FOR CoSN:
Ted Richane
The Fratelli Group
202.822.9491
trichane@fratelli.com

FOR IBM:
Colleen Stroh
703.244.5467
CStroh@brodeur.com

Washington, DC (June 19, 2006) – Today, the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) launched a new Web site – www.k12opentech.org – as part of its K-12 Open Technologies Leadership Initiative. The site and the broader initiative are co-sponsored by IBM and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Developed to raise awareness among K-12 education technology decision makers about the use of open technologies, the site is a resource providing information on the benefits of open technologies in the K-12 environment. It also supports leadership with articles like “Five questions you should ask before adopting open technologies.”

“While open technologies have the potential to transform the way school districts manage information and educate students, many educators are not aware of the value open technologies can provide,” said Shaun Taylor, Project Director for CoSN’s K-12 Open Technology Initiative. “This site is a tool for education leaders, decision and policymakers to help them better understand how open technologies can be implemented to make a positive impact on students’ learning, increase efficiency and potentially produce cost savings for school districts.”

“Open technologies” include open source software, open standards and hardware. This includes everything from operating systems and applications to interoperability standards that allow software systems to exchange data. These technologies are publicly available with fewer licensing restrictions than traditional proprietary sources. This means that educators can download server and desktop programs, databases, text, photos, and lesson plans, among other resources, at low or no cost.

"One of the greatest challenges in education is providing students with the technology skills, tools and resources they need to succeed in today's global marketplace,” said Jim Klein, Director Information Services & Technology at the Saugus Union School District in California. “Open technologies provide educators with a means to provide the latest technical innovations and resources to every classroom in a cost-effective way, and to better align education with the culture of open collaboration that is so pervasive in modern society."

Globally, open technologies are being used to enhance the educational experience for students and educators, while affording school districts flexibility and greater efficiency in technology procurement and spending.

“Around the world, we’re increasingly seeing a trend of open technologies being used as catalysts for innovation in K-12 education. U.S. educators have an enormous opportunity to leverage these technologies to increase access to education, streamline data storage and further spur ingenuity,” said Sean Rush, General Manager, IBM Global Education Industry. “As a global leader in technology, IBM is honored to partner with CoSN on this initiative because we believe in the value open technologies can provide and we welcome the opportunity to help educators better understand these resources.”

The new Web site (www.k12opentech.org) explores the potential benefits of open technologies, including cost savings, data integrity and interoperability, flexibility, stability, increased access to information, and greater student collaboration, among others. The site provides articles, FAQs, news and extensive resource links to assist school technologists. In September, the initiative will release the first in a series of Open Technologies Implementation Studies to help educators understand the issues around implementing these technologies in a K-12 environment.

“Over the past five years, the Hewlett Foundation has maintained its commitment to encouraging the use of open technologies and we are appreciative of CoSN’s leadership on the K-12 initiative,” said Marshall S. Smith, Program Director for Education. “The entire effort, including the new Web site, is vital to helping educators, school district administrators and technologists learn more about how open source technologies can generate additional gains in education.”

This initiative was launched in March at CoSN’s International Symposium, held at the World Bank in Washington, DC. At that event, nearly 150 educational ICT leaders from over two dozen countries participated in a forum on Open Technologies.

About the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN)

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is the country’s premier voice in education technology leadership with a mission to serve as the national organization for K-12 technology leaders who use technology strategically to ultimately improve teaching and learning. CoSN provides products and services to support and nurture leadership development, advocacy, coalition building, and awareness of emerging technologies.

CoSN leadership initiatives include: Accessible Technologies for All Students (www.accessibletech4all.org); Cyber Security for the Digital District (www.securedistrict.org); Data-Driven Decision Making (www.3d2know.org); Safeguarding the Wired Schoolhouse (www.safewiredschools.org); Taking Total Cost of Ownership to the Classroom (www.classroomtco.org); and the development of the Council of School District Chief Technology Officers (CTO Council).

CoSN’s membership includes a unique blend of education and technology leaders, policy makers, and influencers from the public and private sectors. Our audience includes key technology leaders (often called Chief Technology Officers—CTOs) in leading-edge states and districts, policy makers, private sector leaders, as well as those technology leaders who wish to accelerate their districts’ or states’ systemic technology use. Visit www.cosn.org or phone 866.267.8747 to find out more about CoSN’s programs and activities supporting leadership development to ensure that information technology has a direct and positive impact on student learning in elementary and secondary schools.

About IBM

IBM, the world’s largest consulting, services and information technology company, helps improve education throughout the world. For more than 80 years, IBM people and solutions have been helping schools and institutions of higher education innovate for greater achievement, productivity and accountability. Working with business partners, IBM draws on its world-class portfolio of services, software and hardware solutions to help clients realize the full potential of their technology investments. For information about IBM’s solutions and experience in education, please visit: www.ibm.com/education. For information on partnering with IBM, please visit: www.ibm.com/partnerworld.

About the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, www.hewlett.org, has been making grants since 1966 to help solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. The Foundation concentrates its resources on activities in education, environment, global development, performing arts, philanthropy, population, and makes grants to support disadvantaged communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. A full list of all the Hewlett Foundation’s grants can be found at www.hewlett.org/grants.