Did you know that every public library is eligible to receive E-rate money? At the very least, by filling out a few forms you can get as much as a 90% discount on your telephone bills! The telephone companies and the federal government collect this money from every telephone customer, but unless you ask for it, it sits in Washington. PLEASE TAKE THE MONEY!
OPLIN and the State Library will be hosting two different workshops on E-rate for public libraries this fall, on November 4 (on E-rate Form 470) and December 12 (Form 471). The workshops will be presented by Lorrie Germann, Educational Technology Consultant at eTech Ohio. These will be the _only_ dates for the workshops this year; however, they will be available in several locations by videoconference.
Workshop participants are generally expected to sign up for both sessions.
The first session, on Tuesday November 4, will provide an overview of the E-rate process, specific requirements for the upcoming funding year and a line-by-line review of the Form 470, the first step in the application process. This session will start at 9:30 and end about 3:00.
The second session, on Friday December 12, will offer a line-by-line review and analysis of the filing of the Form 471, the actual application for discounts on eligible services. This session will start at 9:30 and end about noon.
Lorrie will be presenting the workshop in person at the State Library, but it will also be available by videoconference in Bowling Green, Caldwell, Wellston, and three more sites yet to be determined (one in southwest Ohio, two in northeast Ohio). I will post another notice once the last three videoconference sites have been determined.
To register for the workshops, go to the C.E. Events Calendar at http://host6.evanced.info/ohio/evanced/eventcalendar.asp. NOTE ALSO that this year Lorrie and other staff at eTech Ohio will be available to answer individual questions from public libraries about E-rate issues. You may contact Lorrie at 614-485-6050 or Lorrie.Germann@etech.ohio.gov.