EDUCAUSE | Federal Funding for IT

Trail-Blazing the Cyberinfrastructure Road

elilly — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:36:03 -0500

The co-chairs of the EDUCAUSE Campus Cyberinfrastructure (CCI) Working Group provide background on the group and its acitivities in the area of higher education cyberinfrastructure.

IT and Campaign '08

drupal — Thu, 22 May 2008 10:23:03 -0500

While Washington concentrates on the IT legislative and regulatory issues at hand, the presidential candidates are being queried about their positions and the Democratic and Republican National Committees are focusing on crafting platforms to be adopted during their summer conventions. Policy experts from some of the leading IT policy associations and think tanks will share their insights on how the Democratic and Republican parties and their respective presidential nominees will integrate IT issues into the 2008 presidential campaign.

Driving Security Improvements in Existing Technologies and Emerging Systems

drupal — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:38:30 -0600

The Directorate for Science and Technology (S&T) is the primary research and development arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. S&T uses the Homeland Security Advanced Research Project Agency to engage industry, academia, government, and other sectors in innovative research and development, rapid prototyping, and technology transfer to meet operational needs. Academic organizations such as the Computing Research Association and industry groups have called for increased funding for cybersecurity R&D. This keynote will describe what the S&T directorate is doing to drive, discover, and deliver new solutions to address cybervulnerabilities as well as what research areas it considers as priorities in the near term.

IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice - Corporate Edition

ckeller — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:55:01 -0600

This ECAR research study was designed in collaboration with the Association of American Medical Colleges to analyze the practices and perspectives of IT organizations that support the academic research enterprise in medical schools and colleges. As the potential of biotechnology, proteomics, informatics, computational genomics, and other IT-intensive disciplines continue to offer breakthroughs in medicine, research in these fields requires greater and higher-level technology resources for infrastructure as well as IT support and services. The study is based on the results of a web-based survey sent to 125 medical schools and colleges in the United States, as well as qualitative interviews with leaders at 10 institutions. Respondents to the survey were predominantly chief information officers or other top administrators from 50 medical institutions, yielding a response rate of 39.7 percent. The findings contained in this report echo the results of the ECAR 2006 study, IT Engagement in Research: A Baseline Study, illustrating that the role and importance of IT in research is growing, while funding and budget decisions remain difficult. A non-profit edition is available here.

Citation for This Work: Nelson, Mark R. IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice (Research Study, Vol. 1). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice Roadmap

ckeller — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:27:19 -0600

This ECAR roadmap synthesizes the important issues and recommended actions drawn from the 2008 study, IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice, by Mark R. Nelson. This ECAR research study was designed in collaboration with the Association of American Medical Colleges to analyze the practices and perspectives of IT organizations that support the academic research enterprise in medical schools and colleges. As the potential of biotechnology, proteomics, informatics, computational genomics, and other IT-intensive disciplines continue to offer breakthroughs in medicine, research in these fields requires greater and higher-level technology resources for infrastructure as well as IT support and services. The study is based on the results of a January 2007 web-based survey sent to 125 medical schools and colleges in the United States, as well as qualitative interviews with leaders at 10 institutions.

How to Cite This Work: Albrecht, Bob, and Judith A. Pirani. "IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice Roadmap" (Roadmap). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2005, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice

ckeller — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 11:11:35 -0600

Citation for This Work: Nelson, Mark R. IT Engagement in Research: A View of Medical School Practice (Research Study, Vol. 1). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21st Century Discovery

drupal — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 13:56:44 -0500

"NSF's Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21st Century Discovery is presented in a set of interrelated
chapters that describe the various challenges and opportunities in the complementary areas that
make up cyberinfrastructure: computing systems,data, information resources, networking, digitally
enabled-sensors, instruments, virtual organizations, and observatories, along with an interoperable
suite of software services and tools."

The 110th Congress: An Eye to the Past and the Future

drupal — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 16:28:34 -0600

The author reviews the legislative efforts of the 110th congress while keeping an eye on the future.

Feds Charge Former Telecom Exec With E-Rate Fraud

drupal — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 12:26:55 -0600

A federal grand jury has indicted Rafael G. Adame on nine counts of wire fraud in connection with what federal authorities said was a practice of defrauding the E-Rate program. Operated by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) on behalf of the FCC, the E-Rate Program provides funds to extend Internet access to schools and libraries. Since it was implemented 10 years ago, the program has been the subject of numerous allegations of fraud and misuse. Adame is the 14th person to be charged in E-Rate fraud cases, and 12 companies have also been charged. Adame was the owner of ATE Tel, a telecommunications company in Texas that provided goods and services to the Weslaco Independent School District. Authorities said that Adame submitted fraudulent invoices totaling more than $140,000. Assistant Attorney General Thomas O. Barnett said, "Committing fraud upon the E-Rate program harms underprivileged school districts."

Improving Access to Research Results: Six Points

drupal — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 11:34:34 -0600

These are the closing comments by speaker Clifford Lynch at a forum on publicly funded research. The forum, "Improving Access to Publicly Funded Research: Policy Issues and Practical Strategies", was held October 20, 2006 in Washington, DC.

ISP Snooping Gaining Support

drupal — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 16:51:05 -0500

"The explosive idea of forcing Internet providers to record their customers' online activities for future police access is gaining ground in state capitols and in Washington, D.C."

U. of Phoenix Loses in U.S. Court

drupal — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 11:25:33 -0500

The case involves a provision in the Higher Education Act that prohibits colleges from offering bonuses or other incentive pay to admissions officers or recruiters based on specific enrollment goals, to discourage them from giving officials extra incentive to bring in any potential student, regardless of academic ability.

Transformations of the Research Enterprise

drupal — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 12:16:12 -0500

Political, economic, and intellectual developments have shaped and continue to transform the U.S. agenda for research and information technology, resulting in key computational, networking, and data challenges for tomorrow.

FY 2007 Federal Budget Analysis

mpasiewicz — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 09:17:00 -0600

Blogger Andy Carvin offers some thoughts on federal budget lines related to educational technology.
http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/02/a_quick_look_at_the.html

Katrina-Relief Bill in Senate Would Give Online Colleges Long-Sought Break on Student-Aid Rule

drupal — Tue, 20 Sep 2005 10:05:45 -0500

"A bill to provide education relief to victims of Hurricane Katrina would temporarily remove a controversial distance-education regulation, allowing some students attending virtual colleges to receive federal financial aid for the first time."

Feds Fund VoIP Tapping Research

drupal — Thu, 11 Aug 2005 12:28:04 -0500

The National Science Foundation has given researchers at George Mason University a grant of more than $300,000 to develop a technology that would allow limited eavesdropping on voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) phone calls. Xinyuan Wang, assistant professor of software engineering at the university and principal investigator, has shown that his method can successfully trace VoIP users without their knowledge. As VoIP service has become more common, law enforcement officials have pointed out that they have no way of tapping such phone calls, potentially resulting in a "haven for criminals, terrorists, and spies," according to the Federal Communications Commission. The technology that Wang and his colleagues are working on does not decrypt conversations. It tracks packets as they move from one user to another, allowing authorities to see who is talking to whom, but not to see what they are saying. Wang conceded that "from a privacy advocate's point of view, this is an attack on privacy," but he also noted that "from a police point of view, this is a way to trace things."

Tales of Fraud, Abuse in School E-Rate Program

drupal — Mon, 28 Mar 2005 15:05:20 -0600

A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) puts forth renewed charges of fraud and mismanagement in the federal government's E-rate Program, designed to subsidize technology to connect U.S.schools and libraries to the Internet. The report was prepared for the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which is conducting its own investigation. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tex.), chairman of the committee, blamed the Federal Communications Commission, unscrupulous vendors, and certain schools for the problems in the program, which he said was a "disgrace." Although investigations have led to a handful of penalties for abuse in the program, the report advises increased efforts to clean it up. Among the report's recommendations are calls to "comprehensively determine which federal accountability requirements apply to E-rate; establish meaningful E-rate performance goals and measures; and take steps to reduce its backlog of appeals."

Congress Fails to Act on Copyright Bills

drupal — Tue, 14 Dec 2004 10:48:26 -0600

Controversial bills proposed new penalties (including jail time) for copyright violations.

E-rate funding restarts, but crisis continues

drupal — Mon, 29 Nov 2004 11:08:49 -0600

Following a nearly four-month suspension of E-Rate Program payments, the federal organization that administers such payments has restarted issuing letters promising funds to schools and libraries around the country. The E-Rate Program has come under intense scrutiny for alleged fraud and abuse, and in August, government officials halted payments under the program based on revised accounting requirements. A number of school systems and libraries depend on E-Rate funds to provide basic computer services and connectivity, and at least one school district in Alaska shut down Internet service this summer because of concern that the E-Rate funds would end. Under the new rules, E-Rate letters cannot be sent until the funds they promise have been collected. The former system allowed letters to be sent after applications were approved, prior to collection of the funds, because the monies would not be disbursed for 12 to 18 months. The new regulation has resulted in a logjam in sending commitment letters and funds. Efforts in Congress have thus far failed to streamline the process.

IT Network Development and Security: Who’s Going to Pay for This?

drupal — Tue, 13 May 2003 16:49:47 -0500

Higher education computer networks have been called the Achilles? heel of the nation's cyberinfrastructure. Although several recent reports cite the need for government investment in network development and cybersecurity research, the reality of dwindling federal and state budgets could mean that colleges and universities are on their own in shielding their networks from potential cyberhijacking. Learn about federal initiatives and opportunities for institutions and state governments to shore up their networks.

Hearing on Tiny Technology Attracts Scientists Favoring Big Spending Increases

drupal — Thu, 20 Mar 2003 12:01:48 -0600

Technology experts asked Congress recently to support increased federal exploration into nanotechnology so that university researchers can develop computers and databases that are smaller and faster, and that store more information.

Federal Investment in Advanced Networking and IT

drupal — Mon, 03 Mar 2003 09:18:44 -0600

Issue brief written on Federal Funding for Information Technology by Net@EDU.

Revolutionizing Science and Engineering Through Cyberinfrastructure

drupal — Tue, 04 Feb 2003 09:15:18 -0600

This report was written by the NSF blue-ribbon committee chaired by Dan Atkins, it is on cyberinfrastructure to support science.

Same Issues, Different Packaging

drupal — Mon, 06 Jan 2003 16:52:54 -0600

The authors discuss the reintroduction of previous legislation into the current congress. These legislative issues include copyright and the DMCA, Cyber Security and the funding of NSF IT research.

Digital Security in a Free Society

drupal — Thu, 12 Sep 2002 11:44:12 -0500

The author talks about Dartmouth College and its involvement with the Department of Justice and the Institute for Security Technology Studies (ISTS).

The Politics of Science - Jack Gibbons Interview

drupal — Fri, 28 Jun 2002 17:17:24 -0500

Will R&D survive the budget battle? It should, says Assistant to the President for Science and Technology, Jack Gibbons.

IT Research is Gets Bushwacked!

drupal — Wed, 18 Jul 2001 15:59:37 -0500

The author discusses recent federal budget reductions in IT and Science fields.

Washington Update Presentation and Discussion

drupal — Wed, 02 May 2001 11:12:28 -0500

An update on what the new presidential administration is up to in terms of network funding and planning.