THE Journal

The Money Trail

There’s a bunch of money leaving Washington at the end of March. Don’t panic! Here’s a quick primer on what it is and how it may be available to districts. Read more (subscription required)...

IDEA

In part one of a five-part series on IDEA ARRA funds, EML looks at how districts will use ARRA funds to move existing IDEA programs forward and the implications for education companies’ sales and marketing efforts Read more (subscription required)...

EETT

States may have all $650 million of the ARRA EETT funds available on July 1 rather than in the fall, and they may have the flexibility of distributing them either by 100% competitive funds or 50% competitive and 50% Title I formula. Those two upbeat announcements during the week of May 4th were followed by more disappointing news, when the administration announced its budget proposal for next fiscal year—and the proposed funding for EETT fell far from its original mark. Here is a rundown of what’s afoot with EETT funds and what it means for your business. Read more (subscription required)...

State News Analysis

House Bill 4294, a bill that could significantly change the textbook process in Texas and across the country, continues to move rapidly through the Texas Legislature with six new amendments introduced on Saturday May 2nd before passage out of the House on Monday May 4th. The amendments expand the use of and rules around the textbook fund begun under the original bill by offering more options for districts to use textbook funds for technology, providing more flexibility within the adoption cycle, and easing the process for publishers to make changes to adopted materials. Read more (subscription required)...

School Construction

Disappointment abounded when the Senate compromise on the ARRA legislation took about $16B in new school construction funds off the table. Yet there is one specific program designed to help communities build new schools: Qualified School Construction Bonds, which are zero-interest to the schools and tax free to the lender. We offer an analysis of some of the provisions of the legislation and its guidelines that may have an impact on the opportunity for technology infrastructure companies looking to leverage new school construction initiatives. Read more (subscription required)...

Broadband & Education

The way the stimulus broadband legislation is written, there's a potential for schools to play a central role in the deployment of this stage one plan for expanding broadband reach across the country. But first, the education community needs to participate in the comment period to ensure that the Commerce department understands the issues near and dear to its heart. Broadband consultant Alice Taylor offers a primer on the stimulus broadband program, and the questions that education needs to weigh in on. Read more (subscription required)...

Whether you’re a router manufacturer, a rural utility, a networking company, a technology consultant to schools, or any other possible link in the broadband chain, if you’re interested in going after stimulus broadband money, you need to know who else is interested, who has information you might need, and with whom you might align your company. Why not start with this list of organizations and companies that participated in the six public meetings held by NTIA and RUS in Washington, DC, Las Vegas, and Flagstaff in March, compiled exclusively by EML. Read more (subscription required)...

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