Changing the Course

DETROIT’S DIGITAL DIVIDE

The vision of "Changing The Course" is a Detroit where every resident has access to technology, internet and digita literacy, which is the baseline for education and opportunity in today's economy. 

At the inception of the Changing The Course initiatve, Detroit was rated the least connected large city in America. Now, through the hard work of Rocket Mortgage and other tournament partners, more and more Detroiters are gaining access to the internet as a result of the Changing The Course initiative. 

The Changing The Course mission is largely executed by the Connect 313 Fund, which was founded through the 2020 Rocket Mortgage Classic and is rooted in the City of Detroit's digital inclusion strategy. The Connect 313 Fund is a coordinating mechanism for all digital inclusion stakeholders driving collectively toward the singular vision of bridging the digital divide. 

The Connect 313 Fund has tirelessly worked to impact the outcome for Detroit residents, ensuring that households become digitially included and that residents are able to access job training, educatioin, telemedicine and other necessities that are the hallmark of a connected and thriving community. As of May 2022, these efforts have allowed a vast majority - 67.5 percent - of Detroit households to become digitally included after only 30 percent enjoyed that status 3 years ago. 

Connect 313 Impact Report

Connect 313 Fund 

The Connect 313 Fund is a community-driven digital inclusion strategy set up by the Rocket Giving Fund and the city of Detroit and administered by United Way for Southeastern Michigan and is focused on four strategic pillars:

1. Collecting accurate neighborhood-level data on technology, internet access and digital resources. 
   
   
2. Building and supporting neighborhood technology hubs by investiing in trusted community centers to grow technology resources. 
   
   
3. Empowering and financially supporting residents across the city to become digital literacy ambassadors in their respective neighborhoods. 
   
   
4. Coordinating city-wide fundraising and public advocacy for systemic change in digital inclusion. 

AREA 313 CHALLENGE

One of the ways the Rocket Mortgage Classic raises funds for Connect 313 is the AREA 313 Challenge. The unique activation includes holes 14, 15 and 16 at the Detroit Golf Club - dubbed "AREA 313" in honor of Detroit's famed area code. The goal is to score a 3 on Hole 14 (an eagle), a hole-in-one on Hole 15 and a 3 on Hole 16 (a birde) - scoring a 3-1-3 along that strethch. Those who score a 3 on Hole 14 and 3 on Hole 16 trigger a $5,000 donation and anyone who scores a hole-in-one on Hole 15 generates a $25,000 donation.

Any golfer who goes 3-1-3 over those three holes cumulatively over the four days of tournament play will trigger a $313,000 donation made in his name split between a charity of the golfer's choice and the Connect 313 Fund, in support of Changing the Course. 

The AREA 313 Challenge has raised $785,000 in the last two years.