PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 News Media Information 202 / 418-0500 Fax-On-Demand 202 / 418-2830 TTY 202 / 418-2555 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov ftp.fcc.gov DA 11-439 Released: March 9, 2011 WIRELINE COMPETITION BUREAU ANNOUNCES SELECTED APPLICATIONS FOR THE E-RATE DEPLOYED UBIQUITOUSLY (EDU) 2011 WIRELESS PILOT PROGRAM WC Docket No. 10-222 Twenty projects to support mobile access to the Internet in order to improve educational opportunities for students or to help library patrons find and apply for jobs have been chosen to participate in the Federal Communications Commission’s E-rate Deployed Ubiquitously (EDU) 2011 Pilot Program.1 The projects will receive a total of approximately $9 million for the 2011-2012 funding year for initiatives ranging from off-campus access to e-textbooks for students; to connectivity for netbooks for students living in remote, isolated areas; to access to flexible, online education programs for home-bound students unable to attend classes because of medical challenges. The Commission launched the EDU2011 pilot program as part of a comprehensive reform and modernization of its program to connect schools and libraries to the Internet, also known as the E-rate program.2 The pilot program is designed to test the merits and challenges of supporting off-premise wireless connectivity for mobile learning and research, and to help the Commission determine whether and how such services should be eligible for E-rate support on an ongoing basis. As part of this pilot program, the Commission authorized limited funding for the 2011-2012 funding year to support a small number of innovative, interactive off-premise wireless projects for schools and libraries.3 The Commission will evaluate the effectiveness of the EDU2011 pilot program to determine whether and how off-premises wireless services should be eligible for continued E-rate support. Program evaluation will be based on a number of criteria -- to be detailed in a forthcoming order formally selecting the pilot participants -- including usage of educational and research resources by students and library patrons. 1 The Bureau anticipates releasing a more detailed order describing the applications selected to participate in the EDU2011 pilot program in the near future. 2 See Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support Mechanism, A National Broadband Plan For Our Future, CC Docket No. 02-6, GN Docket No. 09-51, Sixth Report and Order, FCC 10-175 (rel. Sept. 28, 2010) (Schools and Libraries Sixth Report and Order). Subsequently, on November 8, 2010, the Bureau released a public notice announcing the application deadline. See Wireline Competition Bureau Announces Application Deadline for the E- rate Deployed Ubiquitously (EDU) 2011 Pilot Program, WC Docket No. 10-222, Public Notice, DA 10-2128 (rel. Nov. 8, 2010). 3 The Commission anticipated that EDU2011 funding would be provided only to wireless projects that have already been planned (but may be awaiting funding) or are currently underway, to enable the Commission to evaluate how best to use E-rate support for projects that are likely to be successful. Additionally, support under this program is provided only for mobile Internet connectivity services, not for portable devices or equipment. 2 The selected project applicants are: 1. Aurora Public Schools (Aurora, CO) 2. Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter (Philadelphia, PA) 3. City School District of New Rochelle (New Rochelle, NY) 4. Clay Hill Elementary School (Jacksonville, FL) 5. Foxfire Center for Student Success (Zanesville, OH) 6. Greater Southern Tier Board of Cooperative Educational Services (Watkins Glen, NY) 7. Haralson County Board of Education (Buchanan, GA) 8. Katy Independent School District (Katy, TX) 9. Michigan Technical Academy (Redford, MI) 10. Mohican School in the Out-of-Doors, Inc. (Butler, OH) 11. Onslow County Schools (Jacksonville, NC) 12. Orleans Parish School Board (New Orleans, LA) 13. Piedmont City School District (Piedmont, AL) 14. Riverside Unified School District (Riverside, CA) 15. Roy Municipal Schools (Roy, NM) 16. San Diego Unified School District (San Diego, CA) 17. Sioux City Community School District (Sioux City, IA) 18. Southern Tier Library System (Painted Post, NY) 19. Summit Academy Community School for Alternative Learners (Canton, OH) 20. Westwood Community Schools (Dearborn Heights, MI) E-rate Application Procedures We remind these selected participants that they are required to follow the regular application process for E-rate funding in order to be eligible to receive EDU2011 funding for their pilot projects. In addition to submitting an FCC Form 470 to the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) for the purchase of the specific services they seek in their EDU2011 application,4 they should file a single FCC Form 471 application that covers both the off-premises wireless connectivity services to be used as part of the pilot program as well as on-premises wireless connectivity. The FCC Form 471 application deadline is March 24, 2011. EDU2011 funding will only be considered for applicants who have filed their FCC Form 471 applications for the relevant services before the close of the 2011 filing window, on March 24, 2011. Specifically, please type “EDU2011” in the form identifier field of the FCC Form 471 application for the wireless connectivity services. Also, please list all of the schools and/or libraries that will be receiving the off-site wireless connectivity services in the Block 4 worksheet that is referenced on the FCC Form 471, Block 5 funding request. Both the on-premise and off-premise portions of the wireless services may be filed in a single funding request, as long as both on-premise and off-premise services are included in the same contract and provided by the same service provider. If the services are covered by separate contracts and/or by separate providers, then two separate funding requests must be filed, but they can be included on the same FCC Form 471 application. If a pre-existing contract is being used for the off-premise access, cite FCC Form 470 application number 944550000867164 in your FCC Form 471, Block 5, Item 12, “Form 470 Application Number.” This FCC Form 470 cannot be used to support any other types of funding requests. If a pre-existing contract did not exist, please identify the FCC Form 470 4 Applicants, however, who had previously signed a contract with a service provider for these services are exempt from seeking competitive bids under E-rate program rules. 3 posted to request the services. Please file a separate FCC Form 471 application for all other E-rate services. Those selected applicants that successfully complete the regular E-rate application process will receive the allotted connectivity support and will not be required to cost-allocate the dollar amount of support for the time that portable devices are not on school or library premises. Selected applicants will receive funds sufficient to cover the amount of connectivity expenses eligible for E-rate funding based on their discount; however, all applicants will still be required to pay their non-discount share. For further information, please contact Regina Brown, Wireline Competition Bureau at (202) 418-7400 or TTY (202) 418-0484. - FCC -