Recognizing that many applicants are new to the program, e-Rate administrators have tailored their training accordingly
Primary Topic Channel: eRate
When the filing window opens later this fall, applicants will find no major changes to next year's e-Rate, the $2.25 billion-a-year federal program that provides discounts on telecommunications services to eligible schools and libraries. What they will find instead is a program that is more dedicated to helping e-Rate newcomers--as many as half of all applicants are in their first year of experience with the program--understand how to apply for their share of funding assistance quickly and efficiently.
Mel Blackwell, vice president of the Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), the agency that administers the e-Rate, said USAC will focus on helping applicants understand the e-Rate process and what is required of them and will spotlight ways in which coordinators can succeed with their e-Rate applications.
"We realized that some people spend an inordinate amount of time trying to get through the process," he said. "So many people are new to the process--anywhere from 35 to 50 percent [each year]--and have it as a new assignment."
During last year's e-Rate training sessions, Blackwell said, USAC asked attendees to rate their familiarity with the e-Rate process, and half of all attendees rated themselves as beginners.
"To veterans like myself and a few others who have been around for a while, it seems like we're covering some of the same material over and over, but you've got to," Blackwell said.
This year's training sessions offer a new format, with three different tracks for e-Rate coordinators to follow. At a Washington, D.C., training session on Sept. 22, attendees followed their chosen track in the morning, came together for lunch presentations, and split up again in the afternoon for the remaining topics in their tracks, followed by group discussions at the end of the day.
The beginner's track features an introduction to the program, a review of eligible services, a tour of USAC's web site, a tutorial on how to calculate discounts, and a discussion of what is needed for program compliance.
Those new to the e-Rate learn the program basics, such as what forms correlate with each part of the program and when those forms are due. The size of e-Rate discounts ranges from 20 percent to 90 percent of eligible costs, and beginners learn about eligible e-Rate services, as well as acronyms and terms.
An intermediate track covers compliance with the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA), how to make corrections to an application before a funding commitment is issued, how to respond to an audit, invoicing, and program compliance.
During a presentation on audit response, applicants learn how a USAC auditor will work with them to resolve problems, as well as provide training to improve the applicant's e-Rate knowledge. Applicants are advised to keep all documentation for five years from the last date a service is received, and they also must apply this 5-year rule to any document from a prior year that supports the current funding year.
Recognizing that many applicants are new to the program, e-Rate administrators have tailored their training accordingly
Primary Topic Channel: eRate
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When the filing window opens later this fall, applicants will find no major changes to next year's e-Rate, the $2.25 billion-a-year federal program that provides discounts on telecommunications services to eligible schools and libraries. What they will find instead is a program that is more dedicated to helping e-Rate newcomers--as many as half of all applicants are in their first year of experience with the program--understand how to apply for their share of funding assistance quickly and efficiently.
Mel Blackwell, vice president of the Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), the agency that administers the e-Rate, said USAC will focus on helping applicants understand the e-Rate process and what is required of them and will spotlight ways in which coordinators can succeed with their e-Rate applications.
"We realized that some people spend an inordinate amount of time trying to get through the process," he said. "So many people are new to the process--anywhere from 35 to 50 percent [each year]--and have it as a new assignment."
During last year's e-Rate training sessions, Blackwell said, USAC asked attendees to rate their familiarity with the e-Rate process, and half of all attendees rated themselves as beginners.
"To veterans like myself and a few others who have been around for a while, it seems like we're covering some of the same material over and over, but you've got to," Blackwell said.
This year's training sessions offer a new format, with three different tracks for e-Rate coordinators to follow. At a Washington, D.C., training session on Sept. 22, attendees followed their chosen track in the morning, came together for lunch presentations, and split up again in the afternoon for the remaining topics in their tracks, followed by group discussions at the end of the day.
The beginner's track features an introduction to the program, a review of eligible services, a tour of USAC's web site, a tutorial on how to calculate discounts, and a discussion of what is needed for program compliance.
Those new to the e-Rate learn the program basics, such as what forms correlate with each part of the program and when those forms are due. The size of e-Rate discounts ranges from 20 percent to 90 percent of eligible costs, and beginners learn about eligible e-Rate services, as well as acronyms and terms.
An intermediate track covers compliance with the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA), how to make corrections to an application before a funding commitment is issued, how to respond to an audit, invoicing, and program compliance.
During a presentation on audit response, applicants learn how a USAC auditor will work with them to resolve problems, as well as provide training to improve the applicant's e-Rate knowledge. Applicants are advised to keep all documentation for five years from the last date a service is received, and they also must apply this 5-year rule to any document from a prior year that supports the current funding year.