K-20 Education Network Consortium

Meeting Minutes – August13, 2013

1:33 – 2:59PM

Voting members present:

  • OSPI – Peter Tamayo
  • OCIO – Bill Schrier, proxy for Michael DeAngelo
  • ESD Representative - Jeff Andrews
  • Council of Presidents – Laurel Le Noble, proxy for Paul Francis
  • UW KOCO – Clare Donahue
  • SBCTC –Michael Scroggins
  • WSL – Gary Bortel

Voting members absent:

None

Others Present:

  • OSPI, Dennis Small
  • SBCTC – Kenn Nied, Jesse Mendiola
  • WSU – Tom Ambrosi, Richard Eisenman
  • UW – Ron Kappes
  • SPU – David Tindall
  • TESC – Aaron Powell
  • Pacific Northwest GigaPOP – Doug Mah
  • K-20 Staff – Tom Carroll,Michael Evans

1. Call to Order/Introductions. Chairman Peter Tamayo called the meeting to order at 1:33PM.

2. Consent Agenda. The consent agenda consisted of the following items:

  • Minutes from the May 14, 2013 Meeting
  • KOCO Transition Project & 40 Gbps Update
  • KOCO Operations Update
  • SBCTC Site Request: Savvis Datacenter, Tukwila

It was moved and seconded that the consent agenda be approved by the Consortium.Approved unanimously.

3. K-20 2013-2015 Budget Update. Tom Carroll reminded the group the state legislature recently approved the $16 million K-20 appropriation for the current biennium. Tom explained the appropriation for the current fiscal year was recently deposited into the K-20 revolving fund. Laurel Le Noble from the Council of Presidents told the group the budget improved the funding situation for the baccalaureate institutions and enabled them to avoid tuition increases for the first time in several years.

4. K-20 Point-to-Point Circuits. Tom Carroll explained there are really two types of K-20 customer circuits: those that connect directly to K-20 and those that provide point-to-point connections between two K-20 customer locations, such as the main and branch campuses of a community college. Tom added that these circuits are all at higher education institutions. Tom mentioned that as part of the discovery process for the transition away from CTS services, K-20 learned these point-to-point circuits actually use legacy CTS infrastructure and will not be supportable in the new K-20 network architecture. Tom pointed out that all the institutions affected by phasing out the legacy point-to-point circuits have been briefed and they will have the option to either convert the circuits to direct K-20 connections or purchase the services directly from a local carrier. It was moved and seconded that the K-20 Education Consortium set June 30, 2013 as a target date for the termination of all remaining point-to-point circuits in the network. Approved unanimously.

5. OSPI Education Technology Budget Reduction. Dennis Small told the group the budget recently passed by the legislature eliminated funding for the K-12 statewide educational technology center program, resulting in the loss of his three staff members. Dennis explained the funding for his position comes from a different source and he will now be working as a staff of one. Dennis pointed to continued funding for the regional RITUs and increased technology funding for students under basic education as positive outcomes from the budget process.

6. K-12Districts Leaving K-20 Update. Dennis Small explained four districts were not on K-20 prior to summer 2013, five K-12 districts left this summer and five more intend to leave the network within the next month or so. Dennis added that most of these districts had no complaints about their K-20 service and considered leaving only because they can buy Internet service more cheaply from a local provider. Dennis told the group there are a number of districts who considered leaving but decided to stay and learn the results of current efforts to revise the co-pay model before making any decisions or changes.

7. K-20Co-Pay Revision. Tom Carroll walked the group through a presentation outlining the current K-20 co-pay model, concerns and issues with the model, and information about the proposed co-pay revisions which are intended to replace the single usage-based model with multiple models optimized for the customer groups they serve. The new co-pay approach is also designed to enable sectors to better manage customer cost allocation, reduce complexity, and address increasing bandwidth needs across all sectors. It was moved and seconded that the co-pay revision be adopted by the Consortium and be put into use immediately to improve service to K-20 customers during fiscal years 2014 and 2015. Approved unanimously. Clare Donahue asked for a report back to the Consortium in about three months regarding how well the new model is working for customers.

8. K-20 Network and Operations Changes. Tom Carroll provided the group with a technical overview of the current and future K-20 backbone network architectures. Tom pointed out that the new 40Gbps backbone project will reduce the number of failure points in the network while also reducing costs. Tom added that the project is currently on schedule and under budget. Tom reminded the group that the CTS Network Operations Center is being phased out and at the beginning of September all CTS-related Ethernet network operations will shift to the NOC at the University of Washington.

9. Roundtable Comments/Sector Updates. Peter Tamayo mentioned that as part of the ConnectED program, President Obama has asked the FCC to review the E-rate program and the FCC issued a notice of proposed rulemaking with comments due in September of 2013. Peter explained that he and Dennis Small have been talking to K-20 staff about collecting comments related to that effort. Peter explained the goal is to get broadband to more rural locations and emphasize the importance of high-speed connectivity in K-12 instructional efforts.

10. Adjournment. The meeting was adjourned at 2:59 PM.

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