US/ND-2: Re: leverage vs. equity

Re: leverage vs. equity

Dennis Golombek (golombek@localnet.com)
Thu, 05 Sep 1996 19:07:09 -0500 

Bob wrote on Wednesday:
> On the other hand, if schools and libraries lack the funds to cover
> other necessary components of the infrastructure, there is a danger
> that many sites will be left with subsidized lines coming into the
> building and nothing inside to connect to them.  And it's likely that
> this situation will occur most frequently in precisely those schools
> where the need is most urgent.
> 
> How acute is this problem likely to be - and what mechanisms can we
> suggest to avoid it?  This is not an easy question, but the answers
> that we find for it may be crucial for developing a UniversalService
> subsidy which can effectively meet the needs of all students and library patrons.
> 
> Bob Carlitz
> Moderator

I believe the problem is already acute. In my district, a rustbelt
community, in which there is no longer any major industry, we are faced
with trying to keep the tax burden low along with less state aid despite
a lucrative New York State lottery that supposedly is dedicated to
education.( I don't understand the reasoning but maybe Gov. Pataki
does.) In order to keep the burden down the school board eliminated
networking capabilities but allowed in the hardware.The connection fees
are too high at this point for a poor district.

I believe there is also fear of what the networking might bring in to
the school( e.g., porn) and that the few teachers willing to use the net
can't prevent their students from obtaining such things.

My district has also been selected as one of the 65 school districts
around the country to obtain free cable modems in our schools courtesy
of a plan from the National Cable Television Association(NCTA). We won't
see this until at least Sept.'97 because the cable operator hasn't even
started running the fibre in our city. Should cable also be considered
under US? My people here in Western New York are very confused as to the
status of who will be offering what in the next year. We hear the cable
companies are testing POTS, the TELCOS are trying to deliver cable
services with video on demand and soon NYNEX will be Bell Atlantic.
There may be a reluctancy on the part of many school districts to do
anything until all this shakes down.

It is because of all the turmoil in providers that my belief is that US
should cover all bases of services,POTS through two-way
video,satellite,etc. along with wording with can cover any future tech
breakthroughs. If all bases aren't covered now it could another 50 or
more years before things get updated.

Dennis