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Applying for E-Rate funding for school Wi-Fi?

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An overview on E-Rate funding for schools and libraries seeking high-speed and reliable Wi-Fi 

Three out of five schools in America lack the Wi-Fi needed to deploy 21st Century education tools. New digital learning options offer educators the chance to engage students and personalize learning, but over half of school buildings have outdated wired infrastructures that cannot support interactive and individualized learning tools. 

With the decreasing costs of tablets and other mobile devices, increase in Wi-Fi speeds, and cloud-based software, schools and libraries are offered a chance for a technology transformation that would have been impossible even five years ago.

The good news is that, for the first time in 18 years since the program was created, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has decided to update the E-Rate program. The update order focuses on assuring high-speed and reliable Wi-Fi for schools and libraries and transitioning support away from legacy technologies. 

 

E-Rate Process Overview

The E-Rate process is fairly straightforward. As soon as a district or library decides on the products to request, the designated administrator will file a Form 470, which opens the bidding process to deliver the requested products. Once the vendor has been selected, the next step is to file a 471 Form, which is the actual application for funding.

The USAC will review the application, and approved services will be funded. It is expected that 90% of all applications for the 2015 Funding Year will be completed by Sept. 1, 2015. Upon receipt of a funding commitment decision letter, the applicant will file a Form 486 to notify the E-rate program that it is receiving services.

Installation may begin as early as April 1st, but actual services may not begin until July 1st, 2015. All of the forms are now available online and can be filed electronically to help streamline the process. 
 
Changes to E-Rate Covered Products and Services

As part of the E-Rate modernization plan, the FCC has voted to increase the annual funding cap to $3.9 Billion. E-Rate will continue to prioritize Category 1 services, focused on providing high-speed broadband connectivity to schools and libraries, as part of the modernization order.

However, legacy services, such as email, web hosting, cellular data plans, and SMS texting plans will no longer be funded by E-Rate. In addition, Funding for Voice over IP (VoIP) and Telephone services will be phased out over the next year. Category 1 services have a maximum discount rate of 90%. 

The modernization order also released $1 Billion in reserves for 2015 and 2016, which is primarily targeted at providing Wi-Fi in schools and libraries. Organizations can purchase Wi-Fi access points, Wi-Fi services, such as management or managed services, as well as new technologies like caching servers, with E-Rate funds. These internal connectivity services are part of Category 2 E-Rate funds.

Category 2 services are funded at a maximum discount of 85%, with a budget of $150 per student for schools and $2.30 per square foot ($5 for urban) in libraries. 

Have questions about E-Rate? I'll do my best to answer them, so please post them in comments or contact me on Twitter: @wifi_princess 


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