Schools getting broadband

COEUR d’ALENE — Gov. Butch Otter and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna announced Tuesday that 12 Idaho schools — from Bonners Ferry to Bear Lake — are the first to be connected to the new Idaho Education Network.

The IEN is a statewide effort to provide state-of-the-art broadband Internet access to every Idaho student. The Idaho Legislature appropriated almost $3 million in federal stimulus funding to finance the IEN’s Phase One. That already has resulted in high-speed connectivity for a dozen schools effective Sept. 1. 

The IEN eventually will extend to all Idaho public schools, providing high-end content not only for schoolchildren but continuing education and workforce development opportunities for adult members of those communities.

“From the first days of my administration, one of my highest priorities has been on closing the ‘digital divide’ that separates our rural from our more urban schools in terms of the learning opportunities that are available to students,” Otter said. “Where you live in Idaho shouldn’t be a factor in the quality of education you receive. Today is a milestone toward the goal that Superintendent Luna and I share of providing a truly world-class education for every Idaho student — and putting a ‘community college’ in every Idaho town.”

The first schools connected to the IEN are Bonners Ferry, Sandpoint, Prairie, Grangeville, Emmett, Weiser, Jerome, Shoshone, Bear Lake, West Side, Clark County School, and Salmon high schools. All Idaho high schools are expected to be connected in the two years.