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This chapter reports on sources of support for the acquisition and use of advanced telecommunications in private schools. Specifically, the survey asked about various sources that support advanced telecommunications during the 1998-99 school year and the type of support provided. A major focus of this chapter is the extent to which schools participated in the E-rate (Education-rate) program, designed to provide the nation's public and private schools and libraries access to affordable telecommunications and advanced digital technologies (U.S. Department of Education 2000e). It is important to note that Erate participation is difficult to measure. For instance, some schools may not be aware that they "applied" for E-rate discounts because the application had been completed by some organization or agency on behalf of the school (e.g., the diocese for Catholic schools). Thus, some private schools may not know that they were approved for E-rate funding. At the time of the survey, many of the schools indicated that they were not yet informed about such funding (some of these schools were late in submitting their E-rate applications).
Schools were asked whether various programs, organizations, or individuals (apart from sources covered under the school budget) supported advanced telecommunications in the school. The extent of such support, however, was not investigated. Support could include funds, hardware, software, technical assistance, training, or network access, and it could come from:
The proportion of private schools indicating that federal programs supported advanced telecommunications during the 1998-99 school year ranged from 15 percent for Title VI of ESEA to 2 percent from the Technology Innovation Challenge Grant program (tables 17 and B-32). Thirteen percent of private schools indicated support for advanced telecommunications from the E-rate program under the Telecommunications Act, 3 percent from the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund, and 10 percent from other state or federal government programs. Advanced telecommunications in private schools was also supported by business or industry (22 percent), the central school administration or diocese (14 percent), colleges or universities (3 percent), and other community or nonprofit organizations (9 percent). The most frequently cited source of support for advanced telecommunications in private schools was parents or other community members (57 percent). Schools also reported support for advanced telecommunications from teachers (21 percent) and students (9 percent).
Support for advanced telecommunications in private schools took the form of funds (55 percent), hardware (49 percent), software (44 percent), technical assistance (37 percent), training (28 percent), and network access (19 percent; tables 18 and B-33). Catholic schools were more likely than other religious or nonsectarian schools to report support for advanced telecommunications in the form of funds, hardware, training, and technical assistance. For example, 73 percent of Catholic schools compared with 46 percent of other religious schools and 47 percent of nonsectarian schools indicated support for advanced telecommunications from programs, organizations, or individuals. Internet-connected schools were more likely than schools without access to report support for advanced telecommunications with hardware, software, technical assistance, training, and network access. Moreover, large and medium-sized schools were more likely than small schools to indicate that various sources supported advanced telecommunications with funds, hardware, and technical assistance.
The Schools and Libraries Universal Service Fund, better known as the E-rate (Education rate) program, is designed to make telecommunications services more affordable to all eligible schools and libraries. The program, legislated as part of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, provides discounts based on the percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch and whether the school is located in an urban or rural area. These discounts can range from 20 percent to 90 percent and can be used for internal connections, telecommunications services, and Internet access (U.S. Department of Education 1999b).
Much of the recent progress made in Internet access in public schools has been attributed to Erate funds made available in 1998 (U.S. Department of Education 1999b). In the case of private schools, 13 percent reported that they received discounts from the E-rate program during the 1998-99 school year (see table 17). To explore the extent to which private schools participated in this program, the survey asked whether schools had applied for the 1998 E-rate program. Schools that applied were asked about the discount levels for which they qualified, and schools that did not apply were asked about their reasons for not applying. All private schools were also asked whether they had applied or intended to apply for the 1999-2000 E-rate program.
About one-fourth of all private schools (24 percent) applied for the 1998 E-rate program (figure 11 and table B-34).11 Catholic schools were considerably more likely than other religious or nonsectarian schools to apply for the E-rate discount (51 percent versus 9 and 15 percent, respectively). Elementary and secondary schools were more likely to submit Erate applications than combined schools (27 and 34 percent versus 13 percent, respectively), and the likelihood of private schools applying for the discount increased with enrollment size. Moreover, a considerably higher proportion (31 percent) of schools with Internet access submitted E-rate applications compared with schools without access (12 percent).
Of the 76 percent of schools that did not apply for the E-rate discount, half said that they did not apply because they had not heard of the program (tables 19 and B-35).12 Twenty-four percent of schools reported they did not apply because the application process was too complicated, 10 percent did not apply because the discount was too low, and 8 percent did not submit an application because they were opposed to the program in principle. Twenty three percent of schools did not apply for other reasons, including not being interested in the program, not qualifying for the program because of a large endowment or being a for-profit private school, not having technology or a technology plan in place, and time constraints.
The proportion of schools reporting that they had never heard of the E-rate program differed somewhat by affiliation and instructional level (tables 19 and B-35). Other religious and nonsectarian schools were more likely than Catholic schools to report that they had never heard of the program (59 and 60 percent versus 15 percent, respectively). Combined schools were more likely than elementary or secondary schools to indicate that they had not heard of the program (68 percent compared with 42 and 45 percent, respectively). Moreover, the proportion of schools not knowing about the E-rate program varied by enrollment size, with smaller schools more likely to report that they had not heard about the program. Finally, a higher proportion of schools without Internet access than those with access had not heard about the program.
The E-rate program gives priority to schools with relatively high proportions of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch and those that are located in rural areas, with discounts ranging from 20 to 90 percent.13 of the private schools reporting that they applied for the 1998 E-rate discount program, 18 percent indicated that they qualified for a 20 percent discount, 44 percent qualified for a 40 percent discount, an additional 15 percent were eligible for a 50 percent discount, and 22 percent qualified for a discount of 60 to 90 percent (figure 12 and table B-36).
Private schools were asked if they had applied or planned to apply for the 1999-2000 E-rate discount program. Thirty-nine percent of private schools said that they had applied or planned to apply. A majority (57 percent) said they were not going to apply for the discount, and the remaining 4 percent were undecided (tables 20 and B-37).
The proportion of schools that applied or planned to apply for the 1999-2000 E-rate discount differed by affiliation and instructional level (tables 20 and B-37). Catholic schools were more likely than nonsectarian schools to apply or plan to apply for the 1999-2000 E-rate discount (69 versus 35 percent), and other religious schools (18 percent) were least likely to. Similarly, secondary schools were more likely than elementary schools to submit or plan to submit E-rate applications (56 versus 43 percent), and combined schools (23 percent) were the least likely to. Moreover, a higher proportion of large and medium-sized schools (57 and 55 percent, respectively) than small schools (18 percent) applied or planned to apply for the E-rate discounts. Finally, schools with Internet access were more likely than those without this technology to apply or plan to apply for E-rate discounts (50 versus 18 percent).
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