicaid to get one video visit per year, you offset the cost of the program for three years. Oh, wow. So it's an important thing to talk about that when we talk about these, and I do like to frame it as we're not doing it just because it's a do-gooder thing, we're doing it because it makes good business sense. It's good for us, and it helps people when you look at people who um run tourist-related businesses, right? And you sell whatever kind of chotchcas. If you have a website and somebody who, you know, I kind of really wished I had bought that thing, but you can go back and you can buy it online, it can get shipped to you. That's good for your business.

Derrick Kenny

Right, right.

Mitsuko Herrera

So it's I think it's really important to think of it is the digital economy, it is digital opportunity, and we want everyone to be able to participate in it.

Senior Tech Classes With Senior Planet

Derrick Kenny

Right. And everyone, including, as we've mentioned earlier, seniors. And in this case, seniors are people over what 55, 65 years of age.

Mitsuko Herrera

Well, Derek, I like to say that age is just a number.

Derrick Kenny

Age is just a number, that's right. Yes, yes.

Mitsuko Herrera

Uh you know, it doesn't, it doesn't. I mean, for us, for some programs, um older adults are people over 50, other ones, older adults are over 60. Um, really for us, uh by and large, usually it is either over 50 or over 60. Um, we don't actually card people at the door. Okay. Um we are actually uh interested in uh anybody who wants to learn. Right. Um it's also sometimes what we have are we have caregivers and we support them because we have some caregivers who support um older adults. And so they may come and learn together or they may be helping each other. Um the important thing for us is that everybody um everybody who wants to learn can learn.

Derrick Kenny

All right. Well, to help illustrate the good work and um that the county and you have been doing uh with county older adults, we're gonna bring in a special guest, Zoe Beington Byington. And she's gonna talk a little bit about Senior Planet Montgomery and the work that Tebs has been doing along with Senior Planet Montgomery to help educate seniors.

Zoe Byington

My name is Zoe Byington. I am the program lead here at Senior Planner from ARP in Montgomery County. We are 501c3 nonprofit. We provide free tech classes to older adults throughout the country. I focus on Montgomery County in particular. Um it's really great. We have a bunch of different tech classes, and our big thing right now is exploring AI. A lot of people are interested in how to use AMI, what it is, how it impacts their daily lives. Such a really popular class. We also have a lot of classes on computer basics, um, smartphones and implements, um, how to protect yourself online, um, many different types of lectures. We work with different types of senior senators and senior living communities and in libraries throughout the county, any place that congregates older adults, and it's a really great experience that congregates people together in community, and they can learn more about tech every day. So it's actually really great. We're coming up on our 10-year anniversary of our partnership of senior planet with the Department of Technology in Montgomery County and their Department of Technology. The Department of Technology are the ones that are able to provide the funds to provide our free classes to people throughout the county. Um, and they help us connect with different site directors and any individuals who might be interested in our programming. Um we get our more among our classes. Our numbers thankfully grow each year. This past year we hit an engagement of about um 5,600 people, which is really, really cool. Um we also work with bigger sites like CCACC, which is Chinese Cultural Center Vietnamese American Services, which we are able to provide classes in different languages as well, which uh is great to meet different people's needs in the county. What I'm excited to wants to explore senior planet is come to our website, seniorplanet.org. You're able to see that we offer classes in-person Montgomery County, also virtually online. And then we have a hotline number that's available those members during the week and on some other days that you can come up with any tech-related questions. Um, once you come to our website, check out our calendar and come to any classes that may seem remotely interesting to you. And from there, you can see what we have to offer and that you'll want to come back to more classes in the future. I would tell Mitzi thank you for our dedicated partnership. We've worked together for the last 10 years to provide top-tier classes to our older adults throughout the county. Um, thank you for her support. Thank you for her creativity and ideas in making what we do possible.

Derrick Kenny

Whoa, whoa, whoa, those were some very kind words to be shared about you, Mitzi. You know, you know, you know, a little pat in the back. Sometimes you can't give yourself a pat in the back, so it's good to have someone else come and affirm all the good work that you're doing. Um, along with that, uh we could talk a little bit more about Senior Montgomery in just a moment because there's a lot more to it and a lot more opportunity there. And I want to make sure people out there understand how to access that. But speaking of pats in the back, you've uh earned uh a few awards along the way um for the efforts of Montgomery Connects. And there's one that we could talk about a little bit later that has to do with XR Montgomery. Um let's talk about a few of the awards that were earned um through some of the efforts of UmTebs and Montgomery Connects.

Mitsuko Herrera

Well, um for one, um Senior Planet in Montgomery was actually recognized by Mako as being the uh best program in the country. Oh wow. Um when we pivoted during COVID from our Senior Planet uh programming that we held in person um to holding it uh via Zoom. We've now resumed and we actually offer it both in person and uh on Zoom. Okay. Um but we actually grew that program from having about 200 people who took multi-week classes and another 600 people who took uh single classes to now we have um we have about uh 4,800 people who come and see us in person, and we have almost 17,000 people who take online.

Derrick Kenny

17,000. All right.

Mitsuko Herrera

Um we also um have received um from the Montgomery County Commission on Aging, we received the 2025 award for aging in place. Um and we have received a number of awards from from NACO for um um they're not honorable mentions, but they're they're they're uh uh they're uh recognized for achievement. Yeah, notable achievement, I believe is the name for that. That's awesome. For the various work that we've done um in pioneering um different different programs. We're very proud. We actually started our partnership with Oates, older adult technology services in 2017, 2016. This is actually our 10th year of doing work with um Oates and Senior Planet.

Helping Reluctant Learners Build Confidence

Derrick Kenny

Oh wow, fantastic, fantastic. So um let's do a little scenario here. Um imagine I'm an older adult, it doesn't take much on imagination, um, but I'm I'm reluctant to I I believe, Derek, you and I actually both do qualify to take classes. Yes, we do. Um audio description, uh host cries a little bit, a little tear goes down his cheek. Um but thankfully, you know, you want you want to be on this side of of life where you continue to live, you're able to see the progress. Um how do but but I say to myself, say to you, I'm kind of interested in technology, but I don't I don't think I can do it. I don't think I'm ready. Um, it might be too hard, it might be too hard to get involved with. What do you say to these type of older adults?

Mitsuko Herrera

Well, the first thing I say is that everyone can learn.

Derrick Kenny

Okay.

Mitsuko Herrera

Um, one of the things that can be um a good starting point to do would be to come and take a single class. So we offer a lot of lectures that are focused on a specific thing. So, as Zoe mentioned um in the video, like if you wanted to come and you have a smartphone and I want to learn how to use um Google Maps, or I want to learn how to use a ride sharing app, or I want to learn how to use to send some money to somebody. That's right. Right? That can be a single thing. And for some people, they'll can come and they might learn one or two things and then you know what? I I actually can want to commit and I'm gonna come and I'm gonna take a five-week class, there's 10 sessions. The thing about those five, five week, those 10 session classes is there's a lot of things of which you learn and then you come back and you learn and it and it just has a constant um um uh I'm forgetting the word at this moment, but it's a it's a reinforcement so that you what I know is that when people take those classes, they graduate from them and they feel confident.

Derrick Kenny

All right.

Mitsuko Herrera

The confidence score is. 90% plus right. People feel like I know how to use the internet, I know how to use email, I feel confident doing it. We have components in there about protecting your privacy. We have specific classes about protecting your specific uh protecting your privacy online. One of our most popular classes actually is online storage. Um, a lot of people, when they use their phones, um, they find that they run out of room on their email or they run out of their photo storage.

Derrick Kenny

Yeah.

Mitsuko Herrera

Um, so we have that. Another way that you can access it is that every once in a while we will offer um um tech support. So you can come in and you can have a 15-minute session, 20-minute session, you can ask somebody any kind of question you want. Um so any of those kinds of things, those are good ways to access it.

Derrick Kenny

All right. Um, if they want to sign up, how do they sign up? Where's the is there a URL? There's a website.

Mitsuko Herrera

Uh the best way to go is to seniorplanet.org forward slash Montgomery.

Derrick Kenny

All right. Seniorplanet.org forward slash Montgomery. All right, and you can get information about joining Montgomery County's senior planet Montgomery and Oak. Oakland. Is it Oak? Oats? Oats.

Mitsuko Herrera

Oats is our vendor, but they're on there we list, we have classes. We basically have um we have quarters. So we start them in um January, April, July, and October. Okay. Um, and then we we list the classes that we have. We offer them, use it at 19 different sites throughout the county throughout the the year.

Announcer

All right.

Mitsuko Herrera

Um, and they're listed there. Um, and that's really the best way to go and have it. We offer them at uh senior centers, libraries, and now we're offering it in some housing locations.

Derrick Kenny

Oh, wow, that's incredible. That's incredible. And I remember joining you one time, and you had seniors wearing headsets, and they were able to experience virtual reality. And now, several years later, um I guess a couple of years ago, the county uh led by Montgomery Connects and XR Montgomery and Tebs was able to introduce augmented reality in the the um the supplemental education at an Oakley Cabin African-American Museum and Parks. Let's talk about uh what XR Montgomery is and what that project is and what was that like.

Mitsuko Herrera

So XR Montgomery is the county's extended reality. That's what XR is. Extended reality really covers virtual reality, VR, augmented reality, and mixed reality. What those are is when you see people with the headsets, that's a virtual reality. It's an all-digital environment. Um, augmented reality tends to be something where you use your phone and you might um have digital elements that you overlay over the real world. And a mixed reality can be where um you'll see that a lot in a training where I can take it's really good as a training thing where like potentially like I'm looking at something and I can pull it apart and I might be a good training manual. Yeah. Um it can also be a good thing like uh like if I'm calibrating something, I can pull up the training manual on the specs, and I can kind of have it all there. They they have some ways a little bit more promise than you know, like a lot of things, a little more sizzled than the the actual steak right now. Right, right. Um but and one thing is particularly is those headsets, they cannot get sunlight.

Derrick Kenny

Right.

Mitsuko Herrera

Um, one thing that we're actually really kind of looking forward and we would like to um partner on is the new VR glasses. Those are very exciting. Um I have a pair I actually in sunglass form, I'm actually looking at another one in uh regular glass form. They're they're exciting when you go to museums, uh the headsets. But the XR Montgomery program, the first place that we've launched is at Oakley Cabin. It's in Brookville, just north of Olney. Um, it's an exciting way to really bring history alive. Uh, because what we've done is you can take your phone out and we have 10 different um QR codes, and we have taken um video and digital elements. So, one thing is we've used AI to create a virtual park interpreter.

Derrick Kenny

Oh, wow. So you can go out whenever during daylight hours that are like, I'm sleeping under a rock. What is AI?

Mitsuko Herrera

Oh, sorry, augmented real or artificial intelligence is what it means, but it's it's really kind of uh it also has some limitations. But what we've really done is we created a database and we tried to guess like what are 80 different questions that somebody might ask, and we created the answers. And so when you come up, you can use your phone, you can use the text, and you can ask it, and it will provide the answers that we've supplied. So it's not going to the internet, it's actually like we try to take the questions that would be there, and then you can go into it. We've taken the inside of the of the cabin so you can see it if you and also so there's a second floor, so if you can't access it up the stairs, you can actually see it. And then we've also taken elements outside, and we've had some kids who've come out and they've done great things, like we have a um a pig, and you can you can actually take videos of yourself petting the pig, do some things. But the whole idea is to take these things that are um part of our history, part of our shared knowledge. Oakley Cabin itself is um it is a cabin, and what they focus on is the reconstruction period right after emancipation. So after after slavery ended, um and the lives of the people who lived there is trying to give you that history. Right. Uh and then our next projects that we're looking forward to, um, is people a lot of people don't know, is that there is a great history that we've had up at Emery Grove in uh Gaithersburg. Uh there is Johnson's local park, and these are all in partnership, I would say, with Montgomery Parks. And also we've done a lot of work with the University of Maryland in their historic preservation program. Uh and then um we are looking to do one uh at Glen Echo Park. Uh and then what I hope to do is actually deploy some things and to do and to tell some of the history of the civil rights in Rockville.

Recap And How To Connect

Derrick Kenny

Oh, wonderful, wonderful. And that's what's happening, Moco. Using technology to benefit the residents of Montgomery County, Maryland. Be sure to make it out to Oakley Cabin, African American Museum and Park. Be sure to have your loved ones or yourself connect with Senior Planet Montgomery to get up to speed on all the technology that you need to use to connect with your loved ones or to learn more or to do more as a resident of the county. Thank you to Mitzi so much for being here and all the good work you've been doing and leading Montgomery Connects, uh, Senior Planet Montgomery and XR Montgomery to benefit residents all over the county.

Mitsuko Herrera

You're welcome.

Derrick Kenny

Always ask the question, What's Happening Mocha? So you can get the answers. Like, subscribe, and share.

Announcer

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