HOUSTON – Clear Creek Independent School District recently received notice that the Bayside Community Collaborative was awarded a $20,000 planning grant to develop a community network plan to serve the Galveston Bay communities south of the Clear Creek channel, specifically Kemah, Clear Lake Shores, and Bacliff. The Texas Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund (www.tifb.state.tx.us) awarded the grant to Clear Creek Independent School District as the TIF-eligible entity. Members of The Bayside Community Collaborative include CCISD, Stewart Elementary School, Technology For All-Houston, Technology For All National Network, Bay Area Christian Services, Interfaith Caring Ministries and the City of Kemah. Other businesses and community groups are encouraged to support this effort. CCISD will manage the grant and Technology For All-Houston will direct the planning grant activities.

The planning process will develop a community network plan that promotes a stronger community and enhances local economic development efforts. Members of the planning grant team convened recently to begin the community needs assessment and enlistment of additional community partners. The community technology plan is due in Austin on May 19, 2000. A successful evaluation of the proposed plan could result in a grant of up to $500,000 over a twenty-four month period to implement the plan.

The planning grant provides time to develop a technology plan for a community network that will facilitate:

Equitable access to information -- this includes public access points distributed throughout the community as well as community technology labs that are open to the public.
A broad range of enriched local content development—this will provide end users with the ability to publish, create and otherwise interact with local information.
the deployment of telecommunications applications such as listservs and web pages to the local community
Local telecommunications planning, training planning, and technology training
Collaboration between TIF-eligible and non-TIF-eligible organizations including non-profits and local businesses for resource sharing and sustainability
Sustainable Community Networks – projects will be funded, managed, and maintained after TIF funding ends
Innovative Community Networks that serve as models for other communities
WHAT DO COMMUNITY NETWORKS DO?

Community Networks typically involve multiple organizations wanting to link services, expand user access, provide common training resources, organize local content, allow users to contribute to the local content, improve community communications, promote community economic development, and include individuals traditionally unable to access advanced technologies. The TIF guidelines stipulate that the public should have access to the network at convenient points throughout the community’s geographic region.

Many communities are "wired." The purpose of this initiative is to provide communities with the resources they need to develop projects that take full advantage of the advanced infrastructure that’s been deployed. Planning grant recipients are asked to design projects that will develop services and/or applications that meet clearly defined community needs. It’s not the equipment that meets needs – it’s services and applications that make a difference in the community.

Eligible technology components under this program will likely fall into three general categories: telecommunications infrastructure, local content and information creation and maintenance, and interactive web applications. Interactive web applications are often complex in nature and maximize the underlying telecommunications infrastructure by facilitating meaningful interaction within communities. Examples of Community Network services include providing discussion listservs for the community, preparing residents for jobs with a local employer, training residents to use the Internet and advanced applications, incubating small businesses, improving delivery of local government services, providing online learning opportunities, facilitating the sharing of technical expertise, or requiring project beneficiaries to assist other community members. Innovative projects involving the development of interactive applications related to e-democracy, e-commerce, and telecommuting are encouraged.

About Technology For All -Houston

Technology For All-Houston is a 501 ( c) ( 3) non-profit organization whose mission is to create educational and economic opportunities through equitable access to technology. Since 1998 they have created over 60 community technology centers (CLC) around the greater Houston metropolitan area, including one serving the residents of Webster, Texas. These centers include after-school programs, school labs, literacy programs, and workforce development support. TFA-Houston accepts donations of hardware that is refurbished and distributed to newly created CLC’s. Donated funds are used to provide new computers along with the recycled ones.

In addition to the computers, they help network the labs to access the Internet. TFA-Houston also has a computer-training lab at its main office to help train personnel and volunteers of the affiliated labs and to support area non-profit efforts.

For More Information about the Bayside Collaborative or TFA-Houston contact:

Ms. Lois Powers, City Director

Technology For All-Houston

3403 Marquart, Suite 204

Houston, TX 77027

713-961-0012

Email: lpowers@fyi-net.com

About Technology For All National Network

Technology For All™ is a new national non-profit organization launched out of the success of the original organization, Technology for All-Houston. In addition to its involvement in the Bayside Community Collaborative (BCC), Technology For All is a member of the Community Technology Centers Network (www.ctcnet.org) and the Association for Community Networking (www.afcn.org). In 2000 TFA will be connecting local initiatives in Houston, Portland, Oregon, and 20 other US cities through a national partnership with Enron (www.enron.net) and its Enron Intelligent Network. TFA has developed program relationships with several other national organizations addressing the digital divide including HUD’s Neighborhood Networks, the YMCA of the USA and member organizations of the Community Technology Center Network. TFA is also developing relationships with local nonprofits and community organizations (like the BCC) addressing the digital divide.

Other corporations making significant contributions to the TFA initiative are FYI-Net (www.fyi-net.com), Stonebridge Technologies (www.sbti.com), InfoSource http://www.infosourcetraining.com), Microsoft (www.microsoft.com), Bedford Systems and Level 3 Communications (www.level3.com). TFA is developing relationships with several other corporate partners including broadband ISPs and hardware and software manufacturers. Technology For All can be accessed on the web at http://www.techforall.org.

For more information abut TFA contact:

Dr. Will Reed

Executive Director

Technology For All

713-652-5750, x141

1000 Louisiana, Suite 3600

Houston, Texas 77002

or email wreed@tfa-houston.org

SOURCE: Technology For All-Houston and Technology For All