E-Rate

Panelists at the California IT in Education conference said school IT leaders will face myriad budgeting challenges in the years ahead, but careful planning, partnerships and consultants could help get them through it.

Plus, Maryland has brought Internet access to Smith Island; Hawaii has launched a Digital Navigator Program; students in El Paso, Texas, will receive digital and AI skills instruction, and more.

Plus, a new Arizona partnership aims to expand Internet access in the state along Interstate 17; Cook County, Ill., is planning a learning symposium event for Digital Inclusion Week; and more.

Plus, Hawaii has announced a Digital Aloha Month campaign, California is piloting improvements to an affordable broadband initiative, Santa Barbara launched a digital resource hub, and more.

Citing statutory authority and oversight concerns, the Federal Communications Commission may roll back COVID-era expansions to the E-rate program that funded take-home Wi-Fi hot spots and Wi-Fi on school buses.

The high court preserved the Universal Service Fund, which finds its beginnings in the 1934 Communications Act. It includes E-rate, and is intended to ensure effective telecommunications across America.

Democrat Geoffrey Starks will depart the FCC within the next month, leaving the agency with a 2-1 Republican majority. Whether the GOP members will move to reverse past E-rate expansions remains to be seen.

Experts at the Consortium for School Networking’s annual conference in Seattle urged K-12 leaders to contact the FCC and Congress and voice their support for the E-rate program that funds school broadband.

A conservative-leaning FCC, coupled with legal and congressional challenges, have created uncertainty around the E-rate program that funds school broadband. Experts say districts will need local funding and community partnerships to fill the gap.

Plus, E-rate program funding is at risk, broadband legislation has been introduced, Massachusetts debuts connectivity initiative, materials from the Office of Educational Technology are once again available, and more.

A panel at the Future of Education Technology Conference in Orlando last week offered tips on planning for the future of broadband, while cautioning attendees that aspects of the E-rate program are in political jeopardy.

The application window for the Federal Communications Commission's cybersecurity pilot program saw requests from schools and libraries in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.

Plus, more states have been awarded federal funding from the Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, and the city of Boulder, Colo., has announced a new partnership to expand community broadband.

Policy experts at the California IT in Education conference last week said Republicans in control of Congress and the Federal Communications Commission may seek to revoke recent E-rate program expansions.

Great Bend Unified School District 428 in Kansas plans to use E-rate funds to upgrade the district's Internet bandwidth and put Wi-Fi on school buses. It also intends to apply for the FCC's new cybersecurity program.

More than 2,500 applicants applied for funding through the Federal Communications Commission’s three-year Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program, which will fund expenses like firewalls and endpoint detection.

Plus, Massachusetts is investing in digital skills training; a partnership in Scranton, Pa., aims to create a universal network; the Federal Communications Commission looks to drive tribal participation in E-rate; and more.

The three-year $200 million Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program opens its application window this fall. The near-term goal is to secure schools most in need, but long-term it will help nationwide.