K12 News

K12 News  - January 2004

Grants

K12 News  - March  2004

The state of Missouri has received an additional $42.2 million from the Department of Homeland Security for training, equipment and planning. The money will be made available to law enforcement agencies, school districts, cities, counties and water districts through a grant process.

 

 

03/26/04

Education picks new technology director


The Education Department today named Susan Patrick director of the Office of Educational Technology. Patrick has served as acting director since Feb. 2, when she replaced former director John Bailey, who left to join President Bush’s re-election campaign.

Patrick is responsible for coordinating programs and policies on technology, including implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act, virtual education and e-learning, student data management systems, online assessments and the National Education Technology Plan.

Before coming to Washington, Patrick worked for Arizona on technology issues and coordinated the Digital State Survey 2002, in which Arizona was ranked first in the nation. She served as former Gov. Jane Dee Hull's liaison to the Legislature and the press on technology and served in the Government Information Technology Agency.

Patrick received her master's degree from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California in communication management, specializing in technology policy. She also has a bachelor's degree in English from Colorado College.

 

 

 

 

A report by the National Association of State Boards of Education and eSchool News focuses on the $1.86 billion in supplemental education services funding that is available to schools that are defined as "in need of improvement". The report discusses the opportuities for schools to utilize the money for tutoring, online instruction and after school programs.

According to the report, many school officials are not even aware that the money is available. The funds are part of the No Child Left Behind Act and are meant to assist schools whose students are not making adequate yearly progress.

 

Hickok Announces New Mexico Will Receive More Than $114 Million in Title I Funds
$10.9 million increase to support needy schools

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Acting Deputy Education Secretary Eugene Hickok today announced that New Mexico will receive more than $114 million to assist needy schools. The announcement was made with U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., while they toured Marie M. Hughes Elementary School in Albuquerque. Hickok also will speak at a "feria educativa," Spanish for "education fair," sponsored by a coalition of national organizations and the U.S. Department of Education through its Partners in Hispanic Education Initiative. In addition, Hickok will join U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M. and address the Character Counts Conference in Albuquerque as well.

The preliminary figures project that New Mexico's No Child Left Behind Title I funding allocation will increase from $103.2 million in 2003 to $114.1 million in 2004—an increase of $10.9 million or more than 10 percent. In addition, the Albuquerque Public School System, New Mexico's largest school district, will receive a funding increase of 10.7 percent—from $22.3 million to $24.7 million.

 

Arizona State University to Replace Three Major Systems

Arizona State University will be replacing three of their major systems in the next five years. The systems being replaced, in order of importance, are the student information, human resource and financial systems. The systems are being replaced because the current legacy systems can no longer be maintained. The approximate cost to replace each of these systems will be $5-$10 million.

25th Annual National Educational Computing Conference The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) will hold the 25th annual National Educational Computing Conference (NECC), Jammin' and Jazzin' with Technology, on June 21–23, 2004, in New Orleans, Louisiana. ISTE expects that more than 16,000 people in the fields of education, technology, and policy will attend. For more information, see http://www.iste.org/news/
2003/09/17necc/index.cfm.

2004 TOP Grants Available

The Commerce Department's Technology Opportunities Program (TOP) has approximately $12.9 million available for grants in 2004. TOP provides matching funds for programs that bring technology to underserved communities.

The Application Kit for FY04, including the Announcement and Guidelines, provides information on the program, rules for applying, suggestions for preparing an application and the standard forms you need to prepare a TOP application.

The deadline for applications is April 27, 2004. Grant applications and guidelines are available at the Department of Commerce Web site.

Student SWAT Teams Help Teachers Cope with Technology
61 percent of large districts use students for tech support
Students Working to Advance Technology (SWAT) help their teachers and other students deal with technology in the classroom. According to an article in the Chicago Tribune, elementary and high school SWAT teams provide support nationwide. Sixty-one percent of large districts use students for technical support, according to a survey by Grunwald Associates and the National School Boards Foundation. In 43 percent of districts, students troubleshoot hardware, software and infrastructure problems. In 39 percent, they set up equipment and wiring, and in 36 percent they perform technical maintenance duties.

Virginia, Tennessee Middle Schools Receive $5,000 Grant for Student Help Desk Training Program
21st century workplace skills
Technical support will soon be provided by students at Greeneville Middle School in Tennessee and Grace E. Metz Middle School in Manassas, Va. The schools are recipients of $5,000 grants from Dell. Dell and Tech Corps selected them from among 255 national applicants. The grants provide students with 30 hours of basic technology training from hardware repair to networking to customer relations; testing and certification of the middle school students; and all procedures, training and call tracking software required to establish a student-run help desk to support the school's technology infrastructure.

Standards and Strategies

Feedback Invited for National Education Technology Plan
Supports the goals of No Child Left Behind
The U.S. Department of Education re-launched the National Education Technology Plan Web site and is calling for widespread participation in the development of the nation's third technology plan. The "Participate in the Plan!" section of the Web site will be open for comment through March 12. The department is seeking advice from a variety of constituencies in education, including students, parents, K-12 educators, college and university leaders, and members of business and industry. Individuals can participate by uploading files, including reports, articles and presentations, or by downloading and viewing what others have posted.

Schools Interoperability Framework Releases New Specification
Vertical reporting allows automated data transfer from local to state and national levels
The Schools Interoperability Framework, (SIF), released its new specification version 1.5 -- that expands functionality in such areas as human resources, food services, instructional services, transportation, data warehousing, infrastructure and student information services. Vertical reporting allows for the automated transfer of data utilized at the local level to state levels and state to the national level to streamline mandated reporting and No Child Left Behind requirements. For the first time the SIF specification will be used for data sharing and support in a number of state departments of education as well as the United States Department of Education.

George Mason U to Partner with Fairfax County Public Schools
To improve opportunities at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
George Mason University and Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) are joining forces to explore ways to improve educational opportunities for students of the prestigious Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST), according to a release posted to George Mason's Daily Mason Gazette. "This is a partnership with unlimited possibilities," said Daniel Domenech, superintendent of FCPS. "The opportunities to update the curriculum, enhance faculty collaboration, and share resources and information are truly exciting."

Tech Team Handles District Needs
Reduces backlog, provides other benefits
Ten technology assistants working in the Elizabeth City-Pasquotank, N.C., Public Schools meet each Thursday at a different school to tackle that school's technology needs. The strategy has reduced the backlog of pending technology needs and handled some large projects. According to an article in The Virginian-Pilot, it has also helped with on-the-job training to deal with unusual problems.

Resources

President's Proposed Budget Includes Additional Title I Funds
By Mark Struckman
The President's FY2005 budget includes a $1 billion funding increase for Title I monies and a $1 billion increase in funding for Special Education and $269 million for competitive grants to help states and school districts improve classroom instruction and accelerate learning in math for struggling students. Many technology purchases are funded from Title I monies and instructional software that assists with learning in math will be eligible for the $269 million in grant funding.

AP Course Exam Reviews Now Online
Registration began March 1, access starts April 5
To help students find success in AP exams, the Florida Virtual School (FLVS) will provide online exam reviews. March 1, students began to register in FLVS Exam Reviews for AP English Literature and Composition, AP English Language and Composition, AP U.S. History, AP European History, and AP Calculus AB. “Our top priority is to encourage and improve academic achievement for all Florida students, particularly those in rural and underserved communities,” said Julie Young, executive director, FLVS. The FLVS exam reviews for AP are designed to prepare students over a 3-to-5 week period prior to AP Exams. Access to reviews will begin on April 5. The FLVS Exam Reviews for AP are free for Florida resident students. Non-Florida students are invited to register. There is a nonresident $20 fee per exam review. All FLVS exam reviews for AP will be delivered online.

Honors

Consortium for School Networking Honors Rick Johnson, Others
For progress in integration of technology and education
The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) honored achievements in technology and education at its recent annual school networking conference. An award was presented to Rick Johnson, speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives, in recognition of his outstanding support of Freedom to Learn, an imaginative, statewide education program to improve student achievement in core academic subjects by providing students with access to 21st Century learning tools. Also honored were Dennis Bruno, Superintendent, Glendale School District, Flinton, Pa.; Montgomery County Public Schools, Rockville, Md. And Steve Kohn, Kirkland, Wash.

Conferences

Distance Education Conference
March 24-27 in Pasadena
The Alliance for Distance Education in California will convene ADEC Summit XV: "Connecting Leaders to Solutions" March 24-27 at the Westin Hotel in Pasadena. Online registration is available or call Lida Lim at 650-574-2421.

Georgia Educational Technology Conference Clarification
Scheduled Nov. 10-12 in Macon
The Georgia Educational Technology Conference will be held November 10-12, 2004 in Macon, Georgia, at the Centreplex. This is a departure from the usual April or February dates for the conference. For the school year 2004-2005, the conference will be held November 10-12, 2004. Because it will be the second GaETC conference during this calendar year, it will be called Fall Conference 2004.

International

U.S., Gambian Students Link Through Video
To look at things in a completely different way
East Carolina State University (ECU) in Greenville, N.C., and the University of The Gambia in Banjul, Gambia, are bringing American and Gambian students together with video and e-mail to encourage them "to look at things in a completely different way," according to an article in the Federal Information and News Dispatch.

40 Ministries of Education From 25 Countries Address Technology in Lifelong Learning
March 1 in Madrid
Scott McNealy, chairman, president and CEO, Sun Microsystems Inc. was joined by delegates of ministries of education from 25 countries across Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, North and South America at a March 1 LifeLong Learning Forum in Madrid, Spain. Delegates to the international Forum addressed their common vision for making lifelong learning a global reality and established a dialogue to address the intersection between technology and education.

Manteno Elementary School Selected for Free ''Wi-Fi 101'' Program
MANTENO, Ill. -- Manteno Elementary School in Illinois has completed its installation of free wireless equipment. As one of Acer's selected "Wi-Fi 101" K-12 schools nationwide, Manteno became eligible for the installation of up to four access points in two different locations at no cost to the school or school district.

 Garfield Heights High School Goes Wireless
GARFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Garfield Heights High School has completed an installation of wireless telephones, equipping security personnel, custodial staff and coaches throughout the school with the wireless handsets.

Pontiac Schools Implement Personal Digital Assistant Program
PONTIAC, Mich. -- The School District of the City of Pontiac worked with Internet Operations Center Inc. to deploy a wireless personal digital assistant program for use in student quiz taking and other educational functions.

Pennsylvania Bill Introduced to Create Statewide School Computer Network
Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Veon introduced House Bill 2386 to meet Gov. Rendell's challenge that legislators fund the creation of a statewide education network for K-12 schools during the next 18 months.

K12 News  - February 2004

Announcements

Governor's Laptop Learning Initiative
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson announced his innovative new program, the Governors Laptop Learning Initiative, that will provide laptop computers to New Mexico 7th graders and their teachers. More than 700 students and 80 teachers will receive laptop computers in the first phase of the initiative, with the goal of providing computers to every 7th grader in the state. A Request for Proposals, directed to schools, will be issued on February 19, 2004 to identify more students for the initiative. The cost for each laptop is $1,128, including grade- and curriculum-specific software. Dell Computers is providing the laptops for the initiative.

Oracle Internet Academy
The list of technology-based programs of study available to high school students through the Arkansas Department of Workforce Education's Career and Technical Education Section is expanding to an even more sophisticated level with the debut of the Oracle Internet Academy curriculum. The Oracle Internet Academy is designed to prepare students for the demanding field of Internet and database technology as well as the world of business. It is a two-year, real-world program of study that will teach students the latest Internet technologies, database development, and Java programming skills.

High School Courses Offered Online
Washoe County School District has a new educational initiative to offer high school courses online. This program allows the district to offer another alternative to high school students for credit recovery, credit enhancement and test preparation. The program will eventually offer a complete high school program of study, which will provide another alternative for completion to students at risk of dropping out. It may also serve to attract back students who have previously left the district without a diploma.

School of Science and Technology
Colorado Gov. Bill Owens and Mayor John Hickenlooper joined officials from the Denver School of Science and Technology (DSST) and Denver Public Schools (DPS) in breaking ground for the first high school to be built at the Stapleton redevelopment site. DSST is a public charter school within DPS for grades 9-12 and will open its doors to 125 ninth-graders this fall. Additional information about DSST and the admission process is available on the school's Web site.

Grants and Funding

$10.3 Million for Ohio Enhancing Education Through Technology
The Ohio SchoolNet Commission, in conjunction with the Ohio Department of Education, is pleased to announce that new grant funds are currently available to 378 of Ohio's public school buildings for school year 2004-2005 through the federal Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) initiative. Additional funding is also available through Continuation grants for the current 57 (2003-2004) grant recipients. The EETT grant program is a two-year, federal initiative to ensure that funded projects are of sufficient scope and quality to efficiently meet the purposes of the federal No Child Left Behind legislation. Approximately $10.3 million in federal funds will be awarded through this competitive application process to eligible Ohio school districts. For additional information about the competitive grant portion of the EETT program, visit the Web site.

$7 Million Grant for After-School Programs
New federal money is available for South Carolina schools and organizations sponsoring after-school academic programs. As part of the No Child Left Behind legislation, South Carolina will award $7 million in 21st Century Community Learning Center grants for the 2004-05 school year. Funds will be used to provide academic enrichment activities for students, especially those from high-poverty and low-performing schools. Grants will also fund literacy and other educational programs for the families of these students.

$1.6 Million Funds Educational Technology Research
A $1.6 million federal grant to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction will fund research into the effectiveness of educational technology to improve student achievement, according to an announcement from State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster. Wisconsin's grant will span three years and was one of 10 competitive awards under the federal No Child Left Behind Act's Enhancing Education through Technology program. The state's research project will identify three promising models for professional development that affect middle-level student instruction using educational technology. The instructional models will then be implemented in 40 to 60 urban, suburban and rural schools throughout the state.

Technology Applications

Wireless Computer Labs
The latest technology is literally falling into the laps of more students and teachers in the Garden Grove Unified School District as 14 elementary schools begin taking possession of new wireless mobile computer labs. Housed on wheeled carts, each lab contains 17 Macintosh laptops, an LCD projector for the teacher, and a network laser printer. The cost for each is approximately $25,000, provided through the federal Enhancing Education Through Technology grant program. As the carts are delivered, staff from the instructional technology department will provide demonstrations for integrating the new equipment and software into regular classroom lessons in science, social science, and language arts, among others.

DonorsChoose
Cumberland County Schools is excited to announce that its school system has been selected to participate in a pilot project with DonorsChoose. DonorsChoose is an online nonprofit marketplace where teachers and citizens connect to bring students the resources they need to learn. The pilot project began in January. The Web site will be announced to the general public in mid-February. Beginning August 2004, teachers in all 117 school systems in North Carolina will have access to the site.

Student Data Web Site
Leaders of a public-private collaborative launched the School Information Partnership education initiative with the unveiling of a Web site. The new site displays timely, relevant and comparable school, district and state data required to be publicly reported by the No Child Left Behind Act.

Science Web Site
Science buffs, students, teachers and parents are invited to take a tour of the district's latest cyber venture. As part of her educational update to the Board of Education at its January 28 meeting, Buffalo Public Schools Director of Science Education Clarann Josef unveiled the Science Department's new Web site. Visitors to the district Web site are encouraged to check out the new science link.

K12 News  - January 2004

Announcements

ALABAMA STATE SUPERINTENDENT RESIGNS
After more than eight years as the Alabama Superintendent of Education Ed Richardson will resign to become the interim president of Auburn University. The announcement came following a meeting by the Auburn University Board of Trustees in which Richardson was asked to head the university until a more permanent replacement can be found.

SEMIFINALISTS FOR SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH
Fifteen Montgomery County Public Schools students - 13 from Montgomery Blair High School and one each from Rockville and Walt Whitman high schools - have been named among 300 semifinalists in the 63rd Intel Science Talent Search. Science Service administers one of the most prestigious and rigorous science competitions for high school students in the U.S., the Intel competition.

ONLINE DRAFT OF GEORGIA PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
Gwinnett County Public Schools announced that as of January 12, 2004, the first draft of the new Georgia Performance Standards is available online. Parents, teachers and students are encouraged to read the materials and offer feedback to the Georgia Department of Education. The new Georgia Performance Standards, formerly known as the Quality Core Curriculum, are the result of months of exciting and impressive work by skilled teachers and nationally recognized curriculum experts. The draft documents can be found online.

WIN-WIN MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT REACHED
Teachers and staff at elementary and middle schools may be wondering why new photocopiers are replacing old ones at their schools -- despite the major budget crunch facing the Long Beach Unified School District. The answer is a win-win solution to high maintenance costs for Xerox, the company that leases the equipment to the district. After churning out nearly a million copies a year, the older machines were breaking down more often, requiring expensive service calls and generating more complaints from schools. At no increase in the cost of its lease agreement with the district, Xerox agreed to replace the old copy machines with new, faster, sturdier and more powerful machines.

KEYNOTE DELIVERED ON E-LEARNING DISTANCE EDUCATION
Oregon State Schools Superintendent Susan Castillo announced that Timothy J. Magner, executive director of K-12 Education for Microsoft Corp., delivered the keynote address at the Oregon e-Learning Distance Education Summit on January 26 at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland. In Magner's speech, titled "From e-Learning to Me-Learning: Progress and Challenges in Online Learning," he addressed upcoming trends in distance education and "Next Generation Learning Environments."

CITIES OF THE FUTURE
About 200 middle and junior high school students gathered to participate in the 2004 Future City Competition sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. Students started the competition last fall, designing three-dimensional and computer city models. The teams are allowed to spend $100 to construct their physical models and use SimCity software for the computer-generated ones. For more information on the Future City Competition, go to the Web site.

Grants and Funding

21ST CENTURY COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER GRANTS
The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) is pleased to announce the second state 21st Century Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) competition for grants. The program hopes to establish and/or expand community-learning centers that will assist learning and development for school-age children and their families during out-of-school time. The WVDE anticipates awarding up to 20 three-year grants. By federal law, a 21st CCLC grant may not be less than $50,000 per year and no matching funds will be required.

Technology Projects and Applications

ONLINE BUS ROUTE PROGRAM
Cobb County School District (CCSD) announced that a new interactive online application has been released on the CCSD Web site that will assist parents, students and newcomers with determining which school zone a particular address is assigned to. By entering in an address, a java applet is launched which will display a map of the neighborhood in relation to the school. It will also display vital information including the school bus number, route number, pickup time, and the distance from the home to the bus stop as well as the distance from the bus stop to the school. Once the application is launched, users may be prompted to download or update their Web browsers java capabilities. This will be done automatically with permission. Click here to visit the Online Bus Route Program.

PANAMA RAINFORESTS PROJECT
The rainforests of Panama will become a virtual classroom for about 20,000 Clark County School District students over the next two weeks, Jan. 26-Feb. 6, thanks to the award-winning JASON Project that emphasizes science, math and technology by focusing each year on a unique location around the globe.

ELECTRONIC APPLICATION REVIEW
West Virginia Gov. Bob Wise announced new technology that will allow high school counselors to review the application status of their high school students who have applied for state-level financial aid, including the PROMISE Scholarship and the West Virginia Higher Education Grant.

Grants and Funding

$92 MILLION FUNDS CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND EDUCATION
Gov. John G. Rowland announced that the State Bond Commission approved $92 million in Urban Act bond funds to build the Connecticut Center for Science and Exploration, a powerful new science and math educational institution for the state of Connecticut. The Connecticut Center for Science and Exploration will serve as an extension of the state's science and technology curriculum inspiring and educating students and teachers, as well as parents through an interactive process of discovery and exploration.

$80 MILLION FOR SCHOOLS AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich announced that Illinois schools and local governments throughout the state will receive an additional $80 million as a result of the Illinois Tax Amnesty Program. A complete list is available on the Department of Revenue Web site. The Illinois Tax Amnesty program that ran from October 1 through November 17 was the most successful state amnesty program ever, bringing in more than $530 million.

$4 MILLION IN ED-TECH GRANTS FOR ALABAMA SCHOOLS
Sixty-four Alabama public school systems are receiving over $4 million to help improve technology use in the classroom. As part of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, the Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) established the Enhancing Education Through Technology Program or ESEA Title II, Part D, Subpart 1. For a listing of school systems receiving 2004 Ed Tech grants, click here.

Announcements

TECHNOLOGY TEACHER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
The Ohio SchoolNet Commission, in conjunction with Ohio's Educational Technology Agencies, is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2004 Technology Teacher of the Year award, to be presented March 1, 2004 at the Ohio SchoolNet State Technology Conference. For more information about the 2004 Ohio SchoolNet State Technology Conference, which will take place March 1-3 at the Columbus Convention Center, visit the Conference Web site or contact associate conference manager Andrew Freeman at 614.644.6862.

FLORIDA EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE
The 24th annual Florida Educational Technology Conference (FETC) is scheduled for Jan. 22-24. FETC 2004 will offer a variety of program topics - from NASA video conferencing to No Child Left Behind - as well as a distinguished and entertaining variety of speakers. In addition to serving as a worksite for media representatives, the FETC Press Room (S220A) will host news conferences and conduct media briefings with conference dignitaries whenever possible.

A LAPTOP FOR EVERY SEVENTH GRADER
New Hampshire Gov. Craig Benson officially launched a new era in education when he delivered laptop computers to all seventh graders at the six schools across New Hampshire. When presenting the new computers, the governor said the Technology Promoting Student Excellence program will have a significant impact in teaching the utilization of mobile computing to the next generation of students.

INTERACTIVE WINDOW TO PROFESSIONAL CREDENTIALS
To help parents become more knowledgeable about the education of their children, the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) now provides an interactive window to professional credentials held by Ohio K-12 classroom teachers. The new Web page, entitled "Educator Information," can be accessed through a "hot topics" link on the ODE homepage and also is listed as a resource on ODE's Web site for families.

2004 FIRST ROBOTICS COMPETITION
Nineteen teams representing high schools and businesses in South Carolina will converge on the University of South Carolina's College (USC) of Engineering for the national kickoff of the 2004 FIRST Robotics Competition. The teams are among 50, totaling more than 500 students, that will compete in the inaugural Palmetto FIRST Robotics Competition April 1-3 at USC's Colonial Center. To learn more about FIRST and the FIRST Robotics Competition, go to the Web site.

ONLINE LICENSE RENEWAL COMPUTER LAB
The Massachusetts Department of Education scheduled a series of computer labs at their Malden location to allow educators who need to renew their teaching certificates by June to do so online and with assistance. The licenses of about 80,000 educators will expire on June 17. Because of the high number of renewal applications expected, educators have been encouraged to renew their licenses online, using the DOE's Educator Licensure and Recruitment system. Educators interested in using the lab can register online for one of the available 30-minute sessions at the Web site.

 Technology Projects and Applications

RENEW LICENSES ONLINE
The state of Montana is reducing the administrative burden for its Montana's time-pressed educators, thanks to a new online service at the state's Web site. The Montana Office of Public Instruction now allows Montana educators to renew their professional licenses, pay associated fees, and report continuing education credits instantly over the Internet.

APPLY FOR POSITIONS ONLINE
The newly redesigned Human Resources Web page on the Anne Arundel County Public Schools' Web site now offers the ability to apply online for positions. Individuals can apply online for teacher, administrator, guidance counselor, principal, assistant principal, personnel worker, school psychologist, and speech-language pathologist positions.

VIRTUAL REFERENCE
Maine State Library's Reference Services Department is now providing live chat daily. Through Docutek Information Systems, virtual reference is now a reality. To reach it, simply click on "Ask a Librarian" at the state's homepage or at the library's homepage.

CREATING PORTS
A passionate commitment to the mission and values of California State Parks motivates Alan Friedman, chief information officer in the Division of Administration, to create more than just generic IT projects that involve simply setting up PCs and installing e-mail. This is why he spearheaded the creation of the Parks Online Resource for Teachers and Students (also known as PORTS), which is a collaborative effort between public schools and California State Parks, involving the use of the Digital California Project to deliver live interactive presentations to classrooms from parks throughout the state. It provides fully developed units of study that furnish support, structure, preparation and preparation for live presentations through technology such as video conferencing and Web sites.

VIRTUAL EXPEDITION
Hiking boots and bug spray are a top priority for Big Sky High School's 9th grader, Soren Estvold Knudsen, who has been selected from thousands of students worldwide to lead an international science expedition to Panama's rainforests and canal, Jan. 21 through Feb. 2, with some of the world's leading scientists and teachers. Estvold Knudsen was nominated by the Burns Telecom Center's Montana JASON Project based at Montana State University in Bozeman.

WIRELESS LIBRARIES
This winter Milwaukeeans with laptop computers or handheld devices can use the Internet for free at any city of Milwaukee Public Library location. All neighborhood library locations now have wireless service. Central Library will have service by the end of January.

WEB SITE IN EIGHT LANGUAGES
Some information and publications are now available on the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) Web site in eight languages -- English, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, Urdu, and Vietnamese. By visiting the Web site and clicking on the name of the language at the top of the homepage, users can access traditional and modified school year calendars, the FCPS handbook, opt-out forms, the special education handbook, Familygram, standard course offerings, graduation requirements, and emergency information.

December 2003

Grants & Funding

$324,008 GRANT FOR 21ST CENTURY LIBRARIANS

The University of South Florida announced that the School of Library and Information Sciences received a $324,008 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to recruit and educate librarians for the 21st century. In collaboration with the Southeast Florida Library Information Network and the Miami-Dade Public Library System, the grant will support an enhanced distance education masters program aimed at preparing graduates for service in underserved communities. For more information on the ELSUN grant, visit the Web site.

$50,000 GRANT FUNDS MATH AND SCIENCE KITS
The popular Indiana University Purdue University (IUPUI) program that has put hands-on math and science kits into central Indiana classrooms is expanding and going statewide with services to the youngest school children. Teacher's Resource Center at IUPUI provided kindergarten through 12th grade teachers with free kits designed to help teachers meet the state Department of Education's standards for teaching math and science. Each kit includes all necessary instructions and supplies for the hands-on activities, thereby saving teachers time and personal costs in preparation, while broadening learning experiences for their students. A $50,000 grant from the Indiana Child Care Fund will fund 50 new kits for use in Pre-K through kindergarten classrooms across the state.

$50,000 FOR NORTHEAST OHIO INTERACTIVE NETWORKING COMMUNITY
Ohio SchoolNet announced that the Northeast Ohio Learning Interactive Networking Community received a $50,000 Ohio SchoolNet Telecommunity Support for Existing Project Grant, which is funded by Ohio's large local exchange telephone companies through an agreement with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. The grant will help the Northeast Ohio Learning Interactive Networking Community, which is fiscally managed by the Lake County Educational Service Center, to improve student achievement through the sharing of curriculum resources via the distance-learning classroom.

$2.1 MILLION FUNDS SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE
A University of Minnesota initiative is taking the next step in its efforts to make K-12 school administrators across the nation more technologically savvy. The School Technology Leadership Initiative in the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) announced its first five partners in a cooperative higher education venture, the Post-secondary Partnership Program. The partners are: Hofstra University, Hempstead, N.Y.; Oakland University, Rochester, Mich.; Silver Lake College, Manitowoc, Wis.; the University of Arizona, Tucson; and the University of Kentucky, Lexington. The $2.1 million initiative is the first academic program in the country based on the National Education Technology Standards for Administrators and involves CEHD, school districts, major technology corporations such as Microsoft and IBM and other groups such as the International Society for Technology in Education and the Consortium for School Networking.


Announcements

LEADER OF THE YEAR
A A West Virginia Department of Education  employee was nationally honored by her peers for her leadership in instructional technology. The State Educational Technology Directors Association named Brenda Williams, executive director for the Office of Instructional Technology, as the first-ever Leader of the Year.

EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP AWARD
The Virginia Department of Education  recently honored eight outstanding educators with the Education Technology Leadership Award for their advocacy and use of educational technology in the commonwealth's public schools. The awards were presented during the department's December 8-10 Educational Technology Leadership Conference at the Hotel Roanoke.

ACADEMIC CONTENT STANDARDS ADOPTED
The Ohio State Board of Education voted unanimously (16-0) to adopt new academic content standards in computer literacy, fine arts and foreign language. These conclude the remaining three of seven subject areas approved by the Board in Ohio's effort to create an aligned system of academic standards, model curricula and tests. Content standards for English language arts and mathematics were adopted in December 2001, while science and social studies standards were approved in December 2002.

PARTNERSHIP ENHANCES HISTORY EDUCATION
The History Channel and Comcast announced a three-year partnership with The School District of Philadelphia to provide teacher training sessions, grants/scholarships, classroom materials and a public service announcement for Philadelphia's public secondary school teachers and students. This special commitment strives to further enhance history education in the city's schools and all educational support will be tied into Philadelphia's curriculum standards. The History Channel education initiative with The School District of Philadelphia is part of Save Our History, the network's national campaign for historic preservation and history education.

HUMAN RESOURCES WEB PAGE LAUNCHED
The newly redesigned Human Resources Web page on the  Anne Arundel County Public Schools' Web site now offers the ability to apply online for positions. Individuals can apply online for teacher, administrator, guidance counselor, principal, assistant principal, personnel worker, school psychologist, and speech-language pathologist positions.

K12 News

NEW KENTUCKY SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher announced his Secretary of Education. Fletcher named former executive director and CEO of Kentucky Educational Television (KET), Virginia Fox, who was one of the first 10 people to launch KET in 1968 and helped transform it into the largest PBS member network in the United States.

3,000 REFURBISHED COMPUTERS DONATED
The School District of Philadelphia announced that it will be able to put 3,000 refurbished computers into district high school classrooms this year thanks to its civic and corporate partners, better known as the district's Computer Re-Use Collaborative. The city of Philadelphia, Merck & Co. Inc., Saul Ewing LLP and the Vanguard Group donated computers, and Microsoft Inc. donated necessary licenses and software that will be installed on the refurbished machines.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORK BACKBONE EXTENDED
Lt. Gov. Dave Heineman, chair of the Nebraska Information Technology Commission (NITC), announced the extension of the statewide telecommunications network backbone to the communities of North Platte, Alliance and Norfolk. Developing the statewide telecommunications network backbone has been a collaborative effort of the state's Division of Communications, the University of Nebraska, the Nebraska Educational Telecommunications Commission, the Department of Education and the NITC.

JR. ROBOTICS EVENT
The University of Illinois hosted the FIRST Jr. Robotics event for students from ages 9 to 14. Students form teams to design, build and program robots using LEGO Mindstorms Robotics Invention System technology. Working with team members, mentors and teachers, students apply engineering know-how, computer programming skills and presentation techniques as they compete to best solve the annual challenge. The sixth annual LEGO League Challenge event is "Mission Mars."

$7.7 MILLION FOR NEW MEXICO PUBLIC SCHOOL LIBRARIES
The New Mexico Public Education Department and Department of Cultural Affairs announced that each of New Mexico's 89 public school districts would share in $7.7 million as a result of voter approval of GO Bond C in November 2002. The funds will flow to 682 public school libraries through their local school districts.

$3 MILLION FOR ELECTRONIC PORTFOLIOS PROJECT
The University of Vermont College of Education and Social Services will team up with Champlain College and three Vermont state colleges to train future teachers to make the most of the computers in their classrooms and to create their own state-of-the-art "electronic portfolios" using grant funding. Over the next three years, the university will study those first users of the e-tools to see how well they use technology when they become teachers. The $1.45 million grant will be matched with local funds to bring the total to $3 million over three years.

$1 MILLION FOR MATH, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
BellSouth announced a $1 million commitment to help improve the teaching skills of middle and high school teachers in the areas of math and science, to motivate more students to pursue opportunities in engineering, and to impact economic develop in South Carolina. The South Carolina Department of Education, the University of South Carolina College of Engineering and Information Technology, and the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce are partnering with BellSouth on this initiative. The grant will be used to fund Project Lead the Way and For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.

$568,300 GRANTS FOR WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY LABS
The South Dakota Department of Education recently awarded $568,300 for wireless and handheld technology labs to 52 local schools in South Dakota. The awards were funded through two competitive U.S. Department of Education grants awarded to the state of South Dakota from the federal Fund for the Improvement of Education program and the Star Schools program. Seventy-nine proposals were reviewed by the South Dakota Department of Education; 52 received awards. For more information visit the following Web site or Web site.

$500,000 PLEDGED TO SCHOOL MEDIA CENTERS
Thousands of new books will appear on the shelves of Orange County Public Schools over the next five years thanks to a huge donation from the Central Florida Educators Federal Credit Union. The credit union, which serves Orange County Public Schools employees and other groups, pledged half a million dollars to local school media centers for books, software and other educational supplies. Ten checks totaling $100,000 were given out to school principals at a special ceremony at Hungerford Elementary School, which received one of the $10,000 donations.

$468,545 GRANT FUNDS PARENT-TEACHER EDUCATION CONNECTION
The University of North Texas Center for Parent Education and its partner teacher education programs received a three-year grant for $468,545 from the U.S. Department of Education's Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education. The grant will fund the Parent Teacher Education Connection project, by providing a curriculum for teachers in training to learn about different cultural beliefs and practices related to parenting, communications and school-parent relationships. The curriculum, which supports the provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act, will be distributed nationally via the Internet library of UNT's Texas Center for Educational Technology.

$50,000 LIBRARY SERVICES AND TECHNOLOGY ACT GRANT
Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas awarded a $50,000 Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant for advanced computer technology to the Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro. The LSTA-funded Advanced Technology Grant is designed to assist public libraries in achieving major upgrades to their integrated automation systems. Requirements include a large-scale (20 or more users) integrated library automation system seeking to improve public services.

MYSIGNLINK
Whether you are a parent using sign language to communicate with a deaf child or someone who simply wants to learn how to sign a particular word, the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf developed an exciting new online tool to help you. MySignLink is a searchable online sign language dictionary. It is a powerful new application that promotes deaf literacy, while helping others around the state and the world learn American Sign Language (ASL). Getting started is easy by visiting the Web site.

EDUCATOR LICENSURE AND RECRUITMENT SYSTEM
Seven months before the licenses for about 80,000 educators will expire, the Massachusetts Department of Education is encouraging the educators to utilize a new online system to renew their licenses months in advance. Over the past year the DOE upgraded ELAR, the online Educator Licensure and Recruitment system. This system is streamlined and easy-to-follow, allowing those with all of their paperwork in order and who complete their application online to get their new license mailed out by the end of the next business day. For more information, teachers should call the Licensure Call Center at 781.338.6600.

SNOW-DAY WEB SITE
The West Virginia Department of Education offers an additional option for parents to learn of any changes in their children's daily school schedule. Snow, flooding or utility problems can cause schools to cancel, delay their morning start or dismiss early sending students home and causing concern among parents or other caregivers. Citizens who wish to receive e-mail notifications should visit the Department of Education's Web site.

eRFPSchoolWatch

TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND WIRING BID
Turner Construction Company and the Town of Wallingford invite all qualified bidders to submit sealed lump-sum bids for bid packages: 01 Telecommunications and Technology Wiring for the Six Wallingford Schools - Telecommunications and Technology Wiring Project in Wallingford, CT. For more information, contact the Town of Wallingford Department of Finance - Bureau of Purchases, 45 South Main St., Wallingford, CT 06492; Attention: Robert Pedersen, Jr. All questions must be directed in writing to Turner Construction Company; attention: Mr. Bruce Hoff at (fax) 203).783.8899. All bids are due Dec. 29, 2003.

 COMPUTER RE-USE COLLABORATIVE

The School District of Philadelphia announced that it will be able to put 3,000 refurbished computers into district high school classrooms this year thanks to its civic and corporate partners, better known as the district's Computer Re-Use Collaborative. The city of Philadelphia, Merck & Co. Inc., Saul Ewing LLP, and Vanguard International Inc. donated computers and Microsoft donated necessary licenses and software that will be installed on the refurbished machines.

ONLINE DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Ohio SchoolNet contracted with the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems to determine the extent to which Ohio school districts use online professional development opportunities and student courses, and which companies and organizations provide these professional development activities and student courses. Ohio SchoolNet is using this information as part of a larger and ongoing study about the use of computer-based and online tools in Ohio school districts.  Please click here to access the audit report.

SOFTWARE CHALLENGE

Outstanding Mendive Middle School students in the Washoe County School District will be honored at a reward breakfast December 4 in the Mendive Multipurpose Room.  Students who have achieved a grade point average of at least 3.5 (on a scale of 4.0) will receive special recognition. And this year, the students will have an extra surprise, thanks to Microsoft Licensing, the school's partner in education. They will receive free copies of Encarta.

$1.4 MILLION IN TECHNOLOGY GRANTS FOR WEST VIRGINIA EDUCATION

The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) was one of nine states awarded technology grants from the U.S. Department of Education. These grants will provide funding for rigorous scientific evaluations of how technology impacts student achievement in elementary and secondary education. WVDE is the recipient of two grants, one in the amount of $1.4 million over three years, which will be appropriated to the ED PACE program. This program will employ a quasi-experimental design with experimental elements to assess student achievement in virtual foreign language courses.

$1 MILLION DONATION SUPPORTS LIBRARIES AND TECHNOLOGY

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg joined Sean "P. Diddy" Combs to announce a $1 million donation to support libraries and technology in New York City public schools. The funds were raised through "Diddy Runs the City, An Initiative by Sean Combs" to raise awareness and solicit donations for children's health and educational needs while training for the ING New York City Marathon.

$300,000 DONATION OF FREE SOFTWARE AND TEACHER TRAINING

All 296 Washington school districts and the educational service districts are receiving free software and teacher training this fall to enhance instructional opportunities for students. The value of the statewide donation totals more than $300,000. Under a program called MSDN Academic Alliance High School Membership, Microsoft Corp. donated a package of software that can be used on computers in 684 public high schools and some junior high schools and middle schools throughout the state. The software, called Visual Studio, allows students to create their own software using multiple programming languages and develop programs that will operate in a Microsoft Windows environment. Along with the software Microsoft, will also offer the schools teacher training.

$200,000 FOR 21ST CENTURY SCHOOLS OF DISTINCTION AWARD

Intel Corp., Scholastic Administr@tor and the Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence Foundation, announced a national award program to recognize outstanding K-12 schools in the United States -- The 21st Century Schools of Distinction Award. This new program will highlight the successes of the nation's best schools and celebrate their use of technology, the benefits of strong teamwork, and their development of excellent classroom teachers. The Intel Foundation will award more than $200,000 to the honored schools.

ST. PAUL LEARNS

Parents whose children attend a Saint Paul public school have a new way to take an active role in their children's education. With the help of business, non-profit and community partners, Saint Paul Public Schools launched Saint Paul Learns, a Web site that aims to enrich learning for students by providing parents with educational resources and information. District leaders expect parents to use the information on the Web site to work closely with their children to improve academic performance. Key sections of the site are already available in Hmong, Spanish and Somali, and the goal is to have the whole site translated.

JUST READ, FAMILIES

Florida Commissioner of Education Jim Horne launched a new Web-based reading program, called Just Read, Families! For the Holidays at Oak Hill Elementary School in Jacksonville. Just Read, Families! For the Holidays is a new holiday reading program which provides information for parents so they can take an active role in reading with their children during their winter break. Resources include tips for parents on how to read well with children and a list of recommended books with holiday themes including Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, and Ramadan.

VIDEO MAGAZINE LAUNCHED

The Indiana Department of Education's Division of Educational Options created a video magazine, called Focus, designed to provide the public with information regarding alternative education programs. The program was developed as a response to educators across the state asking for more information about the subject. Focus also provides the Division of Educational Options with a new method for sharing data and current research on successful alternative schools. Along with the video magazine, a discussion forum has been added to the department's Web page and can be accessed at the Focus homepage. The first episode can be viewed at the Web site.

PRE-KINDERGARTEN-16 PUBLIC EDUCATION INFORMATION RESOURCE

The Texas Pre-Kindergarten-16 Public Education Information Resource (TPEIR) project was less about technology and more about collaboration and partnerships. TPEIR is a multi-agency data repository managed by three Texas state agencies: the Texas Education Agency, Higher Education Coordinating Board and State Board for Educator Certification. The partners collaborated to build a system that would assure that the entire system of public education, extending from early childhood through postgraduate study, is coordinated to provide public education stakeholders with efficient, effective and high-quality educational services and activities. For more information, visit the Web Site.

NEW MEXICO'S FIRST SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson named Veronica Garcia as New Mexico's first Secretary of Education. The top two choices from the committee were: Veronica Garcia, a former teacher who was executive director of the New Mexico Coalition of School Administrators; and Kurt Steinhaus, an education policy advisor who worked since 1999 as director of Student and Education Programs at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

NEW SECRETARY OF EDUCATION FOR CALIFORNIA
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that he appointed Mayor Richard Riordan as the California Secretary for Education. Riordan was elected Mayor of Los Angeles in 1993 and overwhelmingly reelected in 1997.

AWARDS FOR WEB SITE AND HOMEPAGE
Fairfax County Public Schools' (FCPS) Office of Community Relations (OCR) and Kings Park and Kings Glen Elementary Schools have been named winners in the 2002-03 communications contest of the Chesapeake Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association. The Office of Community Relations won five awards: an award of merit for its Internet homepage; an award of excellence for its alumni Web site; an award of merit for its emergency preparedness and support Web site; an award of excellence for its intranet homepage; and an award of excellence for its OCR intranet page on crisis and critical incidents.

$2.55 MILLION CONTRACT TO SUPPLY FINANCIAL COMPUTER APPLICATIONS
New York City Department of Education signed an agreement with Tier Technologies Inc. to manage, maintain, upgrade, and Web-enable a number of financial computer applications for the Department of Education's Division of Financial Operations. The contract, which runs through July 31, 2006, will be invoiced on a time and materials basis and is valued at up to $2.55 million.

GENERATIONLINK
Senior citizens from the Hal Marston Community Center, ranging in age from 60 to 92, are becoming computer savvy, thanks to a program at Orange County Public Schools' Evans High called, "GenerationLink," which has high school students teaching seniors how to use the Internet. Ten students from the school's Professional Educators Academy will work one on one with the local seniors for six weeks in the innovative program that is being sponsored by EarthLink, in partnership with AARP Florida. Evans is only the second school in the country to be selected for the initiative.

COMPUTER DONATION FOR MORE-AT-FOUR PROGRAM
North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley joined More-at-Four pre-kindergarten students at Southeast Elementary in Kinston to celebrate a generous donation from IBM Corp. IBM is donating 93 Young Explorer computers to More-at-Four classrooms across the state. The donation of 93 computers is being distributed to More-at-Four classrooms across the state based on need. The equipment includes age-appropriate educational software for the program's pre-K curriculum as well as colorful, child-sized plastic furniture. IBM will also provide training for all lead teachers who receive computers in their classrooms.

$10 MILLION TECHNOLOGY FOR TEACHING GRANT
Hewlett-Packard announced a $10 million Technology for Teaching Grant initiative targeting schools in the United States from kindergarten through university level. The initiative is designed to support innovative and effective uses of technology in classrooms so that students may reach their full potential, particularly in math, science and engineering.

$1.5 MILLION EVALUATING STATE EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY GRANT
North Carolina will have a better understanding of the educational benefits of technology use in the classroom thanks to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction's recent receipt of a three-year, $1.5 million Evaluating State Educational Technology Grant. North Carolina is just one of 10 states to receive this grant, which will be used to conduct scientifically based research into the impact of technology on student learning.

$626,000 GRANT FUNDS HOMELAND SECURITY PROGRAM
Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan, School Board President Patricia B. O'Neill and Superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools Dr. Jerry D. Weast announced that the county is taking another step forward in enhancing homeland security throughout the community. The announcement focused on a new $626,000 federal grant for schools to provide more communication about emergency procedures with students, parents and teachers. In addition, a new $1 million police command bus purchased with federal funds earlier in the year was unveiled. The bus provides a portable public safety command post with state-of-the-art equipment to manage emergency situations.

$860,000 FOR 3D AND VIRTUAL REALITY PROGRAM
An Iowa State University industrial technology professor earned an $860,000, three-year grant from the National Science Foundation for a computer program that produces three-dimensional stereoscopic images and a low-cost virtual reality technology package for high school and college product design and technical graphics classrooms.

$20,000 IN LEAPTRACK SYSTEMS DONATED
Longfields Elementary School in the Prince George County Public Schools has been selected to receive a donation of five LeapTrack Systems from the LeapFrog SchoolHouse Co. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. The LeapTrack System provides teachers with the ability to instantly assess their students, personalize student instruction, and continuously monitor student progress as they move towards mastery of state standards. These five systems, for use in grades K-5, will include 60 LeapPad units, grade-level assessments, interactive instructional materials, and professional development materials. The value of this donation is $20,000.

MYLUNCHMONEY.COM LAUNCHED
Now students in the Duval County Public Schools can log on a new Web site and pay for their school meals online. Using myLunchMoney.com, parents can log on and prepay for school meals using a MasterCard or Visa credit card. This new service is free, easy-to-use, convenient