Greetings, This is a friendly reminder that the Form 471 filing window is right around the corner (January 9,2012). The New Jersey State Library is still contracting with E-Rate Central for E-rate application assistance for libraries that have upgraded to EVPL switched Ethernet. The kind folks at E-Rate Central will be contacting those libraries which they previously helped in early January 2012 to discuss their Forms 471. Last year the New Jersey State Library organized information sessions provided by E-Rate Cent ...Continue Reading

Dear Colleagues, From the SLD: "The Form 471 application filing window for Funding Year 2012 will open at noon on Monday, January 9, 2012 and will close at 11:59 pm EDT on Tuesday, March 20, 2012. The filing window will be open for 72 days." For more information please visit http://www.usac.org/sl/tools/latest-news.aspx#112211 If you have any questions please let me know. Best Regards, Bob Keith Data Coordinator New Jersey State Library 185 W State Street Trenton, NJ 08625 609-278-2640x192 rkeith@PROTECTED ...Continue Reading

Dear Colleagues, E-rate season is upon us and I wanted to remind everyone that we are still contracted with E-rate Central this year. E-rate Central provides assistance with E-rate applications for libraries upgrading their bandwidth as a result of the BTOP program. If you used E-rate Central last year to help with your E-rate application then they should be in touch with you soon regarding this year\x92s application. If you have any questions about this please contact Shaneka Bratton at E-rate Central at sbratton@P ...Continue Reading

Greetings, During the last BTOP/E-rate Information Session there were some technical difficulties that made it impossible for some to hear the webinar in it's entirety. NJSL is offering a make-up date for this webinar so that all may hear what our presenters have to say on E-rate and the BTOP program. The make-up webinar is on Wednesday, March 16th, 2011 at 10:00AM. Please visit the following link to register: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/843023082 You will need either a headset or computer speakers in ...Continue Reading

Greetings, everyone, I have been asked to pass along to you a request from the ALA Washington Office regarding E-rate. ALA would like you to write a few short paragraphs describing how your library has benefited from the money you received from the E-rate program. It could be anything such as describing how increased bandwidth allowed you to have enough capacity for job seekers or research projects for children. These stories will be used in their discussions with lawmakers who are tackling Universal Service Fund ref ...Continue Reading

Please excuse cross postings. If you are not the person in your library who handles E-rate or technology please forward this email to the appropriate people. Greetings, This is a friendly reminder that the E-rate/BTOP webinar will be held Monday, February 28th, from 10:00AM to 12:00PM. If you have any questions about this year's E-rate application, the statewide Form 470 application for switched ethernet, or BTOP in general please attend this very informative webinar. The registration information for the webinar is b ...Continue Reading

Please excuse cross postings. If you are not the person in your library who handles E-rate or technology please forward this email to the appropriate person. Greetings, This is a friendly reminder that the second E-rate/BTOP information session will be held tomorrow, February 24th, from 10:00AM to 12:00PM at the Parsippany/Troy Hills Public library. If you have any questions about this year's E-rate application, the statewide Form 470 application for switched ethernet, or BTOP please attend this very informative ses ...Continue Reading

Greetings, The New Jersey State Library, with assistance from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is proud to present three training sessions on the E-rate program and how it can help your library receive discounts on telecommunications products and services. The trainings will cover E-rate basics as well as recent changes to the program that experienced filers will need to know when filing their applications. We will also discuss what part E-rate plays in the New Jersey State Library\x92s BTOP program. The thre ...Continue Reading

Greetings, By now you should know that the State Library has filed a Form 470 for hi-speed transport connectivity to the JerseyConnect network on the behalf of New Jersey libraries. We will be conducting trainings for new and existing E-rate filers to explain how this will work and details of that training will be coming to you later today. In the meantime, we would like to get an approximate number of attendees for each of the trainings that will be offered. If you or someone from your library is interested in atte ...Continue Reading

WebJunction has announced a free webinar titled "E-rate for Beginners" which is being held on February 2, 2011 from 1:00PM to 2:00PM. From the announcement: "The federal E-rate program is a great way for libraries to receive discounts on telecommunications and Internet access, but applicants are sometimes nervous about the requirements and time needed to apply for the discounts. This webinar will cover the basics of E-rate, the application process, and the timeline for applying for the program. Greg W ...Continue Reading