The 2015-16 Broadband Infrastructure Improvement Grant (BIIG 2.0) is now open! As stated in the 2015-16 budget bill language (AB 93), first priority will go to local educational agencies that are unable to administer computer-based assessments on-site. Second priority will go to the local educational agencies that have to shut down essential operations to administer computer-based assessments at the school site, including, but not limited to, business services, email, and access to other critical online activities.

We are excited to announce a new funding opportunity for schools and districts throughout California!

As you may already know, California’s governor set aside funding to assist schools with inadequate connectivity as they prepare to administer online assessments. The process began last summer with the identification of poorly connected school sites. Bids were received to serve these sites in accordance with E-rate requirements and contracts have been awarded.

Cost Analysis for Last Mile Upgrades. In order to estimate the cost of upgrading the last mile infrastructure of all K-12 public schools in California to a specified level, a cost estimator tool was created. This tool can be used to estimate the costs of external transport circuits and associated core equipment. The tool consists of an array of formulas that allow for calculations to be carried out in spreadsheet format to generate cost values based on input numerical values of key assumptions as described below.

The supplement to our report released February 27, 2015, Connecting California’s Children 2015: Findings and Observations is being released today. The report can be found at this link.

In response to Governor Brown’s direction and funding to address critical infrastructure needs, the California Department of Education has released information on the Broadband Infrastructure Improvement Grant program (BIIG). Click here for a link to the announcement.