Dive Brief:
- CDW-G K-12 Strategy and Google Apps/Chromebooks Specialist David Andrade writes for Ed Tech Magazine that districts seeking to apply for and utilize $3.9 billion of annual federal E-rate funding need to know what they're doing first.
- A number of E-rate consultants exist, but they need to be chosen selectively.
- The magazine provides a handy list of eligible services, and the E-rate deadline for this year has been extended to May 26.
Dive Insight:
With just a few days left, districts seeking E-rate funding need to move quickly, but still need to be careful. That's because the process of applying and managing E-rate funding can be complicated. The E-rate program has been reformed to focus exclusively on Internet connectivity and to streamline the application process, which used to be more complex. E-rate also helps support President Barack Obama's ConnectED initiative, which aims to provide high-speed Internet access to 99% of classrooms by 2018.
It's also important for school leaders to stay organized, and to thoroughly vet any contractors considered in relation to E-rate, in order to avoid fraud. In Cleveland, a consultant who served as project manager for NYC’s Project Connect was found guilty of overbilling the school district over four years. The consultant was charged with theft and fraud. Chicago's Concept Schools charter network has also faced an investigation related to a possible violation of E-rate bidding rules.
New York City's Department of Education allegedly violated the competitive bidding rules of the program, forcing the department to reach a $3 million settlement with the FCC, after a consultant who served as project manager for NYC’s Project Connect was found guilty of overbilling the school district over four years and criminally charged with theft and fraud. The man in question "created a subcontracting scheme using two primary vendors associated with Project Connect to misappropriate money from the NYC DOE, without the NYC DOE’s knowledge or agreement."