Section 6 

Funding and Budget

This section contains significant formatting and content changes and E-rate requirements since you last wrote a tech plan. E-rate auditors scrutinize this section. Read carefully.

 6.a  List established and potential funding sources that could be obtained to support the plan.

Guiding Questions

• How is the current budget used to support technology expenditures?
• What funding sources are available to support the plan?
• What alternative sources of funding, such as partnerships, have been identified?

6.b  Estimate of costs for the term of the plan, including total cost of ownership

The goal of this section is estimate the annual implementation costs to implement this plan.

In the narrative explain how much the district is allocating each year to implement all sections of this plan.

Guiding Questions

• Does the budget include allocations to acquire the hardware, software, infrastructure, professional development, and technical support necessary to implement the plan?
• Within each year's allocation, have one-time costs been identified as well as ongoing costs? 

Best Practice for E-rate: It is a good idea to include in the budget any items that receive E-Rate discounts.

Technology plans for E-rate must provide a sufficient budget to acquire and support the non-discounted elements of the plan: the hardware, software, professional development, and other services that will be needed to implement the strategy.

 6.c  Describe the district's replacement policy for obsolete equipment.

The goal of this section is to describe the district's replacement policy for obsolete equipment.

In the narrative explain how the district identifies and disposes of obsolete equipment. In addition, provide details about how the district prepares to replace obsolete equipment. 

Guiding Questions

• What replacement cycle has been built into the plan?

6.d  The new criteria call for a description of the process that will be used to monitor Ed Tech funding, implementation costs, new funding opportunities and to adjust budgets as necessary.

The goal of this section is to describe the process for monitoring, evaluating, and modifying the implementation of Section 6. 

In the narrative explain who is responsible for monitoring the implementation of Section 6. Please include details such as how often the group will meet and how they will evaluate and modify Section 6 as needed.

Guiding Questions

• What data will the district collect to monitor the technology plan budget?
• How often will the data be collected and summarized?
• What will be the process and who will be involved in analyzing the data and recommending program modifications as needed?