Q. Does my school district need to file a separate 470 to receive IEN services?
A. Idaho Office of CIO filed a 470 for services under the new IEN. School systems do not have to file a separate 470 to receive IEN services.
Q. How will E-Rate funding be filed for IEN services?
A. Idaho Office of CIO will file a form 471 for Idaho school systems to seek E-Rate funding for IEN services for E-Rate year 09-10. This filing will be based on proposed budget amounts for IEN and could be reduced based on actual funding available.
Q. What do I need to do to join?
A. School systems need to submit two forms to Sally Brevick at Office of the CIO to enable the consortium 471 to be filed. A Letter of Agency and an E-Rate Form 479 (CIPA Compliance form) are needed prior to the submission of the 471. These documents can be emailed to sally.brevick@cio.idaho.gov or faxed to (208) 334-2307 by February 5, 2009. An E-Rate packet was distributed at the IETA Conference at ENA's booth. If you did not receive the packet at IETA, the forms can be downloaded at http://adm.idaho.gov/ien/erate.htm. If you need assistance obtaining the forms, please contact Rex Miller at rmiller@ena.com or (208) 629-2911 ext. 6005.
Q. What information is needed to complete item "M" of the LOA document regarding budget for items not eligible for E-Rate support?
A. You should provide the State with the same amount that you are includng on your own 471 (Block 6, Item 25d). This is not incremental dollars; this is just a required information field on the 471, and the State must file an amount totaling each of the district's amounts on the IEN consortium 471. If you do not have an amount available for that field, it can be left blank and the State will use the best available information to complete that line on the IEN consortium 471.
Q. Has all funding for IEN been approved?
A. As IEN is in its start-up phase, first year funding is pending legislative action and other actions that will not be finalized before the E-Rate deadline. Therefore, the IEN team recommends that you protect your school system by filing all E-Rate 471s with the assumption that the IEN might receive limited or no funding. Once final funding is known, appropriate E-Rate filing adjustments can be coordinated to make certain all filings are appropriate.
Q. How will IEN deliver service to all schools across the state?
A. The IEN project is designed to deliver an equitable level of service to all schools in Idaho. To do that, the IEN team intends to work with each district to determine the best combinations of service connectivity and vendor participation. The goal is to use existing service and service providers that is working well and supplement that with State-provided service and funding. Please see the subsequent FAQs for those who are currently in multi-year contracts and those who are completing a new contract for this E-Rate season.
Q. I already have a multi-year contract in place for Internet services for my school district. What do I need to do during this E-Rate season?
A. If you have an existing multi-year contract, there is nothing special to do related to that contract during the E-Rate season. File for E-Rate for your district as you have before and expect to discuss with the IEN team your specific situation during the IEN discovery period that will take place during the next few months.
Q. I am in the process of completing a new contract this E-Rate season. Can I purchase services off the IEN 470?
A. If you are in the process of completing a new procurement/470 process and a new contract this E-Rate season, you can consider the IEN 470 and bid as another avenue to purchase service and get a head start on IEN participation. We would encourage districts that are still working to decide on their 09-10 service provider to contact us (see http://adm.idaho.gov/ien/contact.htm) for a quick review of service needs and potential for the IEN team to be part of the 09-10 service solution.
Q. Do I have the ability to purchase services off the IEN contract beyond what the State DOE is funding?
A. Once deployed, the IEN contract allows for school systems to use that master contract to purchase services beyond the level that the State is funding. If you are interested in purchasing services from the IEN contract, please contact us (see http://adm.idaho.gov/ien/contact.htm) to discuss your specific needs. From an E-Rate perspective, a school system would file a 471 under their name (as they would pay the local portion for services beyond the state-funded level) and reference the IEN contract and 470. The IEN team can assist with making sure that filing is completed correctly.
Q. Will participation in this IEN effort preclude a school district’s ability to file for additional E-Rate Funding?
A. No, absolutely not. School districts will still be able to ask for and obtain if qualified, E-Rate Funding for their own IT initiatives. The State of Idaho through the IEN RFP will pay for the non-discounted rate for broadband connectivity to each school entity and then file on behalf of all participating school districts for the E-Rate Broadband Discount.
Q. Will the State pay for Video Teleconferencing Capabilities for our Public Schools to take advantage of Distance Learning Opportunities?
A. Yes, contingent upon funding, the State of Idaho, through the IEN RFP, will provide Video Teleconferencing Capabilities (VTC) to public school districts who currently do not have those capabilities. The State will also provide lifecycle upgrade enhancements to school districts with existing VTC capabilities, if needed, to ensure equal access and quality of service for all participants.
Q. In Phase I, you indicate that you plan to connect each high school to IEN. If I already have a wide-area network for my school district, can I connect it to the IEN link so that all of my schools can participate?
A. Yes! Once we have made our final service provider selections, they will be in touch to work out these details. Please note that while all schools in your district can participate, if you already have a wide-area network, the Department of Administration intends, based on available funding, to only provide video conferencing equipment to high schools during this initial Phase. As subsequent phases of this plan are funded and executed, Video Teleconferencing support for both public elementary and middle schools will be provided as needed.
Q. Is there current funding available to support this IEN effort?
A. Funding for this IEN effort remains a challenge. However, when something is this important to the State of Idaho, its students, and our economy, you keep searching for funding and you prioritize. We are currently pursuing a combination of local donations, federal grants, and State funding for this effort, with some limited funding currently on hand to start our planned IEN Phase I, IdaNet Migrations.
