FCC reviews E-Rate as more than 96,000 schools apply each year

High-poverty districts can save up to 90% on broadband costs

The Federal Communications Commission is reviewing E-Rate, a federal program that provides discounts to schools for broadband service. The Associated Press reported that the review could end the program.

More than 96,000 schools apply each year for E-Rate discounts, while high-poverty districts can save up to 90% of the cost of connecting schools and classrooms to the internet.

The AP described how the district’s broadband network supports several systems at Desert Sands Unified in California’s Coachella Valley. Superintendent Kelly May-Vollmer said it is hard to name a system that is not tied to the network.

Parents can use a school-bus tracking app to check whether their child arrived on time. Cafeteria staff do not use cash registers, and kids’ meal accounts are linked to the cloud.

Grounds crews also depend on external wireless access points to maintain fields and landscaping across Desert Sands Unified’s 34 schools.

“They’re running our sprinkler systems off iPads,” May-Vollmer said.

The federal review concerns a program used by more than 96,000 schools each year and capable of providing high-poverty districts with savings of up to 90% on broadband connection costs.