[Erate] e-Rate Technology Plan submission instructions

[Ganoe, Sabrina]

E-RATE Technology plan updates for the 08/09 school year are now due. Depending on your circumstances, you will need to take the following action:


-          If you have a technology plan that is already approved FOR E-RATE until 6/30/09, and there have been no changes to your plan or your budget, you DO NOT need to take any action at this time.



-          If you have a technology plan that is approved FOR E-RATE through 06/30/09, and wish to make changes to your plan or budget info, you need to update your plans accordingly and submit them to me as soon as possible. (See attached budget reporting template)


-          If you have a technology plan approved FOR E-RATE  that expires in 2007 or 2008, and you are applying for services BEYOND POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) then you must submit a plan update as soon as possible. Many of you will only need to submit budget numbers to me for the new school year in order to be compliant.

Here is some important information regarding the Technology Plan collection and approval process.


-           The criteria for e-Rate technology plans has not changed since the last plan cycle. I have included the criteria below as a reference

 1.  The plan must establish clear goals and a realistic strategy for using telecommunications and information technology to improve education or library services;
 2.  The plan must have a professional development strategy to ensure that staff know how to use these new technologies to improve education or library services;
 3.  The plan must include an assessment of the telecommunication services, hardware, software, and other services that will be needed to improve education or library services;
 4.  The plan must provide a sufficient budget to acquire and support the non-discounted elements of the plan: the hardware, software, professional development and other services that will be needed to implement the strategy; and
 5.  The plan must include an evaluation process that enables the school or library to monitor progress toward the specified goals and make mid-course corrections in response to new developments and opportunities and they arise.

-             Technology plans and updates will now be submitted to ode.techplans at state.or.us<mailto:ode.techplans at state.or.us>. Because the plans are used for both e-Rate and  NCLB Title IID:Enhancing Education Through Technology (Ed-Tech) , this new email address will ensure that any updates will be directed to BOTH work units for processing.



-          We identified some issues with the current process we are using to collect and read technology plans. We are working on solutions for those problems, and will be providing more in-depth training and a new application for collecting e-Rate plans starting later this year in regards to the 09-12  Technology Plan  cycle. In the meantime, we are making some short term adjustments to our existing process until the new processes are in place, which include the email address mentioned above, as well as revisions to the approval letters to make them clearer and easier to understand.



-          One of the most important issues that we noticed from our last cycle is that many districts confused the approval letters for Ed-Tech with approval letters for e-Rate. These are separate programs and while some of the criteria overlap, they are handled by different work units within ODE and have different deadlines. This is why they are processed separately and why there are 2 different approval letters. Some of you may not have submitted updates to your plans for e-Rate because you received an approval letter for Ed-Tech that stated you were approved through 06/30/09, and may no longer be in compliance with e-Rate because of it. The two work units involved are working together to streamline the submission and recording process, as well as provide clearer information about deadlines and approval status.



-           Updated Technology Plans for Title IID federal funding will be due in 2009.  Criteria for the 2009 Technology Plans are being revised and will be posted on the ODE website at: http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=105.   For questions about the Ed Tech Plan requirements, please contact Carla Wade, Technology Education Specialist, Oregon Department of Education at carla.wade at state.or.us<mailto:carla.wade at state.or.us>.


Some of you have already submitted plans to me and you will be hearing from me soon, either with a new approval letter or a request for a plan revision. We appreciate your patience with us as we work to improve the service that we provide. Please feel free to contact me if you are unsure of your status or need guidance about changes to your plan.


Sabrina Ganoe
e-Rate and Training Customer Service Rep
Willamette Education Service District
2611 Pringle Rd SE
Salem, OR 97302
P: 503.540.4495
F: 503.540.2962

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