This source, however, varied by district. In addition to state and federal funds targeted for technology, all five districts reported using other federal and state program funding that was not specifically designated for technology but could be used for this purpose. Informational Efforts and Partnerships Have Addressed a Variety of Barriers

Technology directors in the districts we studied identified a variety of barriers to obtaining funding both at the district level and from other sources such as grants. Officials from all districts said that resistance to higher taxes affected their ability to increase the district’s operating revenue to help meet their technology goals. Staff-Related and Other Components Difficult to Fund

Nearly all districts found maintenance, technical support, and training— components often dependent on staff—more difficult to fund than other components, according to our review. Most districts funded technology staff primarily from district operating budgets. One district official said such costs posed problems because of their large expense; an official in another district said funding these services was difficult because the need for funding is ongoing; and an official in a third district cited problems due to the need for funding from limited district operating funds. Districts Plan to Use Same Funding Sources for Ongoing Costs Despite Uncertainties

Most of the districts we studied planned to continue supporting the costs of their technology programs largely as they had in the past, despite the uncertainties associated with many funding sources. Second, districts and schools need to fund the periodic costs of upgrading and replacing hardware, software, and infrastructure to sustain their programs. Scope and Methodology

The objectives of this study were to determine (1) what sources of funding school districts have used to develop and fund education technology, (2) what barriers districts have faced in funding the technology goals they set and how they have tried to overcome these barriers, (3) which components of districts’ technology programs have been the most difficult to fund and what the consequences have been, and (4) how districts plan to handle the ongoing costs of the technology they have acquired. Major questions covered in district and school interviews included but were not restricted to (1) the history of the technology program, (2) efforts to obtain technology funding, (3) barriers to obtaining technology funding and strategies used to overcome them, (4) barriers to funding technology components, and (5) funding ongoing costs of the technology program. Subsequent technology plans focused on equipping classrooms with computers. The technology director also noted that businesses and foundations tend not to support ongoing costs such as technical support or telecommunications charges.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed how five school districts funded their technology goals and their difficulties in finding those resources, focusing on: (1) the funding sources school districts used to develop and fund their technology programs; (2) the barriers school districts have faced in funding the technology goals they set, and their efforts to overcome these barriers; (3) which components of districts' technology programs have been the most difficult to fund, and what have been the consequences; and (4) how the districts plan to handle the ongoing costs of the technology they have acquired.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) the five districts that GAO studied used a variety of ways to fund their technology programs; (2) funding sources included money from district operating budgets, special technology levies and bonds, state and federal funds, and private and other contributions; (3) most districts received a majority of funding from one source, although this funding source varied by district; (4) technology directors in the five districts have cited a variety of barriers to obtaining the funds needed to implement technology programs; (5) in all five districts, technology had to compete for funding with other needs and priorities, including school building maintenance, repair, and construction, mandated programs, and additional teachers to handle increased enrollment; (6) community resistance to higher taxes, according to district officials, limited all five districts' ability to raise more revenue; (7) technology directors also cited barriers to obtaining other sources of funding, such as business contributions or grants, particularly because the districts lacked staff to manage fund-raising efforts; (8) furthermore, some officials reported that demographics made them ineligible for some grants; (9) program components that were hardest to fund, technology directors and others said, were those heavily dependent on staff positions; (10) staffing was difficult to fund because some funding sources' could not be used for staffing and because some sources were not well suited for this purpose; (11) to support the ongoing and periodic costs of their technology programs, the districts planned to continue using a variety of funding sources largely as in the past despite some of these sources' uncertainties; (12) most planned to continue to fund annual ongoing costs, such as maintenance and technical support, with district operating dollars; (13) officials were not sure, however, how much these sources would provide in the future as program needs grow; (14) the periodic costs of eventually upgrading and replacing equipment, software, and infrastructure also faced uncertain funding; and (15) officials in some locations noted that at times major funding sources fell significantly short of expectations.