LATEST NEWS

GOOD NEWS ON THE UPCOMING DIGITAL PROMISE BUDGET

March 2008

Hard on the heels of the House's passage of the Digital Promise proposal for a National Center for Learning Science and Technology Trust Fund, comes encouraging news about the Center's proposed budget.

The House has now also included specific language supporting the Digital Promise proposal in its Concurrent Budget Resolution Report (H.Rpt. 110-543), a measure that paves the way to acquire appropriations for the Trust Fund. That Report provides the blueprint for budget negotiations coming up. Thanks to the extraordinary leadership of Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY), the principal House sponsor of our legislation, the following language was included in the House Budget Report:

"Increased funding could be used to enhance funding for the Workforce Investment Act programs, which provide important job training and assistance. It could also support training for green collar jobs in renewable energy and energy efficiency fields. Other aspects of the Democratic leadership's innovation agenda could also be supported, including math and science education, development of basic and applied research, as well as demonstrations of effective approaches to innovative learning such as those in HR 3631, the Revolutionizing Education Through Digital Investment Act of 2007." (Emphasis added)

Meanwhile, the House and Senate are currently meeting in Conference to work out the differences between their respective versions of the Higher Education Act. The House version of the Higher Ed authorization bill incorporates our legislation, H.R. 3631, which we are hopeful will appear in the final version to be passed by both Houses.

HOUSE PASSES DIGITAL PROMISE LEGISLATION

February 2008

We are thrilled to report that legislation embracing the Digital Promise proposal to establish the National Center for Learning Science and Technology Trust Fund as a pilot program (we had originally labeled the Center “DO IT”, the Digital Opportunity Investment Trust) was passed by the House of Representatives by a wide margin on Thursday evening, February 7. 

The College Opportunity and Affordability Act (HR 4137), authorizes the establishment of the Center as an independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation within the Department of Education.  Under the legislation, the Center will have its own distinguished nine member board of directors.  It will administer a trust fund for precompetitive basic and applied research to help transform education, skills training and lifelong learning for the digital age.  It will assess and research prototypes for innovative digital learning and information technologies; support pilot testing and evaluation, encourage their widespread adoption and use, and introduce digital media education programs for parents, teachers, and children to build technology literacy.   To carry out its activities the Center will award contracts and grants to colleges and universities, museums, libraries, public broadcasting entities and similar nonprofit organizations and public institutions, as well as to for-profit organizations.

The outstanding and inspired leadership of Congressman John Yarmuth of Kentucky and his staff was instrumental in making this happen.  With the help of the dedicated support of our nationwide coalition, and a host of Congressional co-sponsors, Congressman Yarmuth led the effort to bring our long-standing work to this important step toward final passage.

The House-Senate Conference on HR 4137 is expected to be completed by the end of this month, with the bill’s final passage due in early March.  To review the actual language creating the center as included in HR 4137 that was passed on February 7, click here.

A Bipartisan Task Force that Includes Three Former FCC Chairmen Has Urged Passage of Digital Promise

January 2008

A prominent bipartisan Task Force that includes three former FCC Chairmen as well as industry and educational leaders, has urged passage of Digital Promise and educational digital initiatives for children.

Founding members of the task force, organized by Common Sense Media, are former FCC Chairs Michael Powell, William Kennard and Newton Minow.  The task force urged Congress to appropriate revenues from upcoming spectrum auctions for public interest purposes, including Digital Promise, in the digital era.

"Television stations that use the public airwaves are required to serve the public interest by airing educational children's programming each week," Minow said. "We believe that part of the proceeds from auctions of the public airwaves should serve the public interest in a similar fashion to the Digital Kids Initiative and the Digital Promise project, to help parents and kids be safe and smart in the new media world, and to address new opportunities to use technology to improve learning."  Mr. Minow also serves as co-chair of the Digital Promise Project.

Other members of the Task Force include:

• Dr. Geoffrey Cowan – University Professor and Former Dean, The Annenberg School for Communication at USC; Former Director, Voice of America

• Gary E. Knell – President and CEO, Sesame Workshop

• Hon. Rebecca Q. Morgan – Former California State Senator (R); Founding President and CEO of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network

• Dr. Ramon Cortines – Deputy Mayor for Education, Youth and Families for the City of Los Angeles; Former Superintendent of Schools, New York, San Francisco

• Yogen Dalal – Technology Entrepreneur; Managing Director, Mayfield Fund

• Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel – Chair, Department of Bioethics, The Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health

• Marcy Carsey – Founding Partner, Carsey-Werner Productions

• Richard Barton – Leading Internet Entrepreneur; Founder of Expedia.com and CEO, Zillow.com

The Common Sense Media Task Force is organizing a nationwide campaign to carry out its goals.

View the full Common Sense Media press release.

Co-Chairs Newton Minow and Larry Grossman Welcome Anne Murphy as Co-Chair of the Digital Promise Project

January 2008

Digital Promise Co-Chairs Newton Minow and Larry Grossman are pleased to announce that the project's executive director Anne G. Murphy will now serve as Co-Chair of the Digital Promise Project, working alongside the two of us.  Anne has been doing a spectacular job in the effort to make Digital Promise a reality.  The triumvirate of Co-Chairs Grossman, Minow, & Murphy, together with the dedicated help of our nationwide coalition of supporters and the Federation of American Scientists in Washington, DC, look forward to achieving considerable progress in the months ahead.  
 
Anne's excellent deputy Janet Hall Werner will take over Anne's operating responsibilities for Digital Promise in DC.
 
Good luck to us all in 2008.

Best wishes for a very Happy New Year to One and All

January 2008

The First session of the110th Congress saw our Digital Promise initiative included in the Higher Ed Bill (H.R. 4147) by the House Committee on Education and Labor.  We expect the bill to go the Floor shortly after Congress reconvenes for the Second session.  Conference negotiations with the previously passed Senate bill will take place in late February with final passage expected in early March.  

Thank you for all your help; together we can pass the finish line in 2008!

H.R. 3631 Incorporated into Higher Ed Legislation

November 2007

We are happy to report that H.R. 3631, which creates a pilot program to establish the National Center for Learning Technology as a 501(c)(3) within the Dept. of Education, was included in the Higher Ed bill during mark up in the House Education and Labor Committee late Wednesday night.  The amendment, sponsored by Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) incorporates the purposes proposed in the original Digital Promise legislation and was passed by voice vote.  The final bill, H.R. 4137 was unanimously passed by the full committee Thursday morning and is expected to be considered on the House Floor shortly after the Thanksgiving recess.

America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) Endorses H.R. 3631; Legislation Continues to Draw Co-Sponsors

October 2007

America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) has endorsed H.R. 3631 and has written a letter to all Members of Congress who serve on the Public Broadcasting Caucus.  Meanwhile, H.R. 3631 continues to gather co-sponsors, with the addition of Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), and Christopher Shays (R-CT).  A full list of co-sponsors can be found under our Latest News.

Interest and Support for H.R. 3631 Continues to Spread.

October 2007

New co-sponsors include Congresswoman Lofgren (D-CA), Congressman Lipinski (D-IL) and Joseph Courtney (D-CT).

To see the complete list of supporters please view our Latest News section.

Additional Co-Sponsors Join Congressmen Yarmuth and Regula in Support of H.R. 3631

October 2007

Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) have joined the growing list of Digital Promise supporters. We urge you to express your support of this vital legislation by contacting your Representative now.

To see the complete list of supporters please view our Latest News section.

CONGRESSMEN YARMUTH (D-KY) AND REGULA (R-OH) INTRODUCE LEGISLATION TO CREATE A NATIONAL CENTER FOR LEARNING SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

September 2007

H.R. 3631 was introduced Thursday, September 20th, by Congressmen Yarmuth (D-KY), and Regula (R-OH). The Lead Sponsors were joined by Congressmen Kennedy (D-RI), Honda (D-CA), Boucher (D-VA), Markey (D-MA), Chandler (D-KY), and Gordon (D-TN). The bill will create a 501(c)3 within the Department of Education that will be dedicated to the principles outlined in our Digital Promise proposal. H.R. 3631 Bill Summary

HELP NEEDED

Please e-mail/call/write your Representatives requesting co-sponsorship of this legislation. (Dear Colleague) Time is of the essence as legislation presently being considered by the Education Committees could serve as vehicles for passage of our proposals. A sample letter, email and webpage are available to assist you in making contact as soon as possible.

Should you have any questions, please contact our Executive Director, Anne Murphy at amurphy@fas.org.

Funding Opportunity for Pioneers of Digital Learning Technologies

September 2007

Digital Promise supports HASTAC, a consortium of humanists, artists, scientists, and engineers, of leading researchers and nonprofit research institutions committed to new forms of collaboration across communities and disciplines fostered by creative uses of technology. In the spirit of innovation and collaboration, HASTAC is administering an open competition intended to appeal to pioneers of new digital learning environments.  For more information please visit HASTAC's Digital Media and Learning competition website. 

Support Builds for Push to get DO IT Started in this Congress

August 2007

Citing our lagging international standing in learning technologies investment, education and training’s lowest IT-intensity ranking and the need for a dependable revenue stream - Humes & Associates calls for action to support our legislation in It’s a Digital Promise that needs to be kept…  To voice your support of this critical initiative write your members of Congress here.

The New America Foundation supports Digital promise “to preserve, update, and expand the public interest obligations of our nation’s communications infrastructure for the digital age.”  Michael Calabrese, New America Vice President and Director of the Wireless Future Program, is committed to helping finance the future of public service media as well as educational content and innovative software through our coalition’s legislation.  To learn more about how your organization can support this critical initiative please contact us.

Legislative Update

August 2007

Before beginning the August recess, the House and Senate approved the conference report on H.R. 2272, The America COMPETES Act.  As you are probably aware, House Commerce didn’t resolve their differences with the Speaker in time to insert any provisions in the Innovation Bill, so language to authorize the Digital Promise Project was not included.  Needless to say we were disappointed.

However, we are working on alternative measures to enact legislation to authorize a pilot program this year, and we remain optimistic!  Stay tuned!

Virtual Worlds Offer New Learning Opportunities

July 2007

The Chronicle of Higher Education recently highlighted the University of New Orleans for offering courses in geography and management in the virtual world Second Life.  Associate dean Merrill L. Johnson says, “The virtual campus was built mainly for distance education, research, and as a place for administrators to meet.  But the university realized it would be a good venue for classes should another devastating hurricane strike the Gulf Coast.”  The Digital Promise legislation would provide the funding for basic research to support virtual worlds and other innovative learning technologies that increase time on task, interactive learning and higher order thinking.  The research and development of these technologies offer exciting opportunities for distance education through flexible dissemination unmatched by traditional training resources. 

Digital Promise Prototype Featured in the Communications of the ACM

July 2007

Immune Attack, a project developed as a prototype for the Digital Promise Project by lead coalition member the Federation of American Scientists, was featured in this month’s edition of the Communications of the ACM, one of the nation’s premier computer science scholarly journal.  The article entitled How to Build Serious Games, details the successes and challenges associated with developing Immune Attack’s sophisticated interactive learning technologies which combine 3D depictions of biological structures and function with advanced educational technologies to provide an introduction to basic concepts in immunology for high school and college students.

Latest Legislative Update

June 2007

As you have undoubtedly read in the news, the House Energy and Commerce Committee has been very busy with energy legislation and has not yet taken up the Innovation legislation that is expected to include Digital Promise provisions.  We will alert you as soon as the Innovation legislation is released.

Coalition Meeting Held on May 9th

May 2007

On May 9th representatives of many Digital Promise Coalition members gathered in the U. S. Capitol to discuss legislative action on our initiative.

Larry Grossman, Co-Chairman, of the Digital Promise Project opened the meeting reiterating the history of the project and the significant progress made to date.

Anne Murphy, Project Director, gave a brief overview of the legislative negotiations that have developed into a plan of action for this Congress:

The Leadership of the House and the Lead Sponsors of the bill have agreed that within the Speaker’s initiatives on competitiveness a proposal for a pilot program encompassing the program goals expressed in the DO IT legislation would be developed with the goal of having documented success prior to the next scheduled auctions (2011).  In order for spectrum funds to be considered for future funding, it will be necessary to authorize the pilot under the jurisdiction of the Commerce Committee and to house the initiative at the Department of Commerce.

While we had hoped to have final language at the meeting, the Speakers Office and the lead staff of the Commerce Committee are still reviewing jurisdictional issues in order to move forward with this plan.

We are also working on a parallel track to fund the proposed program through the appropriations process.  Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) has requested $15 million for the pilot program, and Reps. DeLauro (D-CT) and Honda (D-CA) have also submitted the appropriations requests.  On the Senate side, we have received a favorable response from staff for Sen. Mikulski (D-MD) and others, and we are continuing to meet with appropriations staff in both the Senate and House to advocate for our request.

Innovation Agenda Released

April 2007

On April 24, Speaker Pelosi reissued the Democrats’ “Innovation Agenda” (full text).  While we do not yet have specific legislative language incorporating the concepts contained in the Digital Promise proposal, we expect language to be available for our coalition meeting.

DO IT Coalition Meeting
When: May 9th, 10:00 – 11:00 am
Where: Room HC-6 U.S Capitol Building

(Partial language from the report)

A SUSTAINED COMMITMENT TO RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
Independent scientific research provides the foundation for innovation and future technologies. But U.S. federal funding for research and development has declined steadily over the last decade, and sound science has been compromised by political interference. Democrats will increase the federal commitment to research aimed at developing the next generation of sound scientific breakthroughs, and we will promote the public-private partnerships necessary to translate these new ideas into marketable technologies.

National Coalition Meeting May 9th, 10:00 am

April 2007

When: May 9th, 10:00 – 11:00 am

Where: Room HC-6 U.S Capitol Building

What: A briefing on legislative developments concerning Digital Promise!

Major developments on Digital Promise legislation are imminent!  Come hear a briefing on our progress and strategy for enactment of DO IT legislation in this session of Congress!

More details to come!

Analysis of the problems outlined in 'Effectiveness of Reading and Mathematics Software Products' report.

April 2007

The Federation of American Scientists has developed a thoughtful analysis of the problems outlined in the Dept. of Education Report that underestimates the impact of new technology and software in the classroom.

On April 19 – 21, Digital Promise Director Anne Murphy participated in “Electronic Techtonics: Thinking at the Interface”

April 2007

Digital Promise Director Anne Murphy participated in the first international HASTAC Conference at Duke University in Durham, NC.  HASTAC (Humanities, Arts, Science, and Technology Advanced Collaboratory) is a consortium of humanists, artists, scientists, social scientists and engineers from universities and other civic institutions across the U.S. and internationally committed to new forms of collaboration across communities and disciplines fostered by creative uses of technology.  Since 2003, HASTAC has been developing tools for multimedia archiving and social interaction, gaming environments for teaching, innovative educational programs in information science and information studies, virtual museums, and other digital projects. 

We are pleased to announce that PTC and the PTC-MIT Consortium have joined the Digital Promise Coalition!

March 2007

The PTC-MIT Consortium represents more than 80 organizations with constituents across the US including: federal & state agencies, corporations, professional societies, higher education, K-12 education, groups serving minorities and women, persons with disabilities, informal science centers, and community education programs.  We are excited to add their support to an already diverse Coalition dedicated to the principles and premises of DO IT!

"...We must act now"

March 2007

As the discussion over American competitiveness continues, DO IT is favorably positioned for action.  Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, recently recommitted herself to the innovation agenda, stating: “The debate about American competitiveness has been gaining momentum over the last two years...  To be number one, timing is everything. To meet the challenges of today, and to create the jobs and economic security of tomorrow, we must act now. In the coming months, House Democrats will work in a bipartisan way to implement our Innovation Agenda: A Commitment to Competitiveness to Keep America #1. . . . Working together, for the common good, there is no challenge too great for the American people.”

Digital Promise On the Move

The Digital Promise Team continues to increase its visibility and support by building alliances with related organizations.  Just recently, Digital Promise Director, Anne Murphy and Henry Kelly, President of the Federation of American Scientists teamed with OddWorld Inc. Game Developer, Lorne Lanning in a presentation to the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) at their annual meeting in San Francisco.  

April 17th, DP Co-Chair, Larry Grossman, met with industry’s leading creators, vendors, users, and buyers of learning technology to give the keynote address at the IMS Learning Consortium's annual conference and Summit on Global Learning Industry Challenges. Mr. Grossman also spoke on the Exploring best practices in government support for ICT panel.

May 8th, we attended the Innovate 2007 Exposition hosted by the Department of Education and Virginia Tech, in Richmond, VA.  Please stop by and visit our exhibit! 

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