Funds For Learning COVID-19 Response

Our communities find themselves standing at the front line of an unfamiliar battle.  School and library staff are being challenged in new ways as they are asked to help curb the transmission of the coronavirus while maintaining critical education and information services. In a time like this, we want you to know that our thoughts are with you.

At Funds For Learning, we are determined to serve our community and our clients well through this difficult season. Because clear communication is critical, here are three important items to share with you.

Focused on Community and Clients
We resolve to do our part guarding society’s most vulnerable citizens, as well as our neighbors, our families and our teammates. We know that we can help guard our local population from the spread of COVID-19 and we are committed to taking appropriate steps as the situation warrants. 

While managing today’s immediate needs, we also know it is critical that we guard our clients’ future funding. The current situation highlights the importance of Internet connectivity in schools and libraries, and next year’s E-rate funding is going to be more important than ever. The funding year 2020 E-rate filing deadline has been extended to April 29, and the application review process has already started. Therefore, we remain focused on taking care of our clients, managing their funding, and stepping in to support them in their time of extra need.

Prepared to Help 
We have a responsibility to take care of our clients, no matter the circumstance. Our headquarters are based in “tornado alley.” For years, we have intentionally used redundancies and backups, both human and digital, to ensure the continuity of our service.

Of course, we did not design this system with the coronavirus in mind, but the principles are the same. Our service is delivered by a team of experienced experts who all have access to the information necessary to support any of our clients; and, we operate entirely via cloud-based resources like E-rate Manager, Office 365 and Zoom. In short, any of our team members are available to help any of our clients from anywhere at any time.

Willing to Assist Others
No school or library should miss out on E-rate funding for Internet access because of the coronavirus. E-rate coordinators were already overwhelmed before the pandemic and now many are at their wits end. We are willing to help anyone that we can. If you are not a client, but your school or library needs immediate help meeting an E-rate paperwork deadline due to the coronavirus, please contact us and we will do everything we can to help at no charge. Click here to request this special service.

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The communities, institutions, and staff we support are fighting to protect the health and well-being of children, and to keep them connected to the world around them. We stand ready to serve, determined to give ourselves fully to this mission to the very best of our ability.

Sincerely,
John D. Harrington
Chief Executive Officer