Educators Converge on Capitol Hill to Oppose the Elimination of Education Technology Funding

For more information contact:

Jon Bernstein
Consortium for School Networking
202/478-6191

Press Release:

Barbara McDonald
ISTE
541/349-7575

Washington, D.C. – March 21, 2005 – Nearly 150 education technology advocates from 37 states fanned out across Capitol Hill today to demonstrate to Congress their strong opposition to the Administration’s proposal to eliminate the Enhancing Education Through Technology Program (EETT). The education technology advocates held meetings with the offices of their respective Senators and US Representatives and explained how pivotal the EETT program is to complying with the No Child Left Behind Act’s goals of closing the achievement gap and ensuring that all teachers are highly qualified. The joint Advocacy Day was sponsored by the Consortium for School Networking and the International Society for Technology in Education.

Advocacy Day participants, hailing from different points on the map and with vastly different technology needs, were unified in their message of support for EETT:

Norton Gusky, coordinator of education technology for Fox Chapel Area School District in Pennsylvania, stated that: “EETT funds have been used to provide materials and training for teachers and administrators to deal with the mandates of No Child Left Behind...We have made marked improvements with our special education population and without the data analysis tools we have purchased [with EETT money] and trained our staff to use, this would not have happened.”

Wendy Battino, executive director of the Reinventing Schools Coalition, representing seventeen Alaska school districts, stated: “The use of web-based, relational databases to analyze processes and results is central to achieving systemic and successful reform. Alaska particularly relies on education technology to connect rural and urban centers with relevant and current programs. Some districts encompass over 22,000 square miles spanning glaciers, mountains and sea where technology becomes the crucial linkage for our students, staff and communities.”

“As an Assistant Superintendent at the Regional Offices of Education in Illinois, our districts depend very heavily on funding that they receive through the Title IID funds,” said Tom Bookler of DuPage County Schools in Illinois. “It is rolled out in Illinois as formula money which helps to support Professional Development and the necessary equipment, or as competitive funding which offers our schools an opportunity to utilize best practices, innovative ideas, and new and emerging technologies. The loss of these funds will deeply affect what we can do in the districts.”

Last month, the Administration’s FY2006 Department of Education budget eliminated funding for EETT. Just last year, the Administration sought $692 million for the program in its FY2005 budget. The EETT program is the only federal initiative that provides dedicated funding for technology needs to nearly all of the nation’s K-12 schools. Schools and districts rely heavily on EETT funds as a core means for meeting No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) goals and requirements around improving student achievement.

Authorized as Title II-D of the NCLB, EETT enables schools to address core teaching and learning needs through technology tools, including:

• access to courses online otherwise not available to rural and urban students,
• equipping teachers to take advantage of new and emerging technology tools,
• providing students with the tools to compete in a highly competitive global employment market,
• continual assessment of student progress through computer-based testing, and
• disaggregation and reporting of student adequate yearly progress (AYP) data.

States distribute funds to districts with 50% allocated by poverty-weighted formula and 50% by competition. EETT gives schools broad discretion to spend their money on a wide range of technology acquisition, enrichment and integration purposes with at least 25% required for professional development.

About CoSN

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), a national non-profit organization, is the premier voice in education technology leadership. Our mission is to advance the K-12 education community’s capacity to effectively use technology to improve learning through advocacy, policy and leadership development. Our members represent school districts, state and local education agencies, nonprofits, companies and individuals who share our vision. For further information, visit www.cosn.org.

About ISTE

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) is the trusted source in education technology for professional development, knowledge generation, and advocacy. A nonprofit membership organization, ISTE provides leadership and service to improve teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in PK–12 and teacher education. Home of the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS), the Center for Applied Research in Educational Technology (CARET), and National Educational Computing Conference (NECC), ISTE represents more than 85,000 worldwide leaders and potential leaders in educational technology. We support our members with information, networking opportunities, and guidance as they face the challenge of integrating technology into schools. For more information, visit www.iste.org.