Learn, Connect, and Thrive Online: North Carolina’s Free Digital Curriculum Is on the Way
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North Carolina Digital Skills Standards framework showing six core areas of digital competence. Graphic courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Information Technology (NCDIT), NC Broadband Office.
North Carolina has established a new foundation to help residents succeed in the digital age: the North Carolina Digital Skills Standards, recently launched by the NCDIT Division of Broadband and Digital Opportunity. These standards define six key areas that every resident should understand to participate fully in today’s economy, society, and civic life: Digital Identity, Digital Well-being, Digital Relationships, Digital Safety, Digital Reasoning, and Digital Futures. Beyond simply providing access to broadband or devices, the standards emphasize practical skills for using technology and online services with ease and purpose.
This framework will also form the basis for upcoming resources, including a free online curriculum and a facilitator handbook, both designed to help residents and educators across the state strengthen digital confidence.
Why Digital Skills Matter in NC
According to a study by the National Skills Coalition, about one in three workers in North Carolina lacks basic digital skills, even though more than 90 percent of jobs now require at least some digital ability. Rural communities like ours here in Bertie find this gap even more challenging.
Digital skills also play a major role in everyday life. People use them to check health information online, pay bills, stay in touch with family, access public services, and avoid online scams.
Statewide Support for a Digital Future
In September 2025, Governor Josh Stein issued Executive Order No. 24 to guide the responsible growth of artificial intelligence (AI) across the state. This order created a statewide AI Leadership Council and a centralized AI Accelerator within NCDIT to coordinate ethics, governance, workforce preparation, and public education. It reinforces that digital literacy and emerging-tech awareness are increasingly part of the “must-have” toolkit for residents in every corner of our state.
Bringing Digital Skills to Your Community
To support these efforts, NCSU’s Friday Institute and NCDIT are developing two additional resources built around the six new Digital Skills Standards:
- Facilitator Handbook: Filled with best practices for digital navigators, community educators, and volunteers. They have already interviewed many boots-on-the-ground digital educators and navigators across the state to curate a collection of real-life methods and impact stories from the field to help trailblaze a path for others who might want to use them as a template to advance digital opportunity in their own communities.
- Free Online Curriculum: Designed around the six new standards & intended both for individuals wanting to learn at their own pace online AND structured so that educators, volunteers, and classrooms can teach these same lessons to groups at libraries, community centers, churches, or other local settings.
The curriculum will use NC-focused case studies and scenarios that will resonate with all residents across all regions of our state, using examples that will make sense to North Carolinians regardless of whether they live in a rural or urban community. It will cover everyday topics such as using telehealth, managing online banking, engaging safely on social media, protecting your identity online, and how to use emerging tools responsibly.
How You Can Get Involved
If you live in North Carolina and want to build your digital confidence, keep an eye out for the curriculum launch in early 2026. Local organizations, libraries, schools, or churches interested in hosting workshops or partnering with Extension to receive free digital literacy lessons can contact me at rjinnet@ncsu.edu or 252-794-6170.
Digital literacy is a key part of living, learning, and working in today’s world. With the State’s standards, the Governor’s commitment, and local collaboration, we are building a stronger foundation so residents across North Carolina can thrive, not just survive, in a digital era.
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References
National Skills Coalition. (2024, June). North Carolina digital divide fact sheet. https://nationalskillscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/NC-Digital-Divide-Fact-Sheet-Final.pdf
North Carolina Department of Information Technology. (2025). North Carolina digital skills standards. N.C. Broadband and Digital Equity Office. https://www.ncbroadband.gov/digital-skills-standards
North Carolina Department of Information Technology. (2025, October 9). NCDIT launches Digital Skills Standards to empower North Carolinians with essential digital competencies. https://www.ncbroadband.gov/news/press-releases/2025/10/09/ncdit-launches-digital-skills-standards-empower-north-carolinians-essential-digital-competencies
Office of Governor Josh Stein. (2025, September 2). Executive Order No. 24: Advancing trustworthy artificial intelligence for the benefit of all North Carolinians. https://governor.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2025/09/02/governor-stein-announces-executive-order-ai
WRAL TechWire. (2023, February 6). Digital skills needed at 91% of NC jobs – and many people lack them, report says. https://wraltechwire.com/2023/02/06/digital-skills-needed-at-91-of-nc-jobs-and-many-people-lack-them-report-says/