A nonprofit telecommunications provider is filling a nationwide federal funding gap created when schools and libraries lost federal funding through the E-rate program for Wi-Fi hotspots and school bus internet connectivity.
Mission Telecom is providing funds to schools for broadband for fiscal year 2025, guaranteeing connectivity at the same price they would have paid if the services were still covered by the federal E-rate program.
The offer, announced on Oct. 14, came after the Federal Communications Commission voted 2-1 on Sept. 30 to remove school bus Wi-Fi and internet hotspots from the program’s eligible list. The agency directed the Universal Service Administrative Company, which administers the E-rate program, to deny any pending funding requests for both services for fiscal year 2025.
“The problem was a lot of schools had already applied for and were expecting this money,” said Mark Colwell, the director of broadband operations for Mission Telecom. “We looked internally and said, ‘What can we do to help?’”
For fiscal year 2025, schools and districts requested $42.6 million in E-rate funding for hotspots and $15.1 million for school bus Wi-Fi, according to federal data.
Under the Mission Telecom offer, if Wi-Fi connectivity for one school bus costs $30 a month, a district that would have received an 80% subsidy from the E-rate program would only pay $6 a month. Mission Telecom would honor that discounted rate, so in this case, the nonprofit would provide school bus Wi-Fi connectivity to that district for $6 a month.
“We find it so important to keep these programs alive, to keep kids and library patrons online,” Colwell said.
Education organizations and advocates of E-rate modernization applauded Mission Telecom’s move.
“In a time when digital equity remains critical, Mission Telecom’s leadership is a vital step forward to ensure all students can stay connected and keep learning when they leave the classroom,” said Keith Krueger, the CEO of the Consortium for School Networking, which represents K-12 district technology leaders, in a statement.
The FCC reverses its E-rate expansion
Under former Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, the FCC expanded the E-rate program to allow schools to use federal funding to cover the cost of providing Wi-Fi on school buses in 2023 and internet hotspots in 2024. Rosenworcel argued the expansion would help close the “homework gap” for students who lack internet access at home or those who have long commutes to and from school.
Current FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has called the E-rate expansion unlawful in the past and had voted against the measures when he was a commissioner.
“Section 254 limits the FCC’s E-Rate authority to enhance the access of telecommunication services in ‘classrooms and libraries’—not any remote location at which people might want to learn,” Carr said in his prepared remarks on Sept. 30. “We are putting an end to the unlawful use of E-Rate funding for Wi-Fi hotspots and instead focusing on lawful ways to connect Americans while being good stewards of federal dollars.”
The FCC did not respond to Education Week’s request for comment. An automated email response explained that due to the government shutdown, the agency would not be responding to press inquiries.
What’s next for the E-rate?
As it is, districts will have to find the funds to continue these services or have to forgo them in the future. But E-rate supporters say ending the services could slow the progress schools are making toward universal internet access for all students.
“Unfortunately, families that need the most help to access broadband will likely be the most negatively affected by this policy change,” Krueger said. “School districts situated in wealthier communities will be able to provide this type of connectivity over the long term, while higher poverty areas will probably have to forgo it.”
Adequate internet access continues to be a problem for many families. While an overwhelming majority of adults in the United States (80%) say they have home broadband, divides exist by income, level of formal education, and age, according to 2024 Pew Research Center data. For instance, 57% of U.S. adults whose household income is below $30,000 say they have home broadband, compared with 95% of those whose household income is $100,000 or higher.
If the FCC is not providing a solution to this problem, Congress could pass a law to expand what services are eligible under the E-rate program, said Michael Flood, the founder and CEO of Alpine Frog, a consulting firm focused on ed tech and telecommunications. Some congressional lawmakers have proposed such bills, but so far, none has made it out of their respective committees, he said.
Congress has also started a working group to determine what the future is for the Universal Service Fund. Under the Telecommunications Act of 1996, telephone and cable companies make required contributions to the Universal Service Fund, which is used to subsidize telecommunications services for low-income households and high-cost areas. The E-rate is one of the programs under the USF.
Flood said he hopes the working group will also consider expanding the E-rate to include hotspots and school bus connectivity.
Looking ahead, states could also step up to help, Flood said. Some, such as California, already have strong universal service programs in place and provide subsidies to schools and libraries for these types of services.
But in the short term, some of the big for-profit internet and telecommunication service providers could help fill the gap, advocates said.
“Our hope is that the carriers will recognize that the need of the community is great and they can come up with more affordable rates and, maybe they’ll match what we’re doing, which is also a good outcome,” Colwell said.
But, so far, CoSN has not heard any other telecommunications service providers express interest in taking this step. “We would certainly encourage them to consider it,” Krueger said. “Every oar in the water helps.”
