Education Law

FCC allows E-rate programs more flexibility

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved a plan to allow the public to take advantage of schools’ internet access during non-operating hours. Schools that receive funding from the E-rate program (more formally, the schools and libraries universal service support program) may now provide internet access to the public during non-operating hours. This change attracted broad support in comments received while developing the National Broadband Plan.

This action will leverage universal service funding to serve a larger population at no increased cost to the E-rate program. If a school chooses to allow community access, the general public will be able to use the internet access already present in schools for purposes such as job searches and applications, digital literacy programs, and online access to governmental services and resources. The FCC feels that increasing community access to the internet is particularly critical in communities where residential adoption of broadband Internet access has historically lagged, including many rural, minority, and Tribal communities. Libraries already may provide internet access to their communities using E-rate support.

The order enables schools to provide similar access to the public. The E-rate program commits $2.25 billion in funding annually to schools and libraries for eligible telecommunications services, Internet access, internal connections, and basic maintenance of internal connections.

Current E-rate rules require schools to use the funding only for “educational purposes” directly related to student activities. The FCC says waiving that rule will maximize the use of school facilities and serve more of the community.

Ars Technica notes:

This expansion of E-rate facilities was first tried in Alaska. It could take some of the pressure off public libraries, which share their Internet stations with patrons for general use, and have been deluged with job seekers who have no access to broadband anywhere else. But one wonders how many cash-strapped public schools will avail themselves of this change, given that opening up their workstations will require them to spend additional money on access supervisors and technical support.

BoardBuzz wonders that too. Do you think your school will pursue opening its network to the public? Would it be worth the effort? We think it depends largely on how the rules are rewritten and who is expected to foot the bill of support and maintenance costs. Let us know your opinion.

The FCC’s broadband plan also recommends upgrading the E-rate program to improve broadband access in public elementary and secondary schools, working to improve online learning opportunities including the reduction of regulatory barriers, and promoting digital literacy for students and teachers.

Leveraging broadband to support education is just one of the areas the FCC’s Broadband Task Force outlined in its preview of the National Broadband Plan, due to Congress in 27 days. The Task Force also outlined a laundry list of ways that government could make broadband more useful for the public. These include:

• Setting up a broadband powered “national employment assistance platform,” which would offer the workforce “anytime, anywhere e-learning tools to drive enrollment in post-secondary education and job training programs”
• Authorizing the Rural Health Care Program to fund high speed Internet adoption at rural health care facilities, and encouraging the use of remote monitoring vital sign equipment hooked up to the ‘Net
• Fast tracking the digitization and accessibility of health care records
• Encouraging deployment of smart grid technology, and releasing more government data on digital platforms so that consumers have online access to their energy use records
• Creating a nationwide interoperable broadband wireless public safety network.

More detail can be found in the presentation made to the Commission.

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on February 22, 2010 (boomark / email).