THE Journal — Funding
Elementary Zone Free Through June
Through a grant from Digital Wish, Elementary Zone subscriptions are now free through the end of June. Elementary Zone provides educational activities covering K-12 classroom topics.
(5/16/2008)
New Media Consortium Launches $100,000 Program for Virtual Learning
The New Media Consortium, a not-for-profit group of organizations focused on bringing technology into the learning process, has kicked off a competitive award program for educational communities in Second Life and Project Wonderland. Twenty grants totaling $100,000 in cash and development assistance will be awarded this year to fund these educational efforts.
(5/16/2008)
NSTA Teacher Site Bolstered by $3 Million Grant
The National Science Teachers Association this week announced that it's received a two-year, $3 million grant from the GE Foundation to support the NSTA Learning Center.
(5/14/2008)
In2Books To Be Free for Economically Disadvantaged Schools
ePals this week announced that it will make its In2Books series of digital literacy tools available to Title I schools at no charge beginning in fall 2008. The company has also announced some enhancements to the 2008-2009 classroom edition of In2Books.
(5/6/2008)
TeachersFirst Brings Web 2.0 Tools to Educators
Non-profit TeachersFirst has partnered with Web technology provider TRintuition to launch the Building Learners Project, a service that allows educators to develop online collaborative learning projects using Web 2.0 technologies.
(5/5/2008)
Pennsylvania Rolls Out Interactive Technologies to 231 Districts
Technology provider CDW Government reported this week that it's completed implementation of technology programs for some 231 school districts across Pennsylvania as part of the state's Classrooms for the Future program. As part of the initiative, nearly 82,000 laptops and more than 4,000 interactive whiteboards have been deployed in 257 schools over the last two years.
(5/1/2008)
Consolidation Bringing IT Budgets Down in 2008
Information technology executives are focusing on cutting costs rather than investing in technology this quarter, according to a report released this week by research analysts at IDC.
(4/29/2008)
Colorado Adopts Tuition Reimbursement for Professional Development
To provide more professional development opportunities for teachers and paraprofessionals, and to assist them in achieving highly qualified status, the Colorado Department of Education, Office of Standards and Support, has teamed up with PBS TeacherLine to offer online courses to educators in the state.
(4/24/2008)
Information Security Set for Explosive Growth
Driven by compliance and public confidence issues, information security is expected to expand dramatically over the next few years, according to new research released by Frost & Sullivan and (ISC)². Worldwide, the number of information security professionals will grow from 1.66 million in 2007 to about 2.7 million in 2012, experiencing a compound annual growth rate of 10 percent.
(4/23/2008)
NEC Launches Rebates for Schools
NEC Display Solutions of America has launched a cash-back rewards program for schools participating in its Star Student program, which helps institutions acquire projectors and large-screen displays for use in the classroom.
(4/17/2008)
Qwest Awards Technology Grants to 4 Schools
The Qwest Foundation this week has awarded grants to teachers in three schools through its Teachers and Technology program. The program is designed to fund technologies geared specifically toward improving student achievement, including interactive classroom technologies, online tools, and gear to support scientific work, in preK-12 schools.
(4/14/2008)
Toshiba Grants Fund Environmental Science
The Toshiba America Foundation has announced the recipients of several grants under its Science and Math Improvement Grant program. The SMIG launched back in August as part of the foundation's goal of awarding $500,000 to teachers and schools each year.
(4/14/2008)
Students, Teachers Challenged To Define Role of Technology in Education
Ed tech developer eInstruction this week launched its new Content Meets Technology contest, which challenges educators and students to share their "vision of the role of technology in education." Winners of the competition will receive an interactive classroom makeover.
(4/9/2008)
Science Teachers Receive $550,000 in Grants
Toyota recognized 78 science teachers nationwide with $550,000 in grants via its Toyota Tapestry: Grants for Science Teachers program at the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) National Conference on Science Education in Boston, MA. The company selected 78 proposals for funding from the more than 500 submitted by K-12 teachers.
(4/7/2008)
Verizon Awards Thinkfinity Grant to Kentucky Teachers
The Kentucky Department of Education received a $50,000 grant from the Verizon Foundation to raise awareness and train teachers throughout the state to use thousands of free educational resources available on Thinkfinity.org, an online portal comprising educational and literacy resources for teachers, parents and students.
(4/7/2008)
NASA Education Grant Focuses on Promotion of STEM
NASA has awarded Oklahoma State University a one-year grant to help out with the agency's effort to promote science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) among high school students and encourage them to pursue science-related careers.
(3/31/2008)
Discovery Opens Science Competition to Teachers
Discovery Education and 3M this month opened up entries for its 2008 Young Scientist Challenge, a science competition for students, and recently followed it up by adding on a Teacher Challenge, which will pit educators against one another for prizes, a trip to Washington, DC, and the title of Discovery Educator Network Science Teacher of the Year.
(3/21/2008)
Technology Immersion Turns Around Texas Middle School
Take a Title I urban school with fewer than 50 computers for some 850 students and a staff that wasn't strong in technology. Add an ambitious plan to roll out a new technology program that gave a laptop to every teacher and student. Sound like a recipe for problems? Actually, it wasn't.
(3/20/2008)
Gates to Congress: Improve Math, Science Education
In testimony before the Committee on Science and Technology at the United States House of Representatives Wednesday morning, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates implored Congress and the President to "act decisively" to ensure that the country maintain its global leadership position in technology innovation. Gates's testimony focused on three key themes: education, research, and immigration.
(3/13/2008)
ExploraVision Science Competition Regional Winners Named
More than 4,500 student teams submitted projects for the 2008 Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards Program, an annual K-12 science competition. Twenty-four of them were named regional winners in the science competition this week.
(3/7/2008)
Open Source Computer Donation Program Aims To Go Nationwide
Ensuring that schools in low-income communities have access to the same technologies as wealthier schools isn't enough for James Burgett, executive director of the Alameda County Computer Resource Center in Northern California. He wants them to have better technology, and he wants them to have it for free. Burgett--along with several partners, contributors, volunteers, and staff--has been for years refurbishing computers, loading them up with open-source software, and deploying them in classrooms (and giving them to individuals) in the San Francisco Bay area. He's recently expanded that effort and is now looking to take it national.
(3/6/2008)
Report: EETT Cuts Threaten NCLB Goals
Slashing EETT ("Enhancing Education Through Technology") has become an annual event in federal budget planning. A little more than a month ago, the Bush administration again proposed eliminating funding entirely for the program for fiscal year 2009. But a new report from the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA), released today, suggests that cuts imperil the scope of programs that have improved academic achievement and helped to ensure teacher quality.
(3/6/2008)
Case Study: Bloomfield SD's Migration to Broadband and VoIP
As the IT director for Bloomfield School District in New Mexico, I faced a major challenge with our infrastructure when it came time to upgrade our network and voice systems to meet our educational and technological objectives. The district, with 10 administrative and school sites, is located in a rural area of northwestern portion of the state, which limited the alternatives available to us. Its network was based on T1 connections, and the bandwidth would not support the education initiatives of the district. It was also very expensive, costing us about $5,900 each month.
(3/3/2008)
'Installfest' Brings Open Source Tools to Northern California Schools
Open-source developer Untangle and the Alameda County Computer Resource Center are holding an event called "Installfest" in the Northern California Bay Area March 1. The event will see donated hardware and open-source software distributed free to several schools in San Francisco, Berkeley, San Mateo, and Marin County.
(2/27/2008)
Adobe Kicks Off School Innovation Awards
Adobe this week kicked off its 2008 School Innovation Awards program, a competition in which high school students in accredited private and public schools can submit creative projects to win prizes, including Adobe software, cash, or a Levono laptop.
(2/22/2008)
