The federal funding for the regional technology consortia program ended on September 30, 2005. However, much of the content of this web site is still useful and NWREL will continue to provide access to support educators and to meet its own technical assistance needs.
About NETC
The Northwest Educational Technology Consortium (NETC) has been providing services and products in the Northwest since 1995. The consortium is made up of the state education agencies from Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington, and the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory in Portland, Oregon. NETC is one of the network of 10 Regional Technology in Education Consortia in the U.S. and receives funding from the U.S. Department of Education.
Mission
The mission of the Northwest Educational Technology Consortium is to provide professional development opportunities, access to technical assistance, and support for collegial interaction that allow and encourage educators throughout our region, and especially in K-12 schools, to become informed and fearless users of technology.
Vision
Our vision is for:
- Educators to become informed and fearless users of new technologies
- Electronic technologies to become integral to the teaching/learning process
- Students to have access to technology when and where they learn
Goal
Our goal is to work in collaboration with state educational agencies, school districts, universities, regional and national organizations, and telecommunications providers to leverage and extend the wide range of existing services available to educators, students, and parents in the Northwest. We will:
- Create an effective infrastructure of professional development opportunities and technical assistance capabilities that enhance and support the skills of educators, especially for our many small, isolated, remote communities
- Effectively use electronic communications, teleconferencing, and information networks for providing access to technical assistance and professional development throughout our geographically diverse region
- Provide quick access for teachers and library/media personnel to technical assistance
- Collaborate with and support Colleges of Education in integrating technology throughout their teacher education program
- Support adult literacy programs in providing professional development for staff and volunteers in integrating instructional technology
Structure and Activities
The members of the consortium include the five state education agencies of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory as the lead grantee.
The activities of the consortium in each member state will be described in an annual memorandum of agreement with each state education agency and will specify priorities for service in staff development, technical assistance and information dissemination. The activities will be coordinated with, support, and enhance existing delivery mechanisms in those areas.
Membership and Coordination
Each consortium member has a designated representative on the NETC Member Council, the primary decision-making body of the Consortium. Additional groups provide constituent input and coordination to the Consortia in targeted areas. The 12-member Advisory Committee is composed primarily of K-12 teachers and administrators. The Distance Delivery Council includes representatives of major distance delivery systems in the region. The Preservice Education Council is composed of deans of colleges of education in the region. The Adult Education Council consists of representatives from the Northwest Regional Literacy Resource Center and additional state designees.
Audience
- K-12 Teachers
- Preservice Educators
- Adult Literacy Providers
- Underserved: Rural, Isolated, American Indian Populations
Region-wide Priorities for Service and Activities
The priorities for NETC services and activities has been expressed by states and Member Council representatives in the following four areas.
- Integrating technology with teaching and learning
- Identifying and supporting leaders at the building level
- Developing and implementing technology plans
- Building infrastructure for networking and telecommunications
Delivery Systems
Our intent is to use technology whenever possible to deliver staff development, technical assistance, and information dissemination events and on-going activities, including:
- Internet, and state telecommunication networks
- Pacific Star Schools Partnership and other state-oriented distance delivery systems
- CD-ROM
- WWW site
- Moderated on-line discussion groups