“If you’re applying for the 2009 e-Rate, the $2.25 billion-a-year federal program that provides discounts on telecommunications services to eligible schools and libraries, you won’t find many new additions to this year’s program, e-Rate officials say. Instead, you’ll find live training sessions, online videos, and other web-based resources designed to help you become more comfortable with the e-Rate application process. Mel Blackwell, vice president of the Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), the agency that administers the e-Rate, said the SLD is ‘trying to show, as much as we possibly can, how to do everything, because when the application is successful, that’s what the program is all about.’” (10/09/08)