Close to 300 school trustees from around the state crowded into the Capitol’s Lincoln Auditorium late Monday afternoon for an update on the status of the Idaho Education Network. “As you know, we’ve had a mess,” Senate President Pro-Tem Brent Hill, R-Rexburg, told them. “The contracts were not entered into appropriately.” He said, “There is a very good chance that your IEN connection, your broadband, your internet is not going to functional after the end of this month.”

School districts are being asked to immediately apply for e-rate eligibility for next year, and to immediately begin negotiating for their own broadband services, in the words of Senate Finance Chair Dean Cameron, R-Rupert, “Starting March 1 or whenever the service ends up going dark.”

Will Goodman, technology chief for the state Department of Education, said the department will assist any school district that needs help with the process. You can read my full story here at spokesman.com.