Press Releases
02/27/2018
Gov. Malloy Encourages School Districts to Take Advantage of Connected Learning Initiatives
(HARTFORD, CT) - Governor Dannel P. Malloy today encouraged school districts to take advantage of the Connecting Connecticut Classrooms (C3 Initiative) program, a partnership among his office, the Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology (CET), and EducationSuperHighway, a national nonprofit focused on upgrading internet access in every public school classroom in America. The program provides free consulting, training, and technical support to Connecticut districts, enabling them to take full advantage of federal funds to build state-of-the-art networks that leverage today's educational technology resources.“This partnership helps equip school leaders with purchasing, technical, and engineering insights to leverage technology to deepen and scale learning for all students,” Governor Malloy said. “The C3 program builds on my administration’s prior commitment to support 21st Century teaching and learning.”
Between the 2014 and 2015 school years, the Governor committed more than $30M in technology grants that public schools used for technology initiatives, including network expansions and the purchase of computers for students.
“We want to ensure that all of our students graduate equipped with the skills to compete in the technology-driven global workforce but this requires having the state-of-the-art network capacity in our schools required to handle the effective use of educational technology,” State Department of Education Commissioner Dianna Wentzell said. “The C3 initiative helps us achieve that goal by greatly supporting the integration of education technology to enhance teaching and learning experiences in classrooms across the state.”
Connecticut is already a leader in school technology, becoming the one of the first states to provide high-speed broadband to every district through the Connecticut Education Network (CEN), which connects schools, libraries, towns, and other organizations across the state. The C3 initiative addresses the next phase of networking, ensuring connections within schools, which requires procurement and technical expertise. Purchasing assistance through the program will also help Connecticut schools take advantage of up to $24M in available funds from the federal E-rate program to offset connection costs.
“Building technology skills through classroom experiences is of great importance as our students become digital citizens,” CET Chairman Mark Raymond said. “While CEN brings next generation networks to our schools, the C3 program takes this access over the critical final yards to the student.”
“We are excited to continue the great progress that Connecticut has made in closing the classroom connectivity gap,” EducationSuperHighway Founder and CEO Evan Marwell said. “Thanks to Governor Malloy’s leadership, Connecticut students will have the broadband access they need for college and career readiness.”
The EducationSuperHighway team is now engaging with districts across the state to provide free assistance in the areas of network design and procurement through the E-rate program. School leaders are encouraged to take advantage of these free services, especially with the upcoming E-rate submission deadline of Thursday, March 22, 2018.
To learn more about this initiative, districts can read the C3 Initiative Program Overview and contact Lindie Martin at Lindie.Martin@educationsuperhighway.org or (415) 738-8306.
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