Thanks to the TexTAN Booth at TCEA 2009, I joined hundreds of other teachers send letters to my legislators advocating for technology. As of 1:00 PM today, according the TexTAN organizer Jennifer Bergland, there were 2,421 TexTAN members!!

Here’s a map representing that:

Letter sent:

As an educator of 18 years in Texas public schools, a parent of two
children in public schools, I am writing today in strong support of
President Obama’s stated intention to provide substantial funding for
education technology as part of the forthcoming economic recovery package.
In a recent speech, he declared: “To give our children the chance to live
out their dreams in a world that’s never been more competitive, we will
equip tens of thousands of schools, community colleges, and public
universities with 21st century classrooms, labs, and libraries. We’ll
provide new computers, new technology, and new training for teachers so
that students in Chicago and Boston can compete with kids in Beijing for
the high-tech, high-wage jobs of the future.” I urge you to work with
President Obama to implement these goals.

If the forthcoming economic recovery plan includes substantial education
technology funding, I believe it will afford states and communities an
opportunity to modernize their classrooms, create education and related IT
jobs, foster a more college and workforce ready student population, and
provide economic growth in a technology sector that will be better able to
serve the growing global education market. A $9.8 billion investment in
education technology would allow all Title I k-12 schools to transform
their classrooms into technology-rich environments, provide appropriate
professional development and IT support to their educators, and prepare
our students for the 21st Century job market.

To ensure that a major education technology investment can be distributed
fairly, efficiently and effectively, I recommend that education technology
dollars provided through this economic recovery package be disseminated
through the existing NCLB II-D, Enhancing Education through Technology
(EETT) program. Dedicated education technology funding will ensure that
President Elect Obama’s vision for modernizing our classrooms is
implemented appropriately and promptly.

I also urge you to consider including additional funding for school
broadband in the economic recovery package. A dramatic increase in school
technology engendered by increased federal education technology funding
will invariably necessitate enhanced bandwidth in school buildings.
Additionally, recent studies show that a $10 billion investment in
broadband would yield nearly 500,000 new jobs, a significant boost to our
nation’s employment. For these reasons, I recommend that Congress approve
federal support for school broadband as part of the economic recovery
package.

This package is both a stimulus and also a true investment in the
education of our students to ensure that they are prepared for the 21st
Century.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Miguel Guhlin

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