New Math – How 75% = 90%, and why you should do this calculation

I have a confession to make. After 4 years of expounding the merits of the eRate program, I realized last week that my calculations were way off – well sort of.  In a recent teleconference with two new Charter School who are considering the merits of filing for Priority 2 services, the subject of discount rates came up. And my math was wrong – is yours?

The general criterion for eRate reimbursement is a measure of the free & reduced lunch population at a given school. Although this number can often be improved upon significantly, by doing household income surveys, many schools simply don’t bother.

The thinking, I presume, is that with reimbursement thresholds hovering around 90%, there is little chance of getting reimbursed for Priority 2 items – which typically include the big ticket expenditures for servers, network gear, and connectivity. Only problem is that 75% equals 90%, at least according to eRate!

Say what??? That was my reaction, too.

Yes indeed, that equation is actually correct! According to the USAC discount matrix, if 75% of your student population is economically disadvantaged (as evidenced by free and reduced lunch counts, or household surveys) then you are at a 90% discount rate!

If only my test scores in college worked on the same principal!

And consider one other interesting report. In 2010, there was no discount criteria applied to any Priority 2 services. Indeed, every school that properly filed for eRate reimbursement for FY2010-11 received that reimbursement, regardless of their discount rate.  Unconventional, yes;   possible again in this fiscally stimulated administration? Perhaps …

 Now were talking quantum physics, not just math!

So what does this have to do with your particular situation? Well, precisely nothing if you follow the normal mode of ignoring eRate reimbursement for your school.  Astonishing as this seems, that is exactly what many Charter Schools are doing – nothing.

If soomeone were to offer you a 40%-60% discount on groceries for the school cafeteria, by filing a few forms. You would surely jump at the chance. What is the logic that keeps you from doing the same for your technology expenses?

Let’s review a general list of services eligible for reimbursement:

Priority 1 Services: (always reimbursed without discount rate considerations)

•  Fiber optic internet connections
• Telephone, fax, cell phones, and other types of internet access (DSL, wireless, etc.)
• Website hosting
• Email services
• Installation and configuration of the above

Priority 2 Services: (reimbursed according to a discount rate threshold)

• Internal Connections – equipment used for transport of digital information (excluding endpoints)
• Network components – routers, firewalls, switches, decoders, hubs, etc.
• Servers – email servers or servers providing an eligible service
• Wiring – wire and cabling to connect your eligible services
• Wireless Access Points and controllers
• Basic maintenance for all the above

Both of the aforementioned schools were under the impression, that there was no point in filing for eRate – aside from the Priority 1 services that are reimbursed to all schools. It is worth noting that their perception was shaped in some measure at a state eRate training event. (And no I don’t suspect a conspiracy against charter schools.) Even more puzzling is the fact that both schools serve minority populations with normally high economic need!

 

So what have you got to lose? Well, possibly thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. And the unfortunate reality is, due to allocations across fiscal years and other moving measures at USAC, you will ultimately only know your eligibility by filing.

 

In these difficult financial times, it seems extraordinary that reimbursement for technology services would be so inadequately managed. No doubt that eRate is a complex, time sensitive, form intensive, and deadline driven process. But that is not an acceptable excuse.

 

Perhaps a dose of good old fashioned determination is in order. One of my favorite quotes is “That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased. (Heber J. Grant) Can you really afford to not manage this opportunity?

 

But then that brings up another favorite subject – informal logic. Why go through the trouble of filing for eRate, if you can outsource it for less than the cost of the reimbursement you will receive? If you would like to have a conversation with an eRate expert, call us. And then we will refer you to an expert!

 

USAC rules prohibit service providers, which we are, from providing certain eRate functions to ensure a fair bidding process.  So I conclude with this disclaimer. The above information is intended to be general in nature and for educational purposes only. Please contact your certified (yes this is a professional designation) eRate Management Professional for information regarding your specific circumstances.

 

And you might want to do that sooner than later, the eRate filing window will close in a few short months!

 

For the official list of eligible services, go to http://www.usac.org/sl/applicants/beforeyoubegin/eligible-services-list.aspx

Tis the season to do eRate, File-a-li-la-la the forms today!

I love the Christmas season, now termed the Holiday season by those more politically correct. As a technology provider for schools, it marks the start of the annual gift giving season by the Universal Services Administrative Company for eligible technology hardware and services.

The gifts are in the form of reimbursements through the eRate program, and you might not be getting your fair share!

Like me, you may not generally favor government largesse; but  the eRate program is reasonably well run, self-funded, and designed to support the most financially disadvantaged student populations (among other institutions). Take a look at your last telephone bill – mobile or otherwise – and you will see a small fee titled Federal Universal Services Fee. That is the source of the funding – everybody pays a little.

Charter Schools, unfortunately are more likely to receive a proverbial “lump of coal” in their Christmas – woops – Holiday stockings, than traditional school's. The reason is simple, it takes a level of expertise and a significant investment of time to wade through the myriad of forms, compliances, and dates associated with the program. Many Charter Schools simply don’t have the resources to successfully do this.

What a shame!

In a nutshell, there are two broad categories of reimbursements you can receive; they are labeled in the eRate program as Priority 1 eligible services and Priority 2 eligible services. Priority 1 services consist primarily of Internet, Telephone, Email, and Website Hosting Services. Priority 2 services consist of hardware components and services used within you’re your building to connect, route, secure, and deliver technology to end users.
 
These expenses are reimbursed at a rate roughly equivalent to your free and reduced lunch count percentages. Priority 1 services are always eligible for reimbursement; Priority 2 services have discount level thresholds, technology plans, and additional requirements.

What is the easiest way to participate in this annual gift giving? It might not be as difficult as you would think.

Here are a few  things you can do to improve your chances of having a Happier eRate Holiday:

1. Identify state eRate consortiums and join them

Check with your state office of education to see if there is an eRate Consortium. If one exists, they will often handle your Priority 1 items.  In fact some states will give you a steal of a deal on broadband AND help you file the eRate forms to boot.
Give yourself plenty of time. These organizations can be quite bureaucratic and move at a snails pace, but the value proposition can be excellent.

2. Verify that your telecom provider has an eRate department

If your state does not offer broadband, your telephone company should have the resource to help you file for your eRate reimbursement. In fact, you might even find a provider that will only bill you for the unreimbursed costs of your telephone, internet, and fax lines. It is common to bundle internet service with your telephone, especially in rural areas.

Be careful, you still must comply with the eRate program for both priorities and you can easily run afoul of the rules when your telecom sales representative gets involved.

3. Don’t forget your email and webhosting costs

While normally not significant, email services and web hosting costs are always eligible for eRate reimbursement, regardless of your discount rate. If you are settling for a third rate website and the crappy email system that comes attached to it, do yourself a huge favor, upgrade your email and website system and get reimbursed for doing so. It makes the cost very reasonable, and you will likely get huge productivity improvements to boot!

4. Outsource the entire eRate filing process to a professional

The adage of “Penny wise, pound foolish” is my favorite description of those who elect not to choose door #4. In the decade of my involvement with Charter Schools, I have seen very large sums of money lost because school administrators thought they could do this on their own.

Freestanding and independent Charter Schools lack the economy of scale to compete on the eRate playing field. Traditional school districts often have full time staffers just for this purpose.
 
The most common mistake is to presume an incorrect discount rate (there are ways to improve it significantly rather than just counting free and reduced lunch percentages), then buy the prevailing wisdom that you do not qualify for the big ticket Priority 2 items. And the results are both predictable and deplorable. All it takes is a cursory search on the USAC website to demonstrate how poorly most charter schools fare in receiving Priority 2 reimbursements.

Did you know that in in 2010, every school at every discount rate received their Priority 2 funding!  There are multi-year adjustments to the funding pool, and even the most seasoned eRate professionals don’t really know where the exact cutoff will fall for Priority 2 funding.

Don't listen to the naysayers that Priority 2 funding is impossible to acheive. It's bad advice!

Summary

When you are faced with critical tasks that require a high degree of specialization, but for only small projects or periods of time, it is usually best to outsource the task. This is exactly our position about the design and engineering aspect of your technology infrastructure.  Likewise, eRate is a highly specialized process, which trained professionals can manage in a fraction of the time you would spend.

Don’t brush this matter off for another year! Locate an eRate consultant, one who is a Certified eRate Management Professional, and invest in their services. You do it for special ed, technology, finance, and many other tasks – why not for eRate.

‘Tis the season to do eRate, and have a much happier holiday… or Merry Christmas, as the case may be by getting your share of the eRate gift giving.  

OK, It’s time to get legal (names omitted to protect the guilty)

We recently met with a school director and their technology provider to discuss a solution that had Microsoft Licensing implications. When we asked about the schools software licensing, there was an uncomfortable shifting in the chair, a bit of hem and haw, followed by a very generic explanation regarding a previous IT provider a few years back and a school agreement. You get the picture….

What we heard was probably quite a bit different than what the administrator understood. And we left it at that. We are not the Microsoft Licensing police and frankly Microsoft Licensing is so ridiculously complicated that it takes a team of New York Lawyers to explain it, and a few CPA’s to calculate the costs. Alright, that is an exaggeration, but not much of one.

Having said that, I submit the time has come, in the world of Education that overlooking your Microsoft Licensing is really quite inexcusable. And frankly, unless you value your time at less than minimum wage, it really makes sense to just sign the agreement, pay the minimal licensing costs, and get on with life.

If you use the correct type of licensing, the process will literally save you time and money; not to mention that warm and fuzzy feeling you will have knowing you are playing by the rules.

Having seen firsthand the hoops that some go through to avoid legal licensing, it really makes no sense. You can now buy an umbrella Microsoft agreement that not only covers all computers in the school with Operating Systems, and core CALS, but it also provides a copy of Microsoft Office Professional Plus. Furthermore there are home use rights to boot.

And here is a little known secret. When you initiate a school agreement, there are a number of additional software licenses that magically appear in your Volume Licensing Center. Take for example the MultiPoint Server license and CAL’s for connecting to it. That’s right, they are included. Just try buying that software over the counter by itself.

Some school agreements also come with subscriptions to Microsoft educational titles, membership in the MSDN Academic Alliance, and Live@EDU services. Plus there are other Microsoft solutions such as the InTune Management software, Microsoft Dynamics CRM, and others that are a fraction of the cost when associated with your Annual School Agreement.

And you can literally receive an entire truckload of donated computers, which as soon as they enter your building are also covered. And did I mention any Virtual Machines that you create using Microsoft Hyper-V technology – they are covered as well.

Like most of you, I have a real problem with paying $450.00 for a copy of Microsoft Office Professional Plus in the shrink wrapped box. And that is a challenge in the for-profit world. But educational titles are so incredibly cheap, it takes way more resources to find ways around licensing than it does to do it properly.

Enough already, while the odds of a Software Audit are very, very small; all it takes is the phone call of one disgruntled staff member,  former vendor, or competitor to the software alliance and things could get real ugly.

If you have a software licensing question or need guidance on selecting the right school agreement, please call us. As a freestanding charter school, you have options that are both sensible and affordable. And you might be surprised at all the freebies you get for being legal.

Do the right thing!

Oh, one last thing. You might consider making your school agreement align with the eRate fiscal year. Eligible expenses are more easily allocated and reimbursed when they line up with July 1 – Jun 30 timeframes of the eRate program.

What to do now that you have been approved

Congratulations on the state approving your new charter school. Take a deep breath, exhale slowly, and relax. OK, time to get back to work!

No doubt the application was challenging, and by now you have a board and a few eager volunteers to help, let’s take a look at the specific things you should do with respect to technology in order to be ready for opening day.

This is only from the perspective of technology, other things will certainly be required; but there are four key waypoints you should consider during the next year or so.

• Build your communication infrastructure as quickly as possible
• Create your Technology Plan and participate fully in the eRate process
• Ensure your critical network components get included in the construction/remodel
• Install your hardware and software  30-45 days prior to opening

Communication Infrastructure

Think of your new school as a product launch. How quickly you put systems into place that will help you market, build your brand, recruit students, engage the community, and establish management systems will in large measure affect opening day. And while that may seem a long way off, it will happen very quickly.

With the world’s finest set of collaboration tools available and free to any academic organization, your first stop should be at the Microsoft Office 365 website to sign up for a free trial. This cloud based suite of solutions will provide the foundation of a technology infrastructure which will serve you well during this critical start-up phase; and it will continue as the core communications infrastructure for years to come.

Included in the Office 365 offering is:

• Exchange based, SPAM free, secure, and compliant email that works on any device
• Lync 2010 unified communications client, with  live meeting, chat, and file sharing
• SharePoint  for document storage, collaboration, and access control

You’ll also need to decide upon a Charter School Management System, or outsource the business office functions. We believe keeping things in house is the best solution. See our post about Education Resource Management Software( eRM) powered by Microsoft Dynamic CRM.

Technology Plan (for Erate)

You’ve probably written enough plans to last a lifetime during the application process, but it’s time to review that technology plan one more time. It will probably need to be fine-tuned in order to pass the state Erate Plan approver. In a perfect world your application plan, eRate plan, and real life (what you will actually do) plan would be the same, but if they truly are, that would be the exception rather than the rule.

An important aspect of the eRate process is determining your discount rate.  Calculating your discount rate for the first year is a little tricky, since you have no financial measures of your student population.  Normally you measure free and reduced lunch percentages to calculate the eRate discount; and ultimately you should conduct a family survey to determine more accurately your actual discount rate. This will be especially important if you are close to reaching the priority two funding levels, which is the level at which you obtain the most significant reimbursements for eligible technology purchases.

You would be well advised to get some professional help with eRate because the dollars at stake are very significant. We know of one school that incorrectly calculated their discount rate and missed out on getting reimbursed for several hundred thousand dollars of eligible equipment. Ouch …. don’t do that.

One final eRate reminder, work on the front side of the eligible time periods for filing. Don’t even think about waiting until the deadlines loom large. Invariably you will miss something and the deadline will come…. and go, along with your opportunity.

Network Components

Ask any network cable installer about the ideal time to install cabling and they will universally agree that it is before you finish out the walls and ceilings. Waiting until the drywall is in and ceilings are hung will increase your cabling expenses significantly. And it increases the likelihood of damaged or improperly routed cables as well.

Having said that, don’t be too ambitious about the rest of the gear. Patch panels, maybe – but definitely not switches, routers, servers, or access points. Those all come in after finish out and several cleanings. Drywall dust is very destructive to electronics, so be sure to do a thorough cleaning of your server room before installing routers, switches, and servers.

If all of your hardware and software is on premise, you can easily wait until the month prior to opening to install this equipment. Please note that waiting to install the equipment is NOT the same thing as waiting to acquire it. While waiting a little may save a few dollars, waiting too long will ensure you are not ready for opening day.

Final Systems Installation

As you count down the month before opening, there will be plenty of tasks to accomplish. Desktops, laptops, and multipoint lab systems should be installed and tested. Wireless access points will be attached and configured. And the server room will come to life with servers, switches, and a good quality firewall.

See articles about managing desktops, UTM devices, Windows Multipoint, and other items not mentioned here for this final step.

Summary

The common, almost predictable experience we have observed in opening schools, is to wait until the building occupancy permit is issued to begin technology implementation. Don't do that! It will create a very shaky foundation for your information systems because you will be rushed, stressed, and making decisions under a great deal of pressure.

We speak of planning as though it only requires thought and conversation, it also requires a significant amount of time. Do yourself a huge favor and start the process early... as in yesterday!

Sidebar

One of the tremendous advantages of the cloud is the capacity to build infrastructure off premise and then connect it to the physical facilities when the time comes. This is a sound strategy in launching your new school.

By building your key infrastructure in the cloud (hosted solutions), you will not only have advanced communication abilities during the critical planning year; but, once you are comfortably housed in your new facilities, you will be using a familiar set of tools and features.

Working across town or across the country today might be necessary to get up and running, but across the hall later on will be necessary to operate smoothly and efficiently. And you may ultimately, as many have, decide that leaving your infrastructure in the cloud is a sound strategy.

Congratulations on your approval, feel free to call if you have questions.

It’s time to upgrade your phone system, start saving money, and get better service.

Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) is no longer an emerging technology with the promise of providing better features at lower costs, someday. It is a stable and widely accepted industry with significant hardware, software, and technical service adaptation. And it is much, much, less expensive that Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS). In addition to lower phone bills, you will also enjoy a smorgasbord of features previously found only with very expensive phone systems.

And cost savings on your monthly phone bills are just the beginning. You can also enjoy an efficient virtual receptionist that provides better call routing and more relevant information based upon whether your school is open or closed. You can take a handset home and appear to be in the office, you can answer and make phone calls from an (internet enabled) airplane at 35,000 ft while traveling to a conference or meeting. And your phone messages and faxes can be delivered to your email inbox and be reviewed on any mobile device. And this is just a very partial list of features. Every possible feature, including call forwarding, conference calling, extension transfer, music on hold, intercom, voice mail, etc. are standard features of currently available VOIP systems.

There are two general types of VOIP systems – on premise and hosted. Simply stated the difference is a function of where your call controller hardware is located. With an on-premise system this hardware is located within your building much like a traditional phone system, with a hosted VOIP system all of your call center hardware is located in a datacenter not in your building. Most of the advantages discussed in this article relate to a hosted VOIP system.

Hosted VOIP requires only two things to operate – a handset on your desk (or software on your computer) and an internet connection. Prices start about $25.00/mo per line and the service is managed completely on line. If you are doing new construction, VOIP significantly reduces both the cost and complexity of installing a new phone system. A VOIP handset can be plugged directly into a network cable, so rather than pulling both phone and network lines, all you need are network lines. And with a hosted VOIP system, rather than having a proprietary and expensive call controller mounted in your server room, you can now outsource that function to a provider that maintains all of the hardware you need, for a low flat monthly rate.

There are several scenarios where a hosted VOIP system is particularly beneficial. If you are leasing space in a building while facilities are under construction it is a tremendous idea. If you are expanding to a new building, it is also very practical. And if your staff routinely has remote work assignments or a use a satellite campus, a hosted VOIP system will greatly simplify your phone configuration.

The reason a Hosted VOIP solution is so flexible is because there are no physical space limitations to the system. You can literally install your office phone any place in the world that has a reliable internet connection. I recently relocated to temporary office for a few months. And my only action to transfer phone service was to unplug my handset, transport it to the new location, and then plug it back into the internet. At power-up, the phone was routed onto the internet and into my VOIP server and within minutes, my office phone system was relocated.

If you are managing e-Rate reimbursement properly, a hosted VOIP system is particularly beneficial, because the monthly service fees are always reimbursable as a priority one expense, regardless of your discount rate. The only priority two expenses are handsets, which can be reimbursed two of each five years, conditioned upon your discount rate.

Take a closer look at the cost of your telecommunication service and features, then compare available VOIP services. You will be surprised at potential money savings and service improvements available. Just think, you could have enjoyed time at home with the family this holiday while appearing to be in the office!  

 

Technology Management or Technical Support – there is a difference

In a perfect world, you would have a Chief Information Officer to help guide your school through the ocean of technology choices, and there are plenty. Desktops or Laptops, on-premise infrastructure or hosted, PC's or Macs (or a combination), and the list goes on. Decisions are heavily influenced by the premises you occupy, existing networking infrastructure, and the demographics of your student population. And of course there is the reality of your budget, your e-Rate eligibility, and the disposition of your board.

All of these decisions directly impact the form and function of your school and they should not be taken lightly. But are you the best qualified to make those decisions? And if not who is?

As it turns out, it might be your IT support company or not, it all depends…

Back at the turn of the last century (like early 1900's), my grandfather earned the nickname of Ray "Henry Ford" Hall, because of his ability to repair the early models of cars being then produced by the Ford Motor Company. Actually, he could fix just about anything. Apparently I inherited his insatiable desire to understand how things work and to a lesser extent how to fix things. At an early age, I was dismantling toasters, bicycles, radios, and just about any mechanical device that I could get my hands on. Like my grandfather, I could fix just about anything that was broken.

 
Fast forward 100 years, and consider the corollary in the world of technical support.

 
Entrance into the world of computer repair is wide open and similar to the mechanics of last century. Some of the cleverest technicians I have worked with have no post-secondary education, few certifications, and few credentials. Yet they can resolve computer issues with blazing speed and uncanny thoroughness. You may even have a few of them on staff.

That talent, as important as it is, has precious little to do with making sound technology management decisions. To prove my point, consider the evolution of the Chief Information Officer position. CIO's are becoming key executives at a growing number of companies. The increase in productivity generated by automation and information systems is driving significant profits to the bottom line. That lesson should not be lost in the translation from business to education. Every Charter School needs access to the guidance of a CIO.

I could easily make the case for financial reasons alone, having witnessed hundreds of thousands of dollars lost to poor decision making and execution of technology projects. But money aside, the weightier matter is the education of our children. Every moment a teacher is interrupted by a technical challenge or prevented from accessing a source of information or is required to spend time doing repetitive mindless administrative tasks, is a moment they are not educating my children and yours. And that is a real problem!

So have I convinced you to run out and hire a Chief Information Officer for your school? Good luck, the board will probably send you for a drug test! Seriously, how do you obtain the services of a CIO, when the going salary for a competent network engineer is 150% of your highest paid administrator! It's not a sustainable proposition.

 
The solution is simple and many of you are using the model already, just for different things. For example how many of you contract for special education services, school lunch programs, or financial management? Those are crucial programs that have wide adoption in the charter school community. So why not technology managers? I submit that it boils down to two reasons, money and expectations. In the above examples there are specific funds designated for such services and they pay for themselves. But expectations for technology management simply don't exist. IT staff fix computers; business managers, principals, board members, or PTO presidents make technology infrastructure decisions. Not true? I beg you to be candid about your own organization and what or who drives these policy decisions.

In a meeting with a school administrator, not long ago, I was shocked to hear her state that the only criterion for hiring technical support personnel was cost. "I will go with the lowest cost provider" she proudly stated. Upon digging a little further, I discovered she had hired her nephew instead and her comments were probably more for the financial manager sitting in the next room than for me. I have also observed principals being cajoled by the technology teachers into implementing wholesale changes in the computer lab, only to have that teacher leave the school within the year. I have observed software purchase decisions costing thousands of more dollars because of a lack of Academic licensing experience, and the list goes on.

The very best schools we operate were purpose built from the ground up and continue to have reliable, affordable, and relevant information systems. We submit that is because we have significant experience managing Charter School technology. We have also observed complete chaos at schools where technology decisions were made by well-intentioned principals who simply had no business making these kinds of decisions.

 
When searching for a Technology Manager, you should minimally have on your list of requirements experience, focus, and reputation. You need to work with someone with experience not only in educational technology, but Charter School educational technology specifically. Ensure that your management team has a clear focus on education and that you are not just one of a dozen different types of businesses they serve, and finally check the reputation of your candidates. Most of the time you find long term relationships exist with technology managers and the schools they serve; ideally they might well serve on the board.

Do your homework, be cautious about using well-meaning internal resources that have only basic skills, and check references of past and present customers. And finally, be sure you are working with a service provider who understands e-Rate, the federal reimbursement mechanism. Your technology costs can be dramatically lowered by structuring resources to maximize e-Rate reimbursement.
    

 

 

Why you need an e-Rate consultant (and why it cannot be me)

Imagine receiving a coupon in the mail that was redeemable at any grocery store which offered you 70% off of all bread, milk, eggs and meat. Eligibility for the coupon was conditioned upon stating your house had a refrigerator to store the items and completing a few forms before your first shopping spree. In these resource constrained times, few of you would pass up such an opportunity!

Now imagine driving to the store intending to use your coupon to find that only bread and milk were available to you, because of your income. Imagine further that it would take you several hours if not days, to complete the forms required to redeem your coupon, and that the store providing the groceries was prohibited from talking to you about how the coupon worked or how to use it. Additionally, imagine being scheduled for training meetings to learn how to complete the forms which have very time sensitive windows for completion and a long list of approved uses for the discounted groceries. And finally imagine being required to plan your menu 3 – 5 years in advance for your most costly groceries, which of course had to be approved by a complete stranger.

Your coupon suddenly becomes not quite so appealing.  Yet giving up a 70% discount (or more) on items you use every day is very appealing, and for some, quite necessary! What do you do?

This is the “stranger than a reality show” world of e-Rate at a large majority of Charter Schools. Does this sound familiar? Here is the corollary:

• E-Rate is the coupon, USAC controls who gets them, and the relative prosperity of your student’s families is part of your eligibility
• CIPA (Child Internet Protection Act) compliance is your refrigerator, which you must have to even be considered for eligibility
• Your technology service provider is the grocery store who is prohibited from assisting you in obtaining your coupon
• The groceries for which you seek the coupon are your telephone, internet, email, website, and related technology equipment bills

So how do traditional school districts do this? It usually boils down to economy of scale (which most Charter Schools don’t have). Traditional districts are sufficiently large and the funds so significant, that they can afford to hire full-time e-Rate staffers.  Such is not the case with most freestanding Charter Schools.

Is it any wonder that the Charter School Community has difficulty obtaining their fair share of e-Rate funding? With few exceptions what I observe is a complete disaster; in one case the financial losses exceeded one hundred thousand dollars (yes that is six figures worth) in a single school year. And this even happened at a school where financial management was outsourced by supposed professionals, which is truly perplexing.

Here are the most common mistakes I observe regarding e-Rate:

• Attempting to do this without a significant investment in training and time. This is not a good second duty for a principal or math teacher.
• Assuming you are ineligible for reimbursement. Certain expenses are always eligible for reimbursement, regardless of your free and reduced lunch count.
• Failing to utilize a family survey to get a more accurate e-Rate discount. This is especially important where “free lunches” run counter to social norms..
• Structuring technology resources in manner that is ineligible for reimbursement or incorrectly classifying the expenses as priority two.
• Believing (erroneously) that the money is too insignificant to justify the effort 

For most charter schools, this is simply not a task that you should attempt on your own, unless you belong to a consortium of schools that can afford a full-time professional. If you doubt my advice, all that is needed to prove my point is a simple search at the official USAC website which maintains a complete database of e-Rate reimbursement. For example, in the State of Utah in FY 2010 fewer than a dozen charter schools received any e-Rate reimbursement that was not filed by an e-Rate professional.

In states that have a large population of freestanding Charter Schools, an e-Rate consortium is an excellent idea. It essentially brings the economies of scale to individual Charter Schools by filing e-Rate as a group. However, this requires a high degree of co-operation and may provide fewer benefits for some within the consortium than others. Getting independent and highly individualistic charter schools to co-operate seems to be a challenge.

For these reasons, we strongly encourage the use of e-Rate professionals, but it is important to do your homework when selecting an e-Rate professional. There are no formal credentials in the world of e-Rate consultants, although the e-Rate Management Professionals Association is attempting to change that. In our experience, fees range widely, as do the personal interaction with your staff. Some companies provide a mostly web-based do-it-yourself interface; others have a very personal and accountable approach. Our recommendation is Kellogg & Sovereign, LLC located in Ada, Oklahoma.

Now for the “not me” part of this article. By statute, technology service providers are restricted in many aspects of the e-Rate process, especially in the pre-bid time frame. This is to prevent undue influence and fraud associated with contracting procedures, and rightly so. E-Rate fraud has been problematic in the past, which is inexcusable, but understandable as the amount of money involved is significant.

So what’s the bottom line? Decide now to get some professional assistance for your e-Rate process. We are well into the FY 2012-13 e-Rate program year. In the worst case scenario you will be dollars ahead for telephone, fax, email, and web hosting costs each month; and in the best case scenario you will receive a huge discount on those expensive technology upgrades every few years.

In these resource constrained times, you simply cannot continue to ignore this important funding mechanism.

A model for your school website

Selecting the right web site technology for your school is an important undertaking. The expectation of being able to find things "on-line" is so pervasive now in our culture that not being able to do so is simply unacceptable. And with respect to a Charter School, it is essential to good governance and school administration.

Building a website is not that difficult anymore. There are many hosting companies that actually install website building software right into your hosting account. All you have to do is fill in a few blanks, check a few boxes, add a couple of pictures, and you have a website…. well sort of. What you end up with is a few pictures, a paragraph or two about your school, a contact us page, and maybe directions to your location.

Sadly, there are still administrators that believe this is adequate. And while I respect their opinions, my opinion is that is wholly inadequate, for a number of reasons I will discuss in this article.

Putting up a website that will serve your Charter School is important because it can actually reduce the cost of administration when designed correctly. In order for this to happen, your school website needs to be more than just a few pictures, a paragraph, a map, and a telephone number. A successful website implementation can save countless hours of phone calls, emails, sticky notes, and personal interruptions. And if I were the teacher, I would make every administrator write that last statement on the chalk board 50 times!

However, the fundamental challenge in deploying a useful website boils down to one simple problem…. Managing content! In every case, the addition, modification, and removal (archiving) of content on your website is always more difficult and time consuming than publishing it in the original instance. I cannot overstate the importance of understanding this principal.

You can manage your School Website without spending thousands of dollars for its construction or administration. Once setup, this can be done using Open Source (meaning free) software, an internet browser, and literally thousands of plug-ins (optional features) that are also free.

If you can type, create a digital image, or produce media such as video and music, you can create an impressive website that will serve your school in a multitude of ways.

Here is a list of the important content that should be on your school website and a few ideas of how it might work for you:

• Academic Information: Curriculum, homework, student resources, and classroom management information are specific to not only a given grade, but often a specific teacher within that grade. Each teacher can easily logon to a content driven site and upload her lesson plans, homework, suggested study materials (links), and other relevant information to help students succeed.
• Contact Information: School, administrators, staff, and support organizations all have contact requirements. These are often static (not changing) but can change if individuals leave, go on vacation, change roles, etc. And why would you fail to have a robust map on your website? This simple tool will help you avoid hours spent giving directions. While you are at it, ensure your site is mobile phone friendly for the growing number of users that rely on PDA or mobile browsers; they can look at your map while they are enroute.
• Legal Information: Disclosures, public hearing notifications, meeting and legal notes are often required by law. If it takes days or weeks to get a page added to your existing website, instead of a few minutes, you are not providing adequate notification to you community.
• News Information: Events, clubs, PTO, recognitions, school closings, calendars, etc. This list is almost endless, and the requirements are diverse and very time sensitive. Giving each organization their own "page" on the website and the authority to update it as often as possible will greatly improve the process of being involved by your volunteers.
• Policy Information: Enrollment, attendance, discipline, rules, handbooks, dress codes, approved vendors, etc. should all be easily found on your website preferably by a site specific search engine. Typing a few "keywords" should be all the effort required of site visitors to find the information they need.

As you can see, some of this information is static and relatively unchanging, such as policy information and contact information. But the rest can be very dynamic with additions to content occurring almost every day. And without a full time technical person to add content to your website, it would quickly become out of date and your users will not remained engaged; that is unless you have a content management system as the underlying technology running your website. This is where "distributive authoring" comes into play. And this is a crucial concept that needs to be understood, especially at the leadership level of the organization.

Distributive authoring is giving the key stakeholders in your organization the authority, training, and vision of this key role and then giving them the needed tools to publish material relative to their area of responsibility. In other words it is allocating a large task to a group of individuals in order to keep the size of the task manageable. In order for this to occur, you must first designate a group of individuals to take the lead in this process. And based upon my experience, unless the Principal or other key administrator is leading this team it will not be an effective effort.

The technology of which I am most familiar is Joomla, another is Word Press. They are both Open Source solutions which have no licensing fees. There is also Microsoft Sharepoint Technology (not free). These programs are widely adopted, have a worldwide user base, and excellent reliability and stability. There are other programs as well. Do a simple Google search for "Content Management Systems" and see for yourself.

If you are a School Administrator and have failed to implement this sort of technology for your school, you are in my opinion lacking the leadership and vision needed to make fundamental improvements in your organization. Information is power. Empowering students, enabling teachers, and providing administrative efficiency is the responsibility of every Charter School Administrator. And improving your website technology may be the very most important step you take to accomplish this goal. Next week we will discuss social media and how to manage it in conjunction with your website.

The ABC’s of Website Design

Designing a successful website is a challenge because what constitutes a good website is a highly subjective process. To improve your website building experience, you need clear objectives and expectations, the involvement of all key stakeholders, and a clear grasp of these three core components:

We identify these three core components as the ABC's of website design:

1. Artistic and design appeal – Visual and artistic appeal of the website so it looks professional
2. Business process delivery – SEO Optimization, leads, newsletter delivery, ecommerce, publishing, etc.
3. Core Functionality – Operating servers, web pages, content, images, etc

Artistic and Design Appeal

Creating a visually appealing site is the most subjective part of the process. It is also, based upon my experience, the single most common point of failure in a website project. What a web site designer thinks to be a clever design may be in complete contradiction to a customer’s expectations.

And it is generally quite difficult for a non-technical end user to articulate in technical terms how a site should be designed. This is due in large measure to very different perspectives.

Some really clever sites are very simple – example http://www.google.com/ with mostly white space a clear brand and a search box.

Other sites are so complex and full of content, links, moving graphics, and interruptions that it borders on annoyance – example http://www.goddady.com/

Some sites carry a theme or common framework throughout the entire website while others have, no purpose, no consistency – each page looks entirely different.

Because of the unlimited possibilities of design, most companies with self-publishing features offer a couple of basic layouts (templates) and a choice of complimentary color themes. Microsoft’s office.live.com, which offers a free website to Small Business customers is a good example of this.

The more specific an end user is about artistic design elements the more likely a website project will be successful. And it is highly recommended that a professional graphic designer be engaged if the customer does not have existing design elements (graphics, logos, color schemes, etc)

Artistic and Design Appeal is primarily the responsibility of the customer or school.

Business Process Delivery

Determining the results or actions you wish to obtain from site visitors will help you design properly. There are as many business deliverables as there are types and variations of businesses. Some deliverables have not been invented yet, (think about twitter 5 years ago).

As you decide upon site deliverables, consider the following questions:

1. Is your site one-way or two-way. Are you gathering or distributing information or both?
2. Are you just trying to create an online billboard or are you seeking to obtain contact information i.e., email addresses for internal marketing.
3. Are you attempting to cause an action – such as an email inquiry or phone call or are you attempting to automate some process such as managing a newsletter subscription.
4. Are you delivering content for a fee or trying to sell goods?

There are limits, driven mostly by budget, as to what is possible with current technology

Business Process Design is a joint responsibility of you and your web site designer

Core Functionality:

Core technical function, noticed primarily when broken, deals with the basic operation of the pages, links, and processes (forms, calculators, video, etc.) on your site. The complexity of a given website generally hinges on the manner of its design and the programming language that generates the web pages, complexity increases the likelihood of technical failure.

Some websites are extremely complex, with many moving parts, authentication schemes, gateways to other sites, and integration with a corporate network. Other sites are very simple, just a few pages of code that display words, images, and links.

Techno speak aside, the criteria by which you will measure a functional site will likely focus on the following:

1. Do the pages, links, and processes operate quickly and without error
2. Is navigation of your site simple enough to find content quickly
3. Is content delivery convenient for site visitors – can they access and then process information quickly
4. Does your site place well in organic searches with the major search engines

Technical function is primarily the responsibility of your web site designer.

Summary

Many web site projects start and end with very different ideas. It is a dynamic and interactive process between design team and customer. And it must be understood at the outset, that change equals time and time equals expense, so clarity up front results in large savings during the project.

Clear instructions on layout, accompanied by specific color schemes, exact logo’s, trademarks, and graphics are essential elements of design.

Business deliverables need to be clearly set forth and prioritized. Ongoing reviews and improvements in this area are common. Be sure to give ample time for website processes to be evaluated by your site visitors.

Given the wide range of ideas expressed by your key stakeholders, it is unlikely that everyone will be 100% satisfied with every aspect of a website project, but finding an acceptable level of technical function, business process delivery, and artistic and design appeal is possible.

Improving your e-Rate experience

Improving Your E-Rate Experience

I continue to be surprised at the lackluster participation by many of the Charter School community in the USAC funding mechanism, commonly known as e-Rate. I believe that it stems from a lack of information; but whatever the reason, it seems a bit negligent in these resource constrained times.  This general lack of participation is found throughout the community; many administrators, finance companies, and service providers alike behave as though e-Rate is neither a significant opportunity nor a justifiable expenditure of time.

I believe they are wrong on both counts and unless your school has a philosophical position against government support, there is little excuse for not maximizing the benefits of this program.

Here a few very simple suggestions that will help you improve your experience in obtaining reimbursement for eligible technology purchases.

1.     Don’t try to do this on your own. One of the simplest ways to improve you e-Rate experience is to outsource the process in part or in whole to an e-Rate consultant who will assist you. State of Utah resources for e-Rate assistance, as compared to other states we have observed are quite limited and are mostly guidance in a self- service process. By outsourcing this task to a professional, you can focus on issues that you are uniquely qualified to manage, like educating children.

2.     Understand the formulas that drive discount rates. Your reimbursement options improve as your discount rate increases. And there are ways to improve your discount rate beyond a simple calculation of free and reduced lunches. This is uniquely true in Utah, where larger family sizes, depressed wages, and a general reluctance among many in the LDS community to accept free lunches tends to drive down your specific discount rate. Start planning now to do a household income survey to improve your e-Rate opportunity, especially if you are approaching the 70% – 75% bracket.

3.     Shift expenses to the priority one category. Albeit a limited opportunity (and no we don’t advocate trying to trick USAC) there are certain expenses that can be categorized in both the internet access (priority 1) and the internal connections category (priority 2). The best example of this is email. By utilizing a hosted email solution, rather than an on-premise solution with servers, software, and network equipment, you can obtain reimbursement without regard to your discount rate and/or the 2 in 5 rule for hardware. Another example of this is a hosted VOIP telephone system, instead of on premise (hardware concentric) VOIP telephone system. Your website hosting is yet another priority one expense.

4.     Align your purchases with the e-Rate calendar. E-Rate purchases typically need to be installed during a 90 day window starting with July 1 and ending (with some exceptions) on September 30^th. By structuring your purchases, such as your annual Microsoft School Agreement for software licensing, with this purchasing window, you can streamline the reimbursement process and improve your chances of having an expense accepted.

In at least one of the states where we provide services, we have observed, first hand, the loss of hundreds of thousands (yes that is 6 figures worth) of eligible expenses that were not reimbursed. That is not the kind of experience you want to emulate.

Right now is the time to be working on Form 470's for FY2012-13! Please don't wait another year.

Let's get started - Charter School Technology

Managing technology in a freestanding charter school is fundamentally different than most public schools for two compelling reasons.

First, reduced funding in all areas limits the resources for technical innovation. Second, staffing is problematic because the breadth of technical subject matter is equivalent to a district-level organization. This combined effect, without proper management, can lead to an environment where neither the resources nor expertise required to manage the school is viable. This can leave the school in a continuous break-fix or reactive mode, rather than a proactively managed model.

After a decade of managing technology in freestanding charter schools, we have learned a good deal both from our mistakes and from mistakes made by the schools we manage. There are many ways to manage technology. And we don’t pretend to have all the answers to all questions. But by experience, we have learned a great deal about what works and what does not work as it pertains to managing technology in this unique environment.

This blog outlines the principles we have found to be consistently useful and, to the extent possible, we have implemented these practices in the schools we manage. These ideas are general in nature and may not apply directly to your organization.

For a specific proposal that addresses your individual school, please contact us. Not only can we help you address the technology infrastructure of your school, but we can also help you draft a technology plan or assist you in grant writing to receive funding for your school.

Best wishes in your important endeavor!