Leann, Lupe, and Jake are teammates for our project which focus on a technology plan for the Clint ISD.

The target population comprises prekindergarten through fifth grade. This is not a bid solicitation. A contract will not result from this Request for Information for Proposal (RFP). This request for Information will not necessarily result in any procurement action and contractors are not to earmark stock or facilities relative to the work described herein.

This project is being led by Ken Blystone and dx.net in Seattle, WA. Clint Net is managed by Ken Blystone, working in partnership with provincial and state governments as well as public sector and education associations. Clint NetÕs purpose is to help Clint libraries connect to the Information Highway, and encourage the development of new roles for public libraries as economic incubators, community development agents, distributors of electronic information, and centers for lifelong learning. We request information from potential service suppliers who could provide a future two-way multimedia connectivity service for a number of remote an rural schools an libraries across Clint.

The solution must provide prescribed access bandwidth speeds for each school and library, access to an Internet service provider, and connectivity to support general two-way IP-based video/audio conferencing capabilities. We are looking for a solution that could be implemented at the beginning of 2003. It is anticipated that an initial service contract would be for a term between three to five years. Each school and library will require two-way multimedia connectivity service. Schools will require the capability to do high-speed Internet access and distance learning (two-way videoconferencing or audio+graphics). Libraries will require the capability to do high-speed Internet access, enable advanced government services, and also do two-way videoconferencing. Note that this is the peak bandwidth requirement at a school during a 24-hour day. During off-school hours, many schools may also require bandwidth for Community Access Site activities or adult education. A service provider provisioning shared bandwidth would need to make available bandwidth to schools during the entire 24-hour day.

We would like a discussion in the costs section response about the cost implications of providing the above bandwidth per school continually over the 24 hours, and what cost efficiencies might be possible for providing a lower bandwidth during the non-peak (off-school) hours. The two-way dedicated access bandwidth required per school is: 538 Kbps (between 512 Kbps and 768 Kbps) in each direction.