The need for digital literacy and education has existed in Charlotte for many years and many residents rely on the public library in order to access needed services and resources. This need increased exponentially with the shift to virtual learning caused by necessary precautions due to COVID-19. In order to address the increased need for digital literacy support, the DigiLit program was expanded in order to include self-direct options and virtual classes.

The initial goal of this project was to empower adult learners to select digital literacy classes that best fit their needs based on their goals, life situation or personal interest. We completed a full audit of our technology offerings and grouped them into "Learning Paths" that closely link with different customer use cases — such as "Workplace Tools" or "Basic Digital Skills." The DigiLit website was created to highlight the available classes, resources on popular topics and learning paths.

We piloted a series of seven classes to test the format of online computer classes as well as the support site between mid-August to early October, providing digital literacy support to 33 adults. Through the pilot we have learned many of the needs that are unique to virtual learning and plan to offer additional classes and continue to add to our DigiLit virtual space to make learning more accessible.