Sec. 10-262n. Grants to improve the use of technology in schools.
Sec. 10-262n. Grants to improve the use of technology in schools. (a) The Department of Education shall administer, within available appropriations, a program to
assist local and regional school districts to improve the use of information technology
in their schools. Under the program, the department shall provide grants to local and
regional boards of education and may provide other forms of assistance such as the
provision of purchasing under state-wide contracts with the Department of Information
Technology. Grant funds may be used for: (1) Wiring and wireless connectivity, (2) the
purchase or leasing of computers, and (3) interactive software and the purchase and
installation of software filters.
(b) Local and regional boards of education shall apply to the department for grants
at such time and in such manner as the Commissioner of Education prescribes. In order
to be eligible for a grant, a local or regional board of education shall: (1) Have a technology plan that was developed or updated during the three-year period preceding the date
of application for grant funds and, once the Commission for Educational Technology
develops the long-range plan required pursuant to subdivision (5) of subsection (c) of
section 4d-80, the local technology plan shall be consistent with such long-range plan,
(2) provide that each school and superintendent's office be able to communicate with
the Department of Education using the Internet, (3) present evidence that it has applied
or will apply for a grant from the federal Universal Service Fund, and (4) submit a plan
for the expenditure of grant funds in accordance with subsection (c) of this section.
(c) The plan for the expenditure of grant funds shall: (1) Establish clear goals and
a strategy for using telecommunications and information technology to improve education, (2) include a professional development strategy to ensure that teachers know how
to use the new technologies to improve education, (3) include an assessment of the
telecommunication services, hardware, software and other services that will be needed
to improve education, (4) provide for a sufficient budget to acquire and maintain the
hardware, software, professional development and other services that will be needed to
implement the strategy for improved education, (5) include an evaluation process that
enables the school to monitor progress towards the specified goals and make adjustments
in response to new developments and opportunities as they arise. The plan developed
pursuant to this subsection shall be submitted to the department with the grant application.
(d) (1) Each school district shall be eligible to receive a minimum grant under the
program as follows: (A) Each school district in towns ranked from one to one hundred
thirteen, inclusive, when all towns are ranked in ascending order from one to one hundred
sixty-nine based on town wealth, as defined in subdivision (26) of section 10-262f, shall
be eligible to receive a minimum grant in the amount of thirty thousand dollars, and (B)
each school district in towns ranked from one hundred fourteen to one hundred sixty-nine, inclusive, when all towns are ranked in ascending order from one to one hundred
sixty-nine based on town wealth, as defined in subdivision (26) of section 10-262f, shall
be eligible to receive a minimum grant under the program in the amount of fifteen
thousand dollars. Such minimum grant may be increased for certain school districts
pursuant to subdivision (4) of this subsection. (2) The department shall use (A) one
hundred thousand dollars of the amount appropriated for purposes of this section for
the vocational-technical schools for wiring and other technology initiatives at such
schools, and (B) fifty thousand dollars of the amount appropriated for purposes of this
section for technology grants to state charter schools. The amount of the grant each state
charter school receives shall be based on the number of students enrolled in the school.
(3) The department may retain up to one per cent of the amount appropriated for purposes
of this section for coordination, program evaluation and administration. (4) Any remaining appropriated funds shall be used to increase the grants to (A) priority school
districts pursuant to section 10-266p, (B) transitional school districts pursuant to section
10-263c, and (C) school districts in towns ranked from one to eighty-five, inclusive,
when all towns are ranked in ascending order from one to one hundred sixty-nine based
on town wealth, as defined in section 10-262f. Each such school district shall receive
an amount based on the ratio of the number of resident students, as defined in said section
10-262f, in such school district to the total number of resident students in all such school
districts.
(e) Each school district that participates in an interdistrict magnet school or in an
endowed academy shall provide funds from the grant it receives pursuant to this section
to such interdistrict magnet school or endowed academy in an amount equal to the per
student amount of such grant multiplied by the number of students from such district
enrolled in the interdistrict magnet school or endowed academy.
(f) Any unexpended funds appropriated for purposes of this section shall not lapse at
the end of the fiscal year but shall be available for expenditure during the next fiscal year.
(g) No funds received pursuant to this section shall be used to supplant federal, state
or local funding to the local or regional board of education for technology.
(h) Expenditure reports shall be filed with the Department of Education as requested
by the commissioner. School districts shall refund (1) any unexpended amounts at the
close of the program for which the grant was awarded, and (2) any amounts not expended
in accordance with the approved grant application.
(P.A. 00-187, S. 41, 75; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 00-1, S. 18, 46; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-1, S. 44, 54; P.A. 03-174, S. 10;
P.A. 04-57, S. 1.)
History: P.A. 00-187 effective July 1, 2000; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 00-1 amended Subsec. (d)(4)(C) to make a technical
change and replace towns ranked in "descending" order with towns ranked in "ascending" order, effective July 1, 2000;
June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-1 amended Subsec. (d)(1) to remove provision for minimum grant of $10,000 and to substitute
formula in Subparas. (A) and (B) for determining amount of the minimum grant, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 03-174
amended Subsec. (b)(1) by substituting a three-year period preceding the date of application for a two-year period, effective
July 1, 2003; P.A. 04-57 amended Subsec. (a)(1) by adding reference to wireless connectivity, effective July 1, 2004.