News Archive

Calculating a Future That Doesn’t Add Up

Calculating a Future That Doesn’t Add Up

Cyberlearning comments on new QZAB Legislation

CyberLearning comments on new QZAB Legislation

U.S. Department of Labor Press Release

CyberLearning Trains 1,000 Lockheed Engineers

ALEXANDRIA, VA - February 1, 2006

GRANTEE: Lockheed Martin

ADDRESS: 9500 Godwin Dr.

Manassas, VA 20110

AMOUNT: $3,000,000

DURATION: January 5, 2004 - January 5, 2007 (36 months)

POPULATION SERVED: This project is committing to serve 1,000 incumbent workers at Lockheed Martin in the specific high technology areas of system architecture, system engineering, software engineering, computer science, and program management.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION: This project will focus on the need of Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors (MS2) which operates in eight different states (VA, FL, NY, NJ, MI, CA, MD, OH). Employees from each state will have the opportunity to participate in this training. Trainees are encouraged to achieve a graduate degree in System/Software Engineering or Computer Science. Trainees will also be able to take non-certificate courses and/or graduate courses to advance into senior technical positions. The training will be in the form of 25 different classroom based courses, three customized online courses, and 1,000 other online courses.

Lockheed Martin will provide $1,619,776 match in the form of employee salaries as well as dedicated training facilities, materials and support for the project. CyberLearning is providing $1,238,000 match in the form of discounted courses and The National Education Foundation is providing $400,000 match in the form of discounted online Information Technology (IT) courses. Total match is $3,257,776.

The project’s three goals are 1) increase the wages/salaries of already employed trainees, 2) increases in the number of trainees completing coursework for certifications in System Architecture and Project Management, and 3) increases in the number of graduate degrees in Engineering and Computer Science. Two hundred trainees will achieve graduate degrees and 300 will be in process by the end of the grant.

Participants much have a bachelor’s degree to participate in the training and will be selected by the management team based upon their performance and current job responsibilities. Selected employees will have strong performance records and will have been identified as high-potential employees.

KEY PARTICIPANTS: Lockheed Martin, CyberLearning, The National Education Foundation, YnotLearn, The Training Depot, Virginia Polytechnical Institute and State University, Pennsylvania State University, George Mason University, Stevens Institute, Information Technology Association of America, Northern Virginia Technology Council, Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board.

MEDIA CONTACT: Edward Lewis

(703) 367-3104, Lockheed Martin

CyberLearning Provides $6 Million Matching Grants to Disadvantaged School Districts

- Helps School districts to receive $60 million in zero interest Federally supported QZAB funds

Alexandria, VA - December 1, 2005

Alexandria Virginia: CyberLearning (a project of the National Education Foundation), the global non-profit leader in bridging the Digital Divide through digital education, announced today it has agreed to provide $6 million matching grants to disadvantaged school districts, qualified by the U.S. Education Department as having at least 35% of its students on free or reduced cost lunch. The grant recipients include 14 school districts in Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Texas and New York.

The CyberLearning grants allow the recipent school districts to issue $60 million QZAB (Qualified Zone Academy Bonds) zero interest 15 year bonds and use the proceed for improving school facilities, technology etc. QZAB, a U.S, Education Department program provides annually $400 million to disadvantaged schools nationwide. To find more information on QZAB, visit the website www.qzab.org

The CyberLearning matching grant allows school districts to access CyberLearning online courses to "help prepare their students for college and workforce" as required by the QZAB legislation. The most sought after course packages by schools include School/Office Computing package (240 courses including all Microsoft Office applications at all levels and many other computer application courses), Internet and Computing Core Certification (IC³) package, which is universally considered the “gold standard” for IT literacy and which adequately prepares all students to effectively meet the 8th grade technology literacy requirement as mandated under No Child Left Behind (NCLB), IT professional package (309 courses covering basic to advanced computing, programming and database skills and including the latest technical topics from CompTIA, Oracle, Novell, CCNA, CNE, Unix, C++, Sybase, .Net etc.) Barrons SAT and Math.

CyberLearning is the foremost provider of the QZAB 10% match program to disadvantaged school districts nationally. CyberLearning Chairman Dr. Appu Kuttan, who has made a career out of finding creative and cost-effective solutions both in the developing world and in the U.S., advised several governments on education and IT, and helped to develop many world tennis champions including Andre Agassi, Monica Seles and Jim Courier, is very passionate about bridging the Digital Divide. According to Dr. Kuttan, “90% of all jobs require some sort of IT skills today and it is clear that our schools need help in preparing students for that new reality and increased global competition. While schools cannot move at Internet speed, online courses with online mentoring can be a very cost-effective solution.”

Dr. Laurence Peters, Vice President for Education at CyberLearning, a former U.S. Education Department policy maker, the QZAB guru and a national technology integration policy expert, notes, " The user friendly CyberLearning courses provide a wonderful learning experience—clear, simple steps, highly visual, interactive and practical. They are ideally suited for the QZAB match academy program, since the QZAB legislation requires that the 10% match partner should help the school district to set up an academic program to prepare students for college and workforce. “

Any disadvantaged public school district (with 35% or more of its students on free/reduced cost lunch) interested in the QZAB program may contact Dr. Peters at lpeters@cyberlearning.org or (703) 823-9999.

CyberLearning Launches Million Student IT Initiative in India

- India’s NASSCOM Chief Announces All India Launch of IC3 at Reliance WebWorld in association with CyberLearning

Posted on Wednesday, August 17 @ 13:55:56 CDT by PRESS BOOTH OF INDIA

NASSCOM President Kiran Karnik formally launched a new e-learning initiative, IC3 (Internet and Computing Core Certification) course on Reliance WebWorld platform. WebWorld, in association with India CyberLearning, will offer the globally acclaimed course across its 240 centres in 104 Indian cities.



(From left to right) Manish Chandra, Head E Learning, Reliance WebWorld; Pankaj Rai, CEO India CyberLearningl; Kiran Karnik, President NASSCOM and Sarup Chowdhary, CEO Reliance Web World.)

NASSCOM President Kiran Karnik formally launched a new e-learning initiative, IC3 (Internet and Computing Core Certification) course on Reliance WebWorld platform. WebWorld, in association with India CyberLearning, will offer the globally acclaimed course across its 240 stores in 104 Indian cities.

New Delhi, Delhi, India, August 17, 2005 (XTVWorld.Com) -- IC3 is the first globally validated, standards-based training and certification programme introduced in India for measuring computing and Internet skills.

Successful completion of IC3, ensures that the students have the knowledge and the skills required for basic use of computer, hardware, software, networks and the Internet. More than 47,000 IC3 exams are administered each month through more than 9000 certified testing centres worldwide in 114 countries and 18 languages.

In India the course has been priced at Rs 2999 with 42 hours broadband Internet access that can be used at any of the 240 WebWorlds.

Speaking at the launch, Mr. Karnik said, "I am delighted to launch IC3, which is a globally recognized program for Internet and computer
skills.

Such a program will greatly help in widening computer-literacy and creating a computer culture which is one of the many ways NASSCOM is trying to speed up economic growth in our growing digital economy. I compliment Reliance WebWorld for taking this great initiative across the country ."

Mr Karnik also launched a specially designed pre-paid Education Card for IC3 programme. The card can also be given away as an education gift.

Reliance WebWorld CEO Sarup Cowdhary said: "E-learning at Reliance WebWorlds uses technology to make distance learning and training effective, participative and exciting. The IC3 online preparatory courseware and certification examination are part of this initiative. This is for the first time that such a course is being offered in India."

"The launch of our e-Learning initiative in India with Reliance WebWorld is our first step towards bridging the digital divide in the country," said Pankaj Rai, CEO, India CyberLearning.

The IC3 programme comprises 42 hours of comprehensive online preparatory course that equips you to clear the IC certification conducted by CERTIPORT, USA .

Once enrolled for the programme, a student can access the online course package (at www.cyberlearningindia.com) using a secure username and password valid for six months from the date of registration.

About NASSCOM:
NASSCOM is India’s National Association of Software and Service Companies, the premier trade body and the chamber of commerce of the IT software and services industry in India. NASSCOM is a truly global trade body with around 900 members, of which nearly 150 are global companies from the US, UK, EU, Japan and China. NASSCOM’smember companies are in the business of software development, software services, and IT-enabled/BPO services.

About India CyberLearning:
India CyberLearning is a project of the Virginia (USA) based non-profit National Education Foundation (NEF). ICPL offers over 2500 online courses and over 60 certifications in different skill areas like IT, call centre, English language, health & safety and adds over 250 new courses every year. India CyberLearning Pvt Ltd was specifically formed to carry out the mission of NEF and its founder Dr. Appu Kuttan to provide affordable high quality training and education to a million people in India by the year 2010. CyberLearning has been at the forefront of affordable education in the USA for over a decade. CyberLearning has already trained over 250,000 people since its inception.

About Reliance WebWorld:
Reliance WebWorld is a nationwide chain of retail stores for digital entertainment and communication and serves as one-stop-shop for Reliance Infocomm products and services. Each store is planned for three key modules – a Customer Convenience Center, Java Green a gourmet coffee bar and a Real Broadband Centre. Broadband Centre showcases Broadband connectivity through applications like Video Chat and Conferencing, Multiplayer Online Gaming, Digital Electronic News Gathering, Digital photo imaging, Virtual office and Real Broadband high speed Internet surfing – about 100 times faster than the dial up access.

About Reliance Infocomm:
Reliance Infocomm Ltd., an Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprises group company, is India's largest private information and communications services provider, with a subscriber base of over 12 million. Reliance Infocomm has established a pan-India, high-capacity, integrated (wireless and wireline), convergent (voice, data and video) digital network, to offer services spanning the entire Infocomm value chain.

The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprises Group is a member of the Reliance Group, founded by Shri Dhirubhai H. Ambani (1932-2002).

Contact:
Mumbai
Jimmy Mogal, Ph: +91 22 3038 5128 jimmy.mogal @ relianceinfo.com

Delhi
Anjali Kumar, Ph: +91 11 3033 2844, anjali.kumar @ relianceinfo.com
Indira Das, Ph: +91 11 3033 2848, indira.das @ relianceinfo.com
Prashant Dua, Ph: +91 11 3033 2852, prashant_p_dua @ relianceinfo.com

CyberLearning Creates Academies in Disadvantaged Schools

- Program Assists School Districts Access $800 Million in Federal QZAB Funds and Meet Unfunded NCLB Mandates

ALEXANDRIA, VA - December 23, 2004

As part of its digital and academic divide bridging program, the non-profit CyberLearning has finalized agreements with two school districts-Pearl River County School District Mississippi and Westbury Union Free School District New York to establish QZAB CyberLearning Academies (QCAs).

Cyberlearning created QCA's in response to the needs of disadvantaged schools who wanted to gain access to the QZAB (Qualified Zone Academy Bond) U.S. Education Department program that enable schools with 35 percent or more students receiving free or reduced cost lunch, or are located in an Empowerment or Enterprise zone, to receive zero interest financing.

The highly successful but little known QZAB program, has provided $400 million annually since 1998. The QZAB program was recently extended for two more years. It requires that a school district partner with a private, public or non-profit entity that could offer a 10 percent match in cash or in-kind services at fair market value, and that could help the school to design and offer an academic program focused on improving students' workforce skills and capacity to attend college.

QCA concept is the brain child of CyberLearning Chairman Dr. Appu Kuttan. Dr. Laurence Peters, who recently joined Cyberlearning as its Vice President for Education, helped to design the QCAs, based on his experience as the U.S. Department of Education Director of the QZAB program.

"Given the pressures schools located in high poverty areas face, they have no real time to look for partners much less find those willing to do the hard work of designing a curriculum that meets their multiple academic needs." Commented Dr Peters, who is in charge of directing the QCA program.

"We focused on creating a "one stop solution" for these schools-we provide both the 10 percent matching and provide an exemplary curriculum customized to their needs-for example it seems obvious that schools today need to prepare all students to be proficient in IT- in fact No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requires IT proficiency of all 8th graders starting 2005-2006.."

Cyberlearning will train a director for the school QCA. The director will help to administer the online courses and make sure they are customized to the school's needs. In addition, the director can generate regular instant reports on student progress using CyberLearning's state-of-the-art Learning Management System (LMS). Additionally, 24x7 instant live mentoring can be added for most of the 1,600 plus high quality courses that Cyberlearning offers.

"For school officials, the QCA program is "godsent", as one of the officials in the Pearl River School district commented. It is a demanding struggle to keep pace with changing IT education needs while technology funds are being reduced," states Dr. Kuttan, Chairman of the Cyberlearning program, who founded the non-profit National Education Foundation that is subsidizing the QCA courses up to 95 percent.

Schools can access such key courses as Barrons SAT, the International Computer Driving License (ICDL) - increasingly accepted as the standard now for school IT literacy and Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) as well as K-12 math courses that can assist with schools' need to meet NCLB standards in technology and academics. For advanced students, QCA provides a unique opportunity to take IT courses in Web Design, Networking, Databases etc. and earn industry (Microsoft, Cisco, Oracle, CompTIA etc.) certifications as well as accredited college credits from CyberLearning School of IT at the fully accredited 124-year-old Bacone College.

With unlimited access to 24x7 online courses and 24X7 instant live mentoring provided by QCAs, there is no reason why QCA students should not be able to master technology and academic skills and thus be prepared for college and 21st century workforce, as QZAB legislation requires.

Cyberlearning is determined to make these schools successful and will work with them to ensure that in fact no child is truly left behind

CyberLearning Offers Digital Opportunities for Baltimore Residents

ALEXANDRIA, VA - December 22, 2004 - CyberLearning, the foremost non-profit digital divide leader and a leading provider of high-quality e-Learning courses, today announced a plan to set up a holistic digital housing, education and career training center in West Baltimore to provide digital education and opportunities to all the teachers, students, employees and residents of West Baltimore, a depressed inner city area. CyberLearning plans to open the Center in March, 2005.

The CyberLearning Digital Residential and Education Center will be located at the 180,000 square foot old Frederick Doughlas High School in West Baltimore. It will have five divisions, namely, residential, education, career training, auditorium and commercial.

CyberLearning Residential program will convert the 100 ready-to-occupy apartments to digital apartments with the latest computers, Internet access and unlimited access to all of CyberLearning's 1,600 high-quality online IT and management courses as well as instant live mentoring. These apartments will be offered to teachers, police officers and others at an affordable rent. The residential facilities will also include a digital fitness center, a digital meditation center, a digital recreation center, a digital conference room, a digital information center, a digital business center, a digital mentoring center and a digital store. The goal of the digital residential program is to provide quality affordable accommodation to key professionals who can help revitalize West Baltimore and help them to nurture body, mind and soul in an enjoyable environment.

CyberLearning Education program will provide all West Baltimore school and college students and teachers unlimited access to CyberLearning's IT courses and instant live mentoring. It will also assist West Baltimore schools and colleges in setting up CyberLearning Academies including mentoring programs at their locations.

CyberLearning Career Training Program will provide all West Baltimore employees and unemployed residents unlimited access to CyberLearning's IT courses and instant live mentoring. It will also offer to evaluate and train employees to meet employers' specific needs.

CyberLearning Auditorium Program involves converting the existing 2,500-seat auditorium into a digital auditorium suitable for community functions, entertainment and other activities.

CyberLearning Commercial Program rents office space to organizations such as the University of Maryland to provide community services to the West Baltimore residents.

"We are very excited about this unique opportunity to make our West Baltimore CyberLearning Project a national model for revitalizing inner cities by improving the quality of life of its residents through 21st century holistic digital education and opportunity programs that help nurture body, mind and soul," stated Dr. Appu Kuttan, the visionary Chairman of CyberLearning, who is also embarked on several other ambitious programs including educating a million disadvantaged school students in the U.S in IT, training a million IT professionals in India and providing affordable high-quality accredited college credits and degrees to the disadvantaged everywhere.

Among the Baltimore leaders supporting the Project are the Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, Tennis Hall of Famer Pam Shriver and Baltimore Community Foundation President Thomas Wilcox.

About CyberLearning:
CyberLearning, a project of the non-profit National Education Foundation, was founded in 1989 with the twin missions of making high-quality online training affordable for everyone, especially the disadvantaged, and providing them with opportunities to obtain high-quality affordable college education. Currently, CyberLearning hosts over 1,600 high-quality web-based online Information Technology (all levels and all topics), Management (Harvard ManageMentor) and Testprep (Barrons SAT, GRE etc) courses. CyberLearning provides students, teachers and staff of disadvantaged schools, colleges and non-profits as well as disadvantaged working/unemployed adults scholarships/grants to access the courses (unlimited 24x7 access), instant live 24x7 mentoring and a state-of-the art LMS (Learning Management System capable of student tracking, pre and post tests and customized reports) for an affordable fee, enabling them to become either fully IT-literate or an IT professional or a better manager or a better prospect for college admission with a better SAT score. CyberLearning is the leading non-profit digital divide bridging training program both nationally and globally, and is projected to serve over a million students in the U.S., Jordan, India and other countries by 2006. For more information, visit www.cyberlearning.org or contact Claudia Kay, CyberLearning Press Officer at 703-823-9999, e-mail: courses@cyberlearning.org.

CyberLearning Offers Affordable Accredited College Credits

ALEXANDRIA, VA - December 20, 2004 - CyberLearning, the foremost non-profit digital divide leader and a leading provider of high-quality e-Learning courses, today announced an agreement with the 124-year old Bacone College to set up the CyberLearning School of Online Education at Bacone College to provide affordable high-quality digital education in Information Technology and Management to students everywhere, especially the disadvantaged.

Starting January 2005, students enrolling in the program can earn fully accredited college credits in IT certification courses such as A+, MOS, MCP, MCSE, MCSA, CCNA, CCDA etc. Once a student completes the course, passes the Microsoft/Cisco/CompTia/ Oracle exam or a proctored final exam administered by CyberLearning @ Bacone, he/she will receive the appropriate college credits. These credits can be transferred to any college or university, since Bacone College is a fully accredited institution.
Bacone college credits are available for students and working adults everywhere who sign up for access to the CyberLearning courses through Bacone College,www.cyberlearning.org, www.cyberlearningindia.com and www.cyberlearningjordan.com. Disadvantaged students are eligible for Federal Pell Grants and other financial assistance. Most disadvantaged students will receive full financial aid.

"After achieving our first objective of making high-quality online IT education affordable to the masses, especially the disadvantaged, we set out to achieve our second objective, namely, providing affordable high-quality college education to the masses," stated Dr. Appu Kuttan, President & CEO of CyberLearning. "By setting up a CyberLearning School at Bacone College, we are starting an innovative national and international program for providing industry-recognized college credits and degrees to students and working adults. We believe our program provides students a unique opportunity to receive high-quality college education from anywhere at any time at a very affordable fee"

"With industry certifications and experience as well as academic knowledge, our students will be better prepared to compete effectively for the 21st century jobs in today's fast-paced business world and knowledge-driven economy," stated Dr. Laurence Peters, Dean of the CyberLearning School at Bacone and formerly director of MAR*TEC at Temple University and deputy director of the Empowerment program at the U.S. Department of Education.

"Bacone College has provided affordable college education to mainly disadvantaged students, especially American Indians since its inception in 1880." said Dr Robert Duncan, President of Bacone College-Muscogee, Oklahoma. "Our partnership with CyberLearning has much to offer: high-quality online courses from CyberLearning as well as affordable college credits from Bacone College. Students can take as many courses as they wish - on their own time, at their own pace and in their own space. Once a student meets our graduation requirements, he/she can receive a college degree from Bacone. CyberLearning is an excellent addition to our institution's existing information technology initiatives. We enthusiastically support this program, which extends lifelong affordable educational opportunities to people everywhere."

About Bacone College
Bacone College is a four-year liberal arts college affiliated with the American Baptist Church embracing a historic educational mission to American Indians.
Since its doors opened in 1880, Bacone College has been serving students from all regions, nations and walks of life. Bacone is the oldest college in the State of Oklahoma. It offers associate and bachelor degree programs at its campus in Muscogee Oklahoma. For more information, visit www.bacone.edu

About CyberLearning:
CyberLearning, a project of the non-profit National Education Foundation, was founded in 1989 with the twin missions of making high-quality online training affordable for everyone, especially the disadvantaged, and providing them with opportunities to obtain high-quality affordable college education. Currently, CyberLearning hosts over 1,600 high-quality web-based online Information Technology (all levels and all topics), Management (Harvard ManageMentor) and Testprep (Barrons SAT, GRE etc) courses. CyberLearning provides students, teachers and staff of disadvantaged schools, colleges and non-profits as well as disadvantaged working/unemployed adults scholarships/grants to access the courses (unlimited 24x7 access), instant live 24x7 mentoring and a state-of-the art LMS (Learning Management System capable of student tracking, pre and post tests and customized reports) for an affordable fee, enabling them to become either fully IT-literate or an IT professional or a better manager or a better prospect for college admission with a better SAT score. CyberLearning is the leading non-profit digital divide bridging training program both nationally and globally, and is projected to serve over a million students in the U.S., Jordan, India and other countries by 2006. For more information, visit www.cyberlearning.org or contact Claudia Kay, CyberLearning Press Officer at 703-823-9999, e-mail: courses@cyberlearning.org.

CyberLearning Introduces 52 New Courses

Windows Server 2003 Administration, Windows Server 2003 Network Management, CompTIA A+, and Access 2003 lead the list

ALEXANDRIA, VA - March 31, 2004 - CyberLearning, the digital divide leader and a one-stop provider of an integrated suite of self-paced e-Learning solutions, today announced the release of 52 new courses. The topic areas for the new courses include:

a) Visual C# XML - 5 courses - MCAD 70-320
b) Windows Server 2003 Administration - 12 courses
    MCSA/MCSE 70-290
c) Windows Server 2003 Network Management - 10 courses     MCSA/MCSE 70-291
d) CompTIA A+ Certification - 12 courses
e) Microsoft Access 2003 - 2 courses
f) Microsoft Outlook 2003 - 7 courses
g) Microsoft PowerPoint 2003 - 2 courses
h) 401(k) Basics - 1 course
i) Sexual Harassment - 1 course (updated)

"We continue to add to our offerings high-quality, interactive courses to our large library, and we are always working to enhance the ways our courses can be enriched," said Dr Appu Kuttan, president and CEO at CyberLearning. "Our clients provide us continuous feedback, and we strive to listen closely so we can meet their expectations and serve their needs as fast as possible. Being responsive to client needs and suggestions is without a doubt a key element of our continued success."
"Meeting client needs is our highest priority," said Pankaj Rai, COO at CyberLearning. "We now have over 1300 courses in our library providing our users with access to training on a wide spectrum of business, IT, desktop, skills needed to advance the skills. As we progress through 2004 we will continue to introduce new courses on a quarterly basis, and bring additional new solutions to the market."

About CyberLearning
CyberLearning, headquartered in Alexandria, VA is one of the largest self-paced e-Learning providers in the world providing a complete integrated suite of learning solutions encompassing over 1000 courses (IT, business, Test Prep and Management skills training), instant mentoring and online books reference library and professional services that include developing custom content. CyberLearning has a subscriber base of over 100,000 users in North America and elsewhere. For more information, please visit www.cyberlearning.org.

CyberLearning to train 70,000 Students in Puerto Rico

…Innovative grant program to improve IT and Math skills

ALEXANDRIA, VA - March 29, 2004 - CyberLearning, the foremost non-profit digital divide leader and a leading provider of e-Learning, today announced a $5,000,000 matching grant award to the Education Department of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. CyberLearning will provide online/CBT course access to 70,000 K-12 students in math and IT courses. Students may be able to access the courses in English or Spanish.

The matching grant also allows Puerto Rico to issue 15-year zero interest Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZAB) to improve school facilities and programs throughout Puerto Rico, as part of a U.S. Education Department program to assist disadvantaged schools.

CyberLearning Puerto Rico, a subsidiary of CyberLearning, will provide access to the courses, train program administrators in every school and will monitor the program implementation.

"Our Puerto Rico grant program goes a long way to meet one of our digital divide missions, namely, helping to improve the academic and technology standards of the fast growing Hispanic American population, the largest minority group in the United States," stated Dr. Appu Kuttan, President & CEO of CyberLearning. "We hope to replicate this program in the predominantly Hispanic American schools across the Nation."

"We feel confident that CyberLearning' grant to provide online course access to teachers and students will provide a valuable tool for our school population," said Dr. Cesar A. Rey Hernandez, Puerto Rico Education Secretary. "We are sure that working together, we will provide the high quality education that students of Puerto Rico deserve."

About Puerto Rico Department of Education
There are 759,035 students in the public school system of 1,538 community schools, 613,000 of which are regular daytime students. The rest include evening and Saturday students, prisoners, vocational school students, and special curriculum students. The DOE has a total budget of $2.2 billion, close to a third of the Commonwealth Government's budget.

About CyberLearning:
The non-profit CyberLearning was founded in 1989 with the twin missions of making high-quality online training affordable for everyone, especially the disadvantaged, and providing them with opportunities to obtain high-quality affordable college education. Currently, CyberLearning hosts over 1,200 high-quality web-based online Information Technology (all levels and all topics), Management (Harvard ManageMentor) and Testprep (Barrons SAT, GRE etc) courses. CyberLearning provides students and staff of disadvantaged schools, colleges and non-profits as well as disadvantaged working/unemployed adults scholarships/grants to access the courses (unlimited 24x7 access) and a state-of-the art LMS (Learning Management System capable of student tracking, pre and post tests and customized reports) for a low fee enabling them to become either fully IT-literate or an IT professional or a better manager or a better prospect for college admission with a better SAT score. CyberLearning is the leading non-profit digital divide bridging training program both nationally and globally, and is projected to serve over a million students in the US, Jordan, India, China and other countries by 2006. For more information, visit www.cyberlearning.org or contact Claudia Kay, CyberLearning Press Officer at 703-823-9999, e-mail: courses@cyberlearning.org

CyberLearning proposes to set up national IT training program for Native Americans

Matching grant program for Native American College Students

Posted July 14, 2003

As part of its digital divide bridging program, the non-profit CyberLearning has proposed to set up a national program making its IT courses available to students, faculty and staff of all of the nation’s Native American colleges.

In recent discussions with Rev. Dr. Robert J. Duncan, Jr., President of Bacone College, the oldest college in Oklahoma serving the Native Americans, Dr. Appu Kuttan, Chairman of CyberLearning proposed the national program starting this Fall at Bacone College. CyberLearning and Bacone College will then jointly offer the program to all other Native American colleges. Bacone college was chartered in 1880.

New Jersey DOE approves CyberLearning for providing Title I supplemental educational services

Afterschool program offered to all qualified NJ students starting Fall 2003

Posted July 7, 2003

In a letter to CyberLearning dated June 26, 2003, Linda Dold-Collins, Director of Office of Title I Program Planning and Accountability of New Jersey’s Department of Education, stated that CyberLearning’s application to become an approved Title I supplemental educational services provider in New Jersey has been approved.

The state approval allows New Jersey school districts to enter into agreements with CyberLearning on behalf of the parents of eligible children for school year 2003-2004.

CyberLearning SAT Pilot Program in Newark a Huge Success

Innovative afterschool program involves 229 high school juniors

Posted June 30, 2003

As part of its digital divide bridging program, CyberLearning conducted a 2-month afterschool SAT prep program at the Arts High School during April-May, 2003. Here is a summary of the final evaluation report from the SAT project director, Dr. Chonita Spencer:

SAT Pilot Program Narrative

Eleventh grade students at Arts High School were given a student questionnaire to attain demographics. Students were surveyed to assess computer knowledge and availability of computers at home. Data was also collected to determine course completion of each student prior to implementation of the SAT Pilot Program. Students stated the number of years, grades received and academic level of all Mathematics and English courses taken. Student attendance, behavior and discipline were also assessed.

The students were assigned to groups A, B, C, D, and E through a random process. We took the student list alphabetically arranged. We assigned the first student on the list to Group A, the second student to Group B, the third student to Group C, the fourth student to Group D, and the fifth student to Group E. We repeated this process by assigning student six to Group A, student 7 to Group B and so on until the first 125 students were assigned to the five Groups, with each group consisting of 25 students. The remaining four students were assigned to Group E, the Control or Placebo Group.

The eleventh grade student body was divided into homerooms and were administered the pre-test and post-test for the SAT Pilot Program. The conditions under which the students were assessed were identical to SAT guidelines: the entire test lasted three (3) hours, students were timed per section; students were given breaks; test examiners and proctors were present in each testing site; students were allowed to use calculators.

Eleventh grade students in the SAT Pilot Program were given attendance guidelines. Attendance was taken each day of scheduled group participation by the group directors. Students were told that if they attended 90% of the twice-weekly scheduled sessions, they will receive rewards, namely, MP-3 players.

All quizzes and group assignments were taken from the on-line SAT assessment. Teachers further stated that formatted quizzes and questions were exactly as the on-line SAT.

 We have found that the successful implementation of Cyberlearning’s student-focused holistic TTCM (Teacher/Mentor-Technology-Courseware-Motivation) solution allows our students to engage in active and effective learning.

In terms of TTCM, CyberLearning solution provides the following:

 Teacher/Mentor: Our junior students receive online mentoring/onsite mentoring from our certified teachers.

Technology: The student groups use our computer lab (Technology) before or after school for 2 one-hour sessions a week. Each student gets a computer with Internet access.

Courseware: Our juniors have been using the highly acclaimed online Barrons SAT Courseware (CyberLearning) available to them 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.

Motivation: The students, who attend at least 90% of the scheduled sessions and who improve their SAT scores by at least 40 points will receive an MP-3 digital music player from CyberLearning.

 Temple University will complete the evaluation of the project in the Summer of 2003.

  Let me address some key aspects of the project relevant to afterschool academic programs:

 Effectiveness: Our weekly tests show that the students are making good progress. We feel that the post-test, scheduled for May 29, will show most students have raised their SAT scores by at least 40 points.

 Program Design: CyberLearning’s TTCM approach is holistic and student-focused. The approach, developed by a team of educational experts headed by CyberLearning President, noted education and systems expert and digital divide bridging leader, Dr. Appu Kuttan, provides every student with high-quality teachers, technology, courseware and motivation in an integrated active setting. Research shows that this holistic systems program is much more effective in improving the student learning and scores than traditional, fragmented approaches.

 State Academic Standards and District Instructional Programs: The SAT pilot program design and system are successfully aligned with the language arts and mathematics standards of our District’s instructional programs as well as the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards (CCCS) and frameworks including the HSPA test.

 Assessment and Progress: The group director submits weekly assessment and progress data to the student’s teachers. The Group director evaluates, monitors and tracks student progress on a weekly basis using the attendance records, practice tests and quizzes. Each student took a pre-test, a full College Board SAT test, at the beginning. The group leader assessed initially the strengths and weaknesses of each student in the group and prescribed lessons accordingly, and continued to do so weekly.

 Communications with Parents and Families: School administrators oriented to parents to the program and asked them to encourage the student to take practice tests or receive online mentoring at home or the local library over the Internet. Parents will also participate in the commencement of the SAT project in June.

 Communication with Teachers and School: Group directors are school teachers. The principal and vice-principal are actively involved in the project. Student goals were set by all school administrators and teachers concerned. Group leaders send weekly reports to the principal and student’s teachers. The math and English mentors of the SAT pilot project make sure that the SAT courses compliment the regular day’s instruction.

 Qualifications of Instructional Staff and Professional Development: The SAT pilot program is directed by me, a doctoral graduate in education and counseling. I know all of the teachers and students participating in the SAT program personally. The group directors and mentors (math and verbal) are all teachers in our school. They are all post-graduate and are certified professional educators. The group directors as well as the mentors have taught SAT subjects for a number of years. We had an orientation session for all teachers and mentors to outline the project goals, processes, timeline and expectations. We also conducted a training session for all teachers and mentors in the use of online courses. All the project staff including the project director, group directors and mentors are trained and experienced in working with a diverse student population, including limited English proficient, migrant, homeless, socio-economically disadvantaged and special education students.

 In summary, based on the very positive feedback we have received from the students, parents and administrators, and based on the holistic student-focused nature of the program and its cost-effectiveness, and based on CyberLearning’s unwavering commitment to make a difference in the lives of challenged and underserved students, I recommend that the CyberLearning school and afterschool program be provided to all eligible students (of all grades) of the Newark Public Schools. An added plus would be to see districts throughout our state, with similar educational challenges, utilize CyberLearning in both schools and in afterschool programs. Envision district and statewide academic competitions and our Newark Public School students leading the way, with documented evidence of academic success and improved test scores!

Thank you for the opportunity to serve the students of our school district.  

CyberLearning awards New Jersey Department of Education $4,000,000 matching grant

Federal matching grant program helps 70,000 disadvantaged high school students

Posted June 16, 2003

As part of its digital divide bridging program, the non-profit CyberLearning awarded New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) $4,401,850 in in-kind online courseware grant, enabling NJDOE to issue about $40,000,000 Qualified Zone Academy Bond (QZAB) Federally authorized funds for renovating school facilities and classrooms in 13 disadvantaged Abbott school districts.

QZAB is a 400 million dollar a year U.S. Education Department program that allows disadvantaged K-12 school districts- the ones with 35% or more students in the free/reduced cost lunch program or those located in the empowerment/enterprise zones- to issue interest-free bonds. The bondholders receive Federal tax credits. In order for a state or school district to issue QZAB bonds, it has to secure a 10% matching grant donation from a private organization. Such grant donation should “increase graduation and employment rates, and better prepare students for the rigors of college and the workforce under a plan approved by the local school system," according to the U.S. Department of Education). For more information on the QZAB program, visit www.qzab.org.

CyberLearning matching grant enabled NJDOE to distribute 70,080 online course IDs to train 70,080 high school students and teachers in Information Technology or SAT or management skills.

Upon signing the agreement between NJDOE and CyberLearning, Dr. Appu Kuttan, CyberLearning Chairman, expressed the hope that the matching grant program will help level the playing field for a significant number of disadvantaged students in New Jersey. Dr. Kuttan offered additional assistance to the participating school districts in improving teacher training, technology and motivational programs, the three resources other than courseware, to enable students to improve their skills in a holistic setting.

The non-profit CyberLearning is the largest contributor of the 10% QZAB matching grant nationally, with matching grant donations amounting to $20 million to school districts across the nation.