07 May

Join the Campaign! Tweet and Blog for Ed Tech May 12

Posted by Clint Buhs in 21st century skills, ISTE, Washington D.C., funding, technology

Funding for Classroom Technology is in jeopardy! Join ISTE members and education technology advocates from across the country for a day of blogging and tweeting in support of 21^st century learning.

President Obama’s budget provides no funding for education technology. The Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program, which was funded at $100 million in 2010, is rolled into a the new program “Effective Teaching and Learning for a Complete Education.”
Without funds specifically set aside to pay for education technology the administration’s messaging about the importance of technology for classroom teaching and learning rings hollow. If education technology is so important, why has the proposed 2011 budget eliminated funding for the only dedicated ed tech funding program?

Although the President has recommended to eliminate funding for EETT, Congress does not have to agree with this recommendation. ISTE is urging congress to fund education technology at at $500 million for next year. To get this issue on congress’ agenda we need to tell policymakers that we are not going to take the loss of EETT quietly.

On Wednesday, May 12 we are going to flood the Web with messages in support of funding for education technology. We’ll provide some Twitter messages to get you started, but we’re asking for a major effort from all the ed tech bloggers, tweeters, Facebookers and Ning-regulars out there to write in support of dedicated federal funding for education technology.

Keep watching ISTE Connects for information on how you can help secure $500 million for ed tech in 2011. Together we can make our voices heard!

http://www.isteconnects.org/2010/05/06/join-the-campaign-tweet-and-blog-for-ed-tech-may-12/

17 Jan

Get the Grant!

Posted by Clint Buhs in funding, grants

One of my largest tasks as a researcher at Atomic Learning is keeping up to date on education funding. Regardless of the state or type of school, the problem is always the same: lack of funding! This carries through from elementary schools to universities. One solution to the woes of funding cuts is competitive grant writing. There seem to be an endless supply of grants for educators, but completing a proposal is a scary process. Grant writing is a lot of work and a bit of an intimidating process.

12 Oct

Some good news in a bad economy: Stimulus aided teachers, laborers

Posted by Clint Buhs in classroom, economy, education, funding

MSNBC.com:

But based on preliminary information obtained by The Associated Press from a handful of states, teachers appear to have benefited most from early spending. That’s because the stimulus sent billions of dollars to help stabilize state budgets, sparing what officials said would have teacher layoffs.

26 Aug

Turning Around the Nation's Lowest-Achieving Public Schools

Posted by Clint Buhs in education, funding, grants

This morning the U.S. Department announced draft requirements for Title I School Improvement grants. The $3.5 billion in funding are targeted at low performing Title I schools. Today starts a thirty-day comment period prior to the grants being issued to the states. When the states receive the funding, they will be issuing grants to local education agencies to foster change in schools which need the most help.

23 Jul

Directed funding may change the way technology is used in the classroom

Posted by Clint Buhs in NCLB, classroom, education, funding, technology

The Wall Street Journal reports that President Obama has restored $650 Million in funding to the NCLB program over two years, bringing totals nearly to 2002 levels. This money must be applied to technology in the classroom, and provides a bright spot in otherwise tough economic climates.