For CoSN:
Ted Richane
The Fratelli Group
202.822.9491
trichane@fratelli.com

For ISTE:
Chryssa Zizos
Live Wire Media Relations, LLC
703.519.1600 x101
czizos@livewiredc.com

Washington, DC (April 12, 2006) – The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) and International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) today commended Congressional leaders for their support for the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program, the only federal program that provides dedicated funding for school technology needs.

Twenty-eight U.S. Senators have signed a letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee, initiated by Senators Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), calling for continued financial support for EETT, a program depended upon by school districts in all 50 states to make valuable technology investments.

In the House of Representatives, more than 50 House members signed onto a similar letter to House appropriators, authored by Representatives Judy Biggert (R-IL) and Ron Kind (D-WI).

While Congress has not negotiated a final budget, these letters buttressed efforts in the House and Senate to add funding for all education programs in their respective FY07 Budget Resolutions.

“EETT is the one federal program which school districts could depend for ‘mission critical’ technology investments,” said Sheryl Abshire, Chair of CoSN and Administrative Coordinator of Technology in Calcasieu Parish School System in Louisiana. “Now, with the President’s 2007 Budget recommending elimination, we have seen our community come together as advocates, and this new momentum on Capitol Hill is a direct result.”

“Our advocacy efforts have yielded some excellent results thus far, but our work is far from over,” said Kurt Steinhaus, President of ISTE. “We need to make sure that all of this hard work translates into adequate funding for a program that is so vital to our children’s academic success and their ability to compete globally.”

This is the second straight year that the Administration has proposed an elimination of the EETT program in its annual budget. Last year education technology specialists from school districts across the country beat back these funding cuts with a coordinated advocacy effort and Congress reacted, restoring partial funding for Fiscal Years 2006. Still, education technology leaders remain concerned by persistent attacks on this critical program.

In early March, members of CoSN joined with ISTE and the Software Internet and Information Association (SIIA) for its annual “Advocacy Day” on Capitol Hill. More than 150 education technology decision makers from school districts across the country met with home state Members of Congress to speak in support of EETT and E-Rate, a program providing schools and libraries discounts on telecommunications services, Internet access services, and internal building connections.

“We are thrilled with the support we’ve received from both Houses of Congress and are hopeful that the voices from the education technology community will continue to be heard,” commented Keith Krueger, CoSN CEO. “Technology opens doors to millions of students around the country that would otherwise be closed. Now is no time for Congress to damage one of the last federal programs that extends access to technology to all students.”

When Congress returns from its two-week recess, it will make another effort to reach closure on a final FY07 Budget Resolution. Even if no agreement on a budget is reached, Congress will press forward with the appropriations process, during which actual funding allocations for individual programs will be determined, in mid-May. Final education appropriations will not be completed until at least September.

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.

"Technology is truly crucial to a world class education system in the 21st century, and a cornerstone of the US competitiveness agenda," said Don Knezek, ISTE CEO. "And continued advocacy for EETT funding is vital to secure our nation's future."

About the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN)

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is the country’s premier voice in education technology leadership with a mission to serve as the national organization for K-12 technology leaders who use technology strategically to ultimately improve teaching and learning. CoSN provides products and services to support and nurture leadership development, advocacy, coalition building, and awareness of emerging technologies.
www.cosn.org

About the International Society for Technology in Education (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.
www.iste.org

Senate Letter Signatories

1. Snowe (R-ME)
2. Kennedy (D-MA)
3. Jeffords (I-VT)
4. Mikulski (D-MD)
5. Dodd (D-CT)
6. Rockefeller (D-WV)
7. Cantwell (D-WA)
8. Lautenberg (D-LA)
9. Kohl (D-WI)
10. Stabenow (D-MI)
11. Baucus (D-MT)
12. DeWine (R-OH)
13. Collins (R-ME)
14. Ensign (R-NV)
15. Johnson (D-SD)
16. Schumer (D-NY)
17. Feinstein (D-CA)
18. Bingaman (D-NM)
19. Obama (D-IL)
20. Lincoln (D-AR)
21. Durbin (D-IL)
22. Clinton (D-NY)
23. Menendez (D-NJ)
24. Landrieu (D-LA)
25. Conrad (D-ND)
26. Murray (D-WA)
27. Dorgan (D-ND)
28. Lieberman (D-CT)

House Letter Signatories

1. Allen, Tom (D-ME)
2. Bachus, Spencer (R-AL)
3. Baldwin, Tammy (D-WI)
4. Biggert, Judy (R-IL)
5. Boucher, Rick (D-VA)
6. Boustany, Charles (R-LA)
7. Bradley, Jeb (R-NH)
8. Brown, Sherrod (D-OH)
9. Cannon, Chris (R-UT)
10. Cardin, Ben (D-MD)
11. Carnahan, Russ (D-MO)
12. Christensen, Donna (D-VI)
13. Clay, WM. Lacy (D-MO)
14. Cleaver, Emanuel (D-MO)
15. Costa, Jim (D-CA)
16. Cummings, Elijah E. (D-MD)
17. Davis, Artur (D-AL)
18. Davis, Susan (D-CA)
19. Etheridge, Bob (D-NC)
20. Foley, Mark (R-FL)
21. Grijalva, Raul (D-AZ)
22. Herseth, Stephanie (D-SD)
23. Holt, Rush (D-NJ)
24. Johnson, Timothy V. (R-IL)
25. Kildee, Dale (D-MI)
26. Kind, Ron (D-WI)
27. Levin, Sandy (D-MI)
28. LoBiondo, Frank (R-NJ)
29. McCarthy, Carolyn (D-NY)
30. Thad McCotter (R-MI)
31. McDermott, Jim (D-WA)
32. McGovern, James (D-MA)
33. McIntyre, Mike (D-NC)
34. Miller, Brad (D-NC)
35. Miller, George (D-CA)
36. Moore, Dennis (D-KS)
37. Moore, Gwen (D-WI)
38. Oberstar, James L. (D-MN)
39. Osborne, Tom (R-NE)
40. Owens, Major (D-NY)
41. Payne, Donald (D-NJ)
42. Porter, Jon (R-NV)
43. Price, David (D-NC)
44. Reyes, Silvestre (D-TX)
45. Ruppersberger, Dutch (D-MD)
46. Shimkus, John (R-IL)
47. Simmons, Rob (R-CT)
48. Smith, Adam (D-WA)
49. Tauscher, Ellen (D-CA)
50. Udall, Mark (D-CO)
51. Van Hollen, Chris (D-MD)
52. Woolsey, Lynn (D-CA)