What is Every1online?

Every1online is our core in-home Wi-Fi project that provides Internet access to Pittsburgh communities in need.

Every1online means exactly that: we want every person in need of in-home Internet to have the option, but without steep bills. Our goal in creating a community-based, nonprofit Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP) is to end Southwest Pennsylvania’s digital divide by providing Internet directly to the people who need it most. We do this by implementing a sponsorship model, where local stakeholders, such as school districts, service agencies, local governments, and business can cover the cost of Internet services on behalf of their community members who need it. This way, sponsoring stakeholders can deliver their own online services, while the community benefits from a reliable wireless network.

Sign up for Every1online here

How It Works

Our main Internet connection is transmitted from the top of the Cathedral of Learning! These high-powered, long distance radios connect to “repeater towers” in each of our target neighborhoods. From there, the signal is re-transmitted and received by a small radio installed outside each participant’s home or apartment.

This receiver connects to a Wi-Fi router in the home to create a fast, secure, and private Wi-Fi network. Meta Mesh provides the receiver, small in-home Wi-Fi router, and ethernet cable at no cost to the end user. We can even set up multiple networks in a single building using just one receiver on the outside!

We want your connection to be as fast and stable as possible. We aim for each household to have 50 Mbps of download capacity and 25 Mbps of upload capacity, which means everyone in the house should be able to participate in online video meetings or instruction at the same time. 

After installation, Meta Mesh will provide you with an e-mail address and phone number to get in touch with us if you have questions or problems. We will also provide you with a general tech support number and other resources for questions that do not involve our equipment.

Our Partners

We are able to make this project a reality through a collaborative and cross-sectional effort between higher education institutions, digital inclusion organizations, and grassroots community groups. With gratitude, we thank the following groups for their tremendous support:

Carnegie Mellon University: A team of collaborators from CMU’s School of Computer Science and the Simon Initiative coordinated project connections between CMU and Pitt, provided critical start-up funding for the project and liaised with key stakeholders and community groups. They offer ongoing project design, implementation, and fundraising support.

University of Pittsburgh: Pitt IT, the CIO Office, and Community & Governmental Relations are key stakeholders and collaborators, contributing facility access and funding to enable our use of the Cathedral of Learning as our “Super Node” hub. They will support stakeholder and community involvement in additional neighborhoods following the pilot.

The Keystone Initiative for Network Based Education and Research (KINBER): KINBER is a vendor partner to both CMU and Pitt, and provides our gateway to the Internet through PennREN Fiber, which is broadcast from atop the Cathedral of Learning.

Participating School Districts and Community Groups: The New Kensington-Arnold School District and Cornell (Coraopolis-Neville Island) School District, as well as the Homewood Children’s Village are collaborators in this project. They bring vital expertise, leading the effort to build community buy-in, leveraging social capital to facilitate the creation of WISP infrastructure, and identifying households in need of Internet connectivity. They also advise CMU, Pitt, and Meta Mesh on community need and intentional partnership practices.