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 Going the Distance!
Newsletter Articles:
NASA Astronauts Visit Alaska Students The visiting astronauts were John B. Herrington (Commander, USN), NASA Astronaut, and Leland D. Melvin, NASA Astronaut (Mission Specialist). Most recently, Herrington flew on STS-113 Endeavor to the International Space Station, logging over 330 hours in space, including 3 spacewalks. In the Navy, he logged over 3,800 flight hours in over 30 different types of aircraft, including two deployments to the Northern Pacific based from Naval Air Station Adak, Alaska. Melvin is currently assigned to the Robotics Branch of the Astronaut Office and will serve in technical assignments until assigned to a space flight. As co-manager of NASA's Educator Astronaut Program, he has extensive experience traveling across the country and engaging thousands of students and teachers in the excitement of space exploration. As a follow-up to the astronaut presentations, many students will also participate in live distance learning sessions with the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Rural Education Task Force Lacks Effort, Results The task force was created and announced in 2003 by then-Secretary of Education Rod Paige, and meets monthly, although the DOE will not provide a full roster of members. The panel's executive director is Tom Luna, "a former school board member in Nampa, Idaho, who had lost his bid to become the state's elected state schools chief." Advocates are hopefully that new Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings will revitalize the department's focus on rural education. "Rural education advocates want the DOE to provide more help and policy proposals on some of the toughest issues rural schools face. Those schools need help hiring and keeping excellent teachers, dealing with outdated school buildings, and meeting the academic goals mandated by the 3-year-old No Child Left Behind law, which will be up for reauthorization in Congress in 2007." In addition, there is a need for an expanded definition of rural schools and additional research on rural education topics. For more information, please visit http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2005/02/02/21rural.h24.html? LKSD Superintendent Bill Ferguson Wins Top Ten Tech-Savvy Superintendent Award In their fifth annual Tech-Savvy Superintendent Awards, "eSchool News recognizes 10 of the nation's top K-12 executives for their leadership and vision in the area of educational technology." Chosen by the editors of eSchool News with help from last year's winners, the 10 leaders were honored in a private ceremony held in conjunction with the American Association of School Administrators' annual conference in San Antonio on February 21. To read further, please visit: http://www.eschoolnews.com/resources/surveys/editorial/savvy SIIA Report To Help Schools Write RFPs The 25 page report is called "Guidelines for Improving the request for Proposal and Competitive Bidding for Educational Technology Products and Services: A Guide for Educational Agencies and Educational Technology Vendors," and aims to make the entire process more manageable, increasing the chances that schools will receive the best value for their dollars, while giving vendors better opportunities to win potential big-money contracts. "Topics range from an overview of how to prepare and submit a successful RFP, to the characteristics of a high-quality RFP document, to writing an accurate synopsis of your needs, providing instructions to potential software vendors, and accurately listing the anticipated budget and other factors determining the size and scope of the project--not to mention trying to decide which vendors might be right for the job." SIIA says it plans to add more resources to its web site for vendors and educators to use as they navigate the RFP process. The group also is planning a series of webcasts and other events intended to create awareness of its initiative. For more information, please visit: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showstoryts.cfm?Articleid=5510. Budget Proposes Elimination of $500 Million Ed-Tech Grant "Of the 48 education programs slated for elimination in 2006, none stands to affect the ed-tech community more than the loss of EETT. Still reeling from a last-minute decision by Congress to cut EETT by nearly 30 percent in 2005--from $692 million in fiscal year 2004 to $500 million this fiscal year--several ed-tech advocates nationwide condemned Bush's proposed dismantling of the program as 'short-sighted' and criticized the administration for failing to provide the leadership and funding necessary to support the use of technology in the nation's schools." Critics say the elimination of EETT and other technology-specific education programs is contrary to everything the Bush administration has said regarding technology's vital role in fostering widespread student achievement under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, touted by Bush during his State of the Union address as a top concern during his second term. Critics of the cut also point out that although the DOE's recently released National Education Technology Plan says that "technology ignites opportunities for learning, engages today's students as active learners, and prepares our nation for the demands of a global society in the 21st century," the budget calls for eliminating the central source of education funding. Please visit: Meet the SchoolAccess Team: Ray Teninty Although Ray is new to SchoolAccess, he has been with GCI since August of 2001, when he began working as a help desk technician for Integrated Technical Support. From there he progressed to the position of lead and then supervisor. While in the ITS department, he was part of a team that helped build a state of the art call center for what has become the largest technical call center and the largest internet providers in Alaska. As manager of the SchoolAccess Help Desk, Ray will be responsible for managing the operation of the SchoolAccess Help Desk, supervising Help Desk staff and coordinating customer support needs. Ray has lived in Alaska for 24 years, and has lived in Fairbanks, Juneau, Anchorage, and the MatSu Valley. Ray has been married for four years and has two children. He enjoys the outdoors as well as traditional Alaskan hobbies such as hunting, fishing, and camping. 
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