E-Rate Program Commits Over $450 Million In Funding For Broadband in Schools And Libraries
A record level of early financial support for broadband in schools and libraries has been approved by the E-rate program, the Federal Communications Commission’s program for supporting communications services in these institutions.
Reflecting a dedicated effort by the FCC to get critical funding for broadband to schools and libraries as quickly as possible, the $450 million in funding commitments for broadband is six times the amount approved at this time last year by USAC, the program administrator. Including other communications services, USAC committed a total of $607 million in support in the first wave of funding for 2014.
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Funded projects include:
- A statewide consortium in Maine will provide gigabit fiber connections to 28 library sites, which will support use of technology to help close the long distances in this large rural state.
- In Indiana, E-rate will help support 2.5 Gigabit Internet access for 21 sites near Indianapolis in the Warren Township Metropolitan School District, which has a 71 percent poverty rate. The district is using digital learning technologies to individualize education for students, and has increased its graduation rate by 12 percentage points over the last 5 years.
Additional Details From the Universal Service Administrative Company
USAC Releases First Commitments for Funding Year 2014 in the Schools and Libraries Program
Filed under: Funding, Libraries, School Libraries
About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.